Get ready for a wild ride, because head coach Liam Coen just dropped a bombshell: many of the starting Jaguars players won’t even see the field this Saturday for the preseason opener. Yeah, you read that right. After a scorching 93-degree Tuesday at the Miller Electric Center Practice Fields that saw tempers absolutely flare, Coen is holding back the big guns, letting the ones and twos handle the majority of snaps. The vets will get their main on-field work during Thursday’s joint practices against the New Orleans Saints, but don’t expect them to suit up for the first real game action.
Friction and New Faces in the Florida Heat
Seriously, the Florida heat isn’t just baking the field, it’s cooking up some serious friction among the players. Tuesday saw not one, but *two* skirmishes erupt. Running back DJ Dallas was in the middle of one, with a small punch thrown before things got broken up. The second one was even more heated, involving Jabbar Muhammad and Parker Washington, and it took a full four players to pull those guys apart. It’s clear these guys are absolutely ready to hit someone who isn’t wearing the same uniform, especially with those joint practices right around the corner.
But hey, at least there are some new faces in the linebacker room! The Jaguars just signed Amari Burney, a 26-year-old who spent two seasons with the Las Vegas Raiders. He’s got 24 games and one start under his belt, with 27 tackles, five special-teams tackles, three tackles for loss, a sack, and a forced fumble. He even played with Ventrell Miller back at Florida. This move, coming right after the Jahlani Tavai signing last Thursday, adds some much-needed depth. With Parker Hughes as a small-school guy and Jack Kiser still nursing an injury, watching how this linebacker group shakes out for the final 53-man roster is going to be genuinely interesting.
Offensive Line Crunch and Play Calling Challenges
Okay, but the biggest headache right now has to be the offensive line. It’s an absolute mess of injury limitations and experimentation. Patrick Mekari is still doing minimal team work, Cole Van Lanen is on the PUP list, and Walker Little missed practice *again* after his mock scrimmage injury from Friday. Not exactly an ideal combo, right? Emmanuel Pregnon got back to limited work, but the coaching staff is still mixing and matching upfront more than ever. Recently signed tackle Geron Christian even got extended run at left tackle against the starting defense. Coach Coen straight up said they need increased repetitions for a lot of these depth linemen, especially with joint practices and the expectation that these guys might be seeing a lot of action by Week 1. You could see the issues on Tuesday too, with would-be sacks from Dennis Gardeck, BJ Green, and Travon Walker. This offensive line needs to get healthy and gelling ASAP if they want to be ready for Week 1.
Oh, and there’s a new voice calling plays for Saturday! Offensive Coordinator Grant Udinski is confirmed as the primary play caller for the opener. This frees up Coen to be more involved with defensive updates and challenge flag decisions, which is cool. But Coen also hinted at the serious challenges Udinski faces calling plays for a roster already dealing with injury limitations and that crazy “numbers crunch” on the offensive line this week. It’s a tough spot to be in, man.
With those joint practices kicking off Thursday and the preseason opener on Saturday, all eyes are on this team. Can the O-line get it together? Will the tempers cool down, or will they hit someone not wearing the same jersey and show everyone what they’re truly made of? We’re about to find out!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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