The 2016 season has come to an end and it is time to take stock of what has been a rather disappointing year for the Jacksonville Jaguars. While there were many moments throughout the year which were uncomfortable to watch, to put it nicely, there were some bright spots throughout this young roster this year. As the Jaguars department at Last Word on Sports, we do our best to evaluate the Jaguars. Today, tight ends are under the microscope.
Jacksonville Jaguars Tight Ends End of Season Review
Julius Thomas
Mike Dirocco of ESPN has recently claimed that Julius Thomas will likely be cut when the team officially enters the off-season, just two years removed from signing a $46,000,000 contract in Jacksonville. If that doesn’t sum up his season, I don’t know what will.
Thomas has been plagued by injuries and can argue that his production only seems so little because he only played nine games last year but, this is probably something which could and should be held against him. Thomas is 28 and is yet to play more than 12 games a season. That’s staggering for someone who’s the best paid tight end in football.
During his two dominant years in a Broncos uniform (yes he was there longer, but were they really worth remembering?), Thomas had back to back seasons with 12 touchdown catches, a total number which he has failed to reach in two seasons in Jacksonville. This year, Thomas hauled in 30 catches for 281 yards, but failed to establish himself as a red-zone threat after only registering four touchdowns in 2016.
This year has been a bad one for Thomas, and might just be his final one with the Jaguars.
Ben Koyack
The Notre Dame product had a quietly impressive season in 2016. While not expected to feature in the Jaguars offense a whole lot, he provided Blake Bortles with a reliable target in the second half of the season. Registering 19 catches through eight games and he even hauled in a touchdown in the Week 17 heart-breaker against the Indianapolis Colts.
With Marcedes Lewis ageing and Thomas seemingly on his way out, Koyack has a huge role to play on this offense moving forward. Proving this year that he is just as dependable when blocking as he is as a short distance target, Koyack is poised for an even bigger season in 2017. The Jaguars may look to get younger at tight end during the 2017 NFL Draft, but that by no means indicates that #83 won’t be influential to this team moving forward.
Marcedes Lewis
Marcedes Lewis is a 32-year-old tight end about to enter his 12th NFL season, I’m not surprised his numbers are slowing down. Nevertheless, the UCLA product has only ever eclipsed five touchdowns in a single season once, and hasn’t done so since 2010.
General Manager Dave Caldwell made it clear last year that Lewis will finish his career in Jacksonville, giving him a contract that will run through until the end of the 2018 season, something that most fans should appreciate after what will be Lewis’ 13th year of service to the Jaguars. However, while most people can appreciate the sentiment, Lewis should not be getting paid as a top 20 tight end if he cannot perform like one.
It has been another down year for Marcedes, but here’s to hoping he can get healthy and still feature in 2017.
Neal Sterling
Sterling caught the eyes of a few Jags fans during a respectable stint throughout the second half of the season. With only one catch all year before Week 12, Sterling then had 11 grabs for 100 yards – including a 43 yard game against Denver’s elite defense.
Another young man in this position group who may benefit from the absence of Julius Thomas, one can only imagine that Sterling’s role will see a major growth after becoming one of the more dependable targets in an offense plagued by drops and injuries.
Overall
I feel the need to split this category into two, because the young players at tight end have more than surpassed the media’s expectations of them in 2016. Perhaps with a full off-season under new offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett’s scheme and some new talent brought in, the Jaguars tight end group can become a bright spot in the roster rather than a scapegoat for this lackluster passing offense.
Due to the underwhelming performance of our key targets, and the form of multi million dollar man Julius Thomas. I have little option than to give this position group a D.
