Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio got a lot of attention last year for saying David Garrard wasn’t an elite quarterback. Del Rio and owner Wayne Weaver talked about the improvements Garrard needed to make, including hints about his work ethic.
Garrard had his best season in three years, but that hasn’t changed Del Rio’s assessment. Del Rio repeated his take on Garrard according to the Florida Times-Union, but stressed it wasn’t a slight. Del Rio believes there are only a few elite quarterbacks in the league.
Ultimately, Del Rio is right. Garrard is good enough, but he needs a special defense or offensive teammates to lift him. There certainly isn’t elite talent around him in Jacksonville. That’s one reason why we expect the Jaguars to finally draft a quarterback to develop this year.
It may not a first-round pick, but any pick would be a start: The Jaguars haven’t drafted a quarterback since taking Byron Leftwich in 2003.
Channel Finder
please don’t post this again next year because it’ll be the same thing. Garrard will never be an elite QB. but hey, Trent Dilfer has a super bowl ring, so he can still get it done. (but I doubt it)
If a QB needs to be surrounded by elite talent in order to reach a level that’s considered elite, then maybe the QB wasn’t elite to begin with (cf. Manning, Peyton).
It helps to have a line that can keep you upright and receivers who can catch, but offensive and defensive improvements can’t turn a good QB into an elite QB. The best at the position are born with the right mix of arm, brains, leadership skills, and chutzpah, then hone their natural gifts through practice and film study.
Trent Dilfer was a good QB who’s talked about how much he studied and practiced. And he couldn’t have had a more gifted defense to support him. But though he won a Super Bowl, as he’s said himself, he wasn’t born with what it takes to be a Tom Brady.
the Jags havent drafted a QB since 2003??? wow, no wonder that team hasnt ever gotten really good.
One year later Greg Rosenthal is still not a respectable sports journalist.
He had a shot…time to move on Jagoffs
“It may not a first-round pick, but any pick would be a start”
It may not BE a first round pick…???
stixzidinia says:
Jan 14, 2011 7:21 PM
One year later Greg Rosenthal is still not a respectable sports journalist.
I mean seriously…do you read your posts you’ve typed before hitting ENTER or however you post them? What ever happened to learning from one’s mistakes?
Jags will take Mallet …or maybe Locker with the 1st Round Pick (#16).
I noticed that David Garrard made the Pro Bowl last year. But it was as the 8th string quarterback, as strings 1-5 did not play in the Pro Bowl. This could lead to a conversation for a different post about the talent that makes it to the Pro Bowl.
he’s a more resilient Rodney Peete….No more no less
That division only has one elite QB. I mean, do I really have to say his name.
The bad news for the AFC South teams other than the Colts is, you not only have to beat the best QB in your division, you have to beat the best QB in the league.
The Colts will own as long as the Sheriff plays.
IM drunk & Im the best Fantasy Football player of all time. werd to your grannys’ panties. MDGTL 4 life. I have been kicked out of better places than this.
Adequate, but not leet.
I doubt the Jags take Locker or Mallet. I would think Dalton or Ponder would be more like it, especially if they plan on having that QB sit for a year. They need a starter out of their first pick. They need DBs (FS, SS in particular) REAL BAD!
He never will be an elite QB.
I think the Jags would LOVE to pick Cam Newton if he’s still there at 16 and he might be. He would put butts in the seats and bring some excitment to the Jags. He’d be the ultimate risk/reward guy which maybe the Jags need.
@stixzidinia
This is PFT. These aren’t journalists.
@dolfan34
Or they could just trade for Tebow.
garrard isnt good enough to win with that cast.
There’s no doubt he’ll never be an elite QB. Let’s just face it–what talent is there in Jacksonville outside MJD?
*Crickets*
This is news?
Garrard is decent/competent but nowhere near elite.
He’d be an improvement in SF, Oakland, Carolina, Tennessee, Arizona, Washington, Minnesota and maybe Buffalo.
It might be worth 3 out of 10 on the cleverness scale, but the accomanying photo of Nick in his toque cuts that in half.
No way will Cam Newton be around at 16th. As usual with the Jags, they will continue to draft an underachiever with their 1st pick, and then draft a QB in the 3rd or 4th round.
…So? We make due with what we have. And we have David Garrard, who isn’t elite like Manning and Brady, whoop de doo, so does most of the other 31 teams in the league.
@dolfan: If we wanted to put extra butts in the seats with a single pick, we would’ve picked up the hometown “Golden Boy” last year at #10.
@ tiproast
What? Youre going to tell me Peyton Manning is only a good quarterback because he has elite talent? That’s assanine. He was working with one starter for the majority of this season with all of the injuries the Colts had. I never realized Jacob Tamme and Blair White were household names. Too many of you people that right on here dont appreciate how lucky we are to watch two quarterbacks like Brady and Manning in thier primes. No, we have to continually bash the opposite in order to make ourselves feel better. Just appreciate that you get to watch a guy like Manning (and Brady), and that you arent stuck with a generation of guys like David Garrard.
I hope I am just misunderstanding your post because nobody can be that ignorant.
If anyone takes Cam Newten before the 3rd round they are nuts.
The jaguars have alot more pressing problems than QB. If they would focus on those they would be better off, but they should draft a qb in the later rounds.
NEWS FLASH: Ten years later, David Garrard is still not an elite quarterback.
Not everyone is Tom Brady or Peyton Manning
paging mark brunell
Couldn’t you say this about 95% of the QBs in the league. What is the fascination with Garrard?
- One Year Later, Mark Sanchez is still not an elite quarterback.
or..
Jay Culter
Kyle Orton
Eli Manning
Carson Palmer
Matt Hassleback
All had passer ratings below Garrard this year.
There are about 5 “elite QBs” and10 “horrible” QBs, and the rest are around the same. QB is the least of the Jaguars concerns…
Garrard is about the same as flacco but pft seems to think flacco is elite either way I dont care josh freeman is the qb of my fav team and he is better than both of them
bspn2 says:
Jan 14, 2011 9:12 PM
He never will be an elite QB.
———————-
+1
Anyone waiting for this miraculous transformation to occur should not be holding their breath…
The Jaguars need defensive backs a lot more than they need a new QB. Therefore, their first choice will most likely be a DB.
He’s a bit of an enigma to me in that he seems to have all the tangibles, but fails to get it done when it counts.
Would someone please explain to me how Jack Del Rio is still a HC?
Newsflash: He isn’t, never was, and never will be an elite NFL QB. He’s nothing more than average.
Garrard isn’t an elite QB blah, blah, blah. Neither is 28 other starting QB’s in the league. Garrard is a good QB though and can take you to the playoff and even the SB if the Jaguars had a top defense. This year the Jag defense was so horrible any QB would struggle to bring in wins.
Bottomline, this year’s QB drafting crop will be heavy and is the PERFECT time to draft a QB to sit behind Garrard and learn. Hell, is we can fix this defense this off season, I believe Garrard will surprise a lot of people next year.