As most of you by now know, David Garrard has been cut by the Jacksonville Jaguars. The development was originally reported by Jay Glazer, and it was quickly picked up by John Clayton. For many around the league, it was a shocking development, but to those of us that follow the team closely, it’s barely a surprise.
In 2007, the Jaguars parted ways with Byron Leftwich in favor of David Garrard. At the time, it was becoming apparent that Leftwich had a knack for getting injured, and you can’t live, as an NFL team, with the ever present danger of losing your starting quarterback, so; the move was made.
Fast forward to yesterday. The Jaguars made a similar move when they cut ties with Garrard in favor of Luke McCown. The reasons, however, are entirely different this time around.
The simple fact of the matter is that this is Blaine Gabbert’s team, eventually. When that time comes will now be soley dependent on the level of Luke McCown’s play, but contrary to what John Clayton would have you believe, Luke McCown isn’t a short term fix. He has the opportunity to lead this team for a couple of years. It’s all dependent on his level of play.
Here’s exactly what Clayton had to say about McCown’s chance to lead the team:
“Best estimate is that Luke McCown starts the first eight game. The Jags have a bye week Nov. 6 and can transition to Blaine Gabbert”
I’m here to tell you that Clayton is off-base, and at worst, flat out wrong.
The move to cut Garrard wasn’t made to make room for Blaine Gabbert. That doesn’t make sense. While Gene Smith does have the final say in personnel decisions, Jack Del Rio does get to give his opinion on the matter, and he wouldn’t have let Smith cut Garrard if Del Rio thought he was still the best man for the job.
Cutting David Garrard, in fact, does make room for Gabbert, but Garrard was cut because he no longer gave the Jaguars their best chance to win on Sunday. When the “best man for the job” became Luke McCown, Garrard had to go. With the move, the Jaguars shaved off a hefty $8.1 million dollars in cap room. That’s why the move was made. You just don’t pay a backup quarterback that much money.
Finally, we have to move on to a fact that just can’t be ignored. Jack Del Rio needs to make the playoffs. Many, myself included, believe that a playoff birth is the only thing that could save Del Rio’s job, and playing a rookie isn’t conducive to winning tons of games.
The Jaguars have been given a potentially great opportunity to seize control of the AFC South if Peyton Manning does indeed have to miss significant playing time. If that’s the case, the division will likely be a two horse race between the Jaguars and the favored Texans. With so much on the line, look for Del Rio to leave the veteran in as long as he possibly can.
As I’ve said before, this team is Blaine Gabbert’s, but not quite yet. He lost an entire off-season to the lockout, and he’s simply not ready. There’s just too much information for him to absorb in such a short period of time. The Jaguars would actually like to see him be able to stay on the bench for a season or two before taking the reigns, and I’m certain that Luke McCown would be more than happy to hold the job for as long as possible. This season, it’s all about the guy that gives the Jaguars the best chance to win now, and that guy is Luke McCown.
