2007 Jacksonville Jaguars NFL Picks & Predictions


June 5, 2008 | Posted By Larry Cook

With the 2007 Jags predictions you are going to see a team that has reached mission critical. The futures of head coach Jack Del Rio and Byron Leftwich are both up in the air. Del Rio has had four years to come in and get this team a playoff win and he has been unable to do so. The Jags went 12-4 in 2005, but after slipping to 8-8 a year ago he suddenly finds himself sitting right square on the hot seat.

The quarterback situation is pretty much a mess. Del Rio was vocal in the off-season about his desire for Jacksonville to draft Brady Quinn. It’s no secret there is turmoil with Leftwich and Del Rio ever since David Gerrard replaced Leftwich with 10 games left in the 2006 campaign. Del Rio thought his ankle injury was too severe to play through, Leftwich disagreed. Gerrard then lost the job when he finished the year 5-5 to help Jacksonville miss the playoffs. The stable of running backs is the marquee position on the team with Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew. The problem is Taylor is getting up there in years and Drew is pretty small for an elite NFL running back. Taylor needs to stay healthy and perform in order to help the Jags use Drew to the best of his abilities. At wide receiver Jacksonville decided to go tall by drafting Matt Jones and Reggie Williams, but both of them will be in the need for a breakout season. Dennis Northcutt was brought in to provide a deep threat.

Defensively the team will be strong once again in 2007. Jacksonville has a tough defensive line with Marcus Stround and John Henderson both Pro-Bowl type tackles who stuff the run. At end they have talent if Reggie Hayward comes back from injury and Bobby McCray can get over not getting a contract extension. Young pass rushers are plentiful. Last year Mike Peterson went down for the last 11 games and in the end that might make this year’s edition much improved. Darryl Smith had to replace his presence and did so admirably, and the injury allowed Clint Ingram to grow at the outside. Now with Peterson back all three should be forces. Corner is set with Pro Bowler Rashean Mathis and Brian Williams, but safety could be a problem. Rookie Reggie Nelson from Florida will be starting alongside Donovin Darius, who is a leader but suffered injuries last season.

Hit or miss is how we see Jacksonville this season. If things start clicking early and the QB and coach can get in sync with each other, the team can ride high. It will help that they get the Titans and Falcons at home to start the season before heading to Denver. I’m seeing it as a stretch that this team will make it to 10 wins however, so I’m taking the UNDER, but you might want to think about the value you will get with the Jags on odds to win the AFC and Super Bowl, it’s worth a second gander.

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