The Chosen One
Jack Del Rio gives the football to Byron Leftwich on Thursday afternoon and it is really just another way of saying that he is putting his own job in Leftwich's hands. Now he needs Leftwich to run and pass the Jaguars into the postseason.
Here's the thing to know about Del Rio's decision: it really wasn't much of a decision at all. Giving Leftwich the nod merely confirms that the Jaguars a) had little hope of making a trade for another QB; b) have a significant financial stake in Leftwich; and c) are well-aware of what the story in 2007 is going to be about.
As much as he might like to dismiss it as a media fabrication, Del Rio is that story. There aren't too many people who get to keep a head coaching job for four years without winning a playoff game and that is exactly where this head coach is right now. Five would be too much. Del Rio has to win now.
It all starts with the quarterback. Leftwich had a falling-out with Del Rio last season, a disagreement over how Leftwich's injured ankle was handled and how serious the situation was portrayed. Things were said, communications were missed, people were offended. At the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Del Rio says he's spoken to Leftwich to clear the air and admits that "we could have handled things better." No kidding. Alienating any player, let alone your biggest star, is never a good approach. Now Del Rio can only hope the bridge wasn't burned so badly that he can't walk over it without tumbling.
If it isn't, if Leftwich is healthy and willing and able, then he can deliver. For all that David Garrard was, he was never clutch enough, never complete enough to drive a team all the way. He was a flash of lightning instead of a long, powerful, rolling thunder, and this year the Jags are in need of something more sustained. Leftwich can be that.
"Really, we feel like it's a position of strength," Del Rio says of the QB position and it's hard to imagine him doing it with a straight face. Nothing is a position of strength with the Jags now, least of all the head coach. On Thursday he took a step, made it known that 2007 could be Leftwich's year. We know better. We know that in the end it will be Del Rio's year more than anybody else's.
Here's the thing to know about Del Rio's decision: it really wasn't much of a decision at all. Giving Leftwich the nod merely confirms that the Jaguars a) had little hope of making a trade for another QB; b) have a significant financial stake in Leftwich; and c) are well-aware of what the story in 2007 is going to be about.
As much as he might like to dismiss it as a media fabrication, Del Rio is that story. There aren't too many people who get to keep a head coaching job for four years without winning a playoff game and that is exactly where this head coach is right now. Five would be too much. Del Rio has to win now.
It all starts with the quarterback. Leftwich had a falling-out with Del Rio last season, a disagreement over how Leftwich's injured ankle was handled and how serious the situation was portrayed. Things were said, communications were missed, people were offended. At the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Del Rio says he's spoken to Leftwich to clear the air and admits that "we could have handled things better." No kidding. Alienating any player, let alone your biggest star, is never a good approach. Now Del Rio can only hope the bridge wasn't burned so badly that he can't walk over it without tumbling.
If it isn't, if Leftwich is healthy and willing and able, then he can deliver. For all that David Garrard was, he was never clutch enough, never complete enough to drive a team all the way. He was a flash of lightning instead of a long, powerful, rolling thunder, and this year the Jags are in need of something more sustained. Leftwich can be that.
"Really, we feel like it's a position of strength," Del Rio says of the QB position and it's hard to imagine him doing it with a straight face. Nothing is a position of strength with the Jags now, least of all the head coach. On Thursday he took a step, made it known that 2007 could be Leftwich's year. We know better. We know that in the end it will be Del Rio's year more than anybody else's.
posted by Sam at
12:02 AM
1 Comments:
I understand that folks like to put pressure on the head coach, just like the QB, but in the Jags case, if the Jaguars have a winning season, I see no reason that Del Rio should be fired, even if we don't win a playoff game. Del Rio has built the Jaguars into a tough, physical football team. This team has a good future. . .firing a football coach who built the personality of the team would do no good. I hope Weaver has the patience of the Rooneys with the Steelers. . . a good coach is hard to find. Ask the Chargers or Cowboys!
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