Preseason wraps up with Jaguars at Dolphins, Bucs hosting Bills | 2MD
The Jacksonville Jaguars play at the Miami Dolphins at 7 p.m. Saturday, while the Buccaneers host the Bills at 7:30 p.m.
Anthony Richardson’s NFL future is uncertain after losing the Colts’ starting quarterback job to Daniel Jones and having a short-lived, injury-riddled career.The Jaguars explored trading for receiver Devaughn Vele but the Saints acquired him instead.The SEC approved a nine-game conference football schedule beginning in 2024, impacting Florida’s non-conference scheduling.
Now what for ex-Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson after he lost a training camp competition to Daniel Jones to start for the Indianapolis Colts?
Two things: No future with the Colts and, unfortunately, infamy.
Richardson is one of 69 quarterbacks drafted in the top five from 1966-2023 and only five started fewer games. Yikes.
The bottom five in starts: Clint Longley (supplemental draft, two starts), Trey Lance (five), Art Schlichter (six), Rick Norton (11) and Greg Cook (11). Richardson has 15 starts.
Longley was traded to Dallas, but the Cowboys gave up on him after he punched Roger Staubach. That will do it. Lance was hurt in San Francisco and eventually replaced by Brock Purdy. Schlichter’s career was derailed by a gambling addiction. And Cook sustained a shoulder injury in his third game and was never the same.
The blame pie in Indianapolis can be cut into several pieces.
The Colts over-drafted Richardson. If they didn’t take him fourth overall, he may have fell out of the first round. Blame general manager Chris Ballard.
Richardson couldn’t stay healthy. His medical dossier lists a concussion and shoulder, oblique, back and finger injuries. Blame bad luck.
Richardson didn’t gain enough experience in college. He started 13 games and threw 393 passes. By comparison, Houston’s C.J. Stroud threw 830 and Carolina’s Bryce Young 949 passes. Blame nobody because Richardson would have been foolish to not declare for the 2023 draft.
Richardson didn’t handle himself well. Chief on the list is taking himself out of a game against Houston last year because he was tired from scrambling. He was benched the next day, mostly because coaches weren’t happy with is preparation. Blame Richardson.
Returning to the issue of what’s next for Richardson. The national television people were connecting him to Quarterback Reset Programs like Pittsburgh and the Los Angeles Rams. But to be a dependable back-up quarterback, you need to prepare without getting practice reps and have at least some measure of previous success.
Remember, Blake Bortles had a 2-1 playoff record and stayed healthy for the Jaguars, but never got another chance to start. Lance is on his third team in three years.
Richardson’s best hope should be to get a chance to play for Indianapolis this year to put together a positive audition tape. Save that, he should hope to be released and start a journeyman career as a back-up if he can convince teams he can fill that role.
Jaguars searching for receivers
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton said the Jaguars were one of the teams in the mix for receiver Devaughn Vele, who was traded to the New Orleans Saints for fourth- and seventh-round picks.
Payton said the Saints wanted a “bigger receiver,” and Vele is 6-foot-5. The Jaguars’ top four receivers are Brian Thomas Jr. (6-2), Travis Hunter (6-1), Dyami Brown (6-0) and Parker Washington (5-10).
I like that the Jaguars are poking around on all available players. You never know when there is a match of need and compensation. Over the next week, I’ll say three trades and waiver claims apiece.
Good move by SEC
Bravo to the SEC’s athletic directors for green-lighting a nine-game conference football schedule starting next year. Each school will play three rivalry opponents every year. For Florida, the first rival is obviously Georgia, but after that, let’s go with Tennessee and Auburn.
The other six games will be a rotation of opponents.
At least for now, the league will maintain their mandate that each team play at least one other power conference team in non-league play.
Florida has always checked that box with its annual game against Florida State, but could face a scheduling conundrum in 2028. The Gators already have Furman, Colorado and at Arizona State on the schedule and one of those games must be dropped. They have three power conference/non-league games on the books in 2031 (Arizona State, Florida State and at Notre Dame).
Liam Coen on first prep start
High school football in the region is underway and I asked Jaguars coach Liam Coen about his first start at quarterback for LaSalle (R.I.) Academy in 2001.
“I was a sophomore starting for my dad (Tim), which was a cup of tea,” Coen said with a laugh. “I just remember not throwing (it) all that much and I think we won pretty handedly.”
LaSalle finished the season 9-0 and won the state’s Division I “Super Bowl.”
“High school football is truly so pure and that’s the cool part about it,” Coen said. “My dad was a high school coach and my parents were high school teachers and as much as you love Sundays in the NFL and Saturdays in the SEC, there’s nothing better than Friday night lights.”
College football playoff proposal
College football should follow the NFL and expand to a 14-team playoff (up from 12). The idea of a 24- or 28-team playoff is nauseating.
My CFP would have byes for Nos. 1-2. The match-ups would be Nos. 8 vs. 9, Nos. 5 vs. 12 and 4 vs. 13 in the top half of the bracket. On the bottom half, it would be Nos. 7 vs. 10, Nos. 3 vs. 14 and Nos. 6 vs. 11. First-round games would be played at home sites.
The No. 1 seed would play the 8/9 winner and the No. 2 would play the 7/10 winner.
There, I fixed the College Football Playoff, which really doesn’t need any fixing.
Let Bryson DeChambeau play!
Bryson DeChambeau has been selected to the United States Ryder Cup team and the PGA Tour should make the right call and let him play in the Procore Championship (Napa, Calif.) on Sept. 11-14 along with the rest of his teammates. Captain Keegan Bradley requested all Cup players participate in the event two weeks before the matches against Team Europe.
DeChambeau, of course, is ineligible to play in a Tour event because he is under contract with LIV Golf. If the point is beating Team Europe, the Tour should make an exception and let him play.
Quick Hitters
The announcers for the Jaguars’ first three games are set: Week 1 vs. Carolina (Chris Myers/Mark Schlereth on FOX), Week 2 at Cincinnati (Chris Lewis/Logan Ryan on CBS) and Week 3 vs. Houston (Spero Dedes/Adam Archuleta on CBS). … Auto racing titan Humpy Wheeler died Wednesday at 86. While running the Charlotte Motor Speedway, Wheeler brought night racing to the sport and also extensive pre-race activities for fans to ease the traffic flow. NASCAR chairman/CEO Jim France called Wheeler a “visionary whose name became synonymous with promotion and innovation in our sport.” … Has the Auburn football claimed another national championship in the last few days? The Tigers were previously the title-winners in 1957 and 2010, but have added 1910, 1913, 1914, 1958, 1983, 1993 and 2004 to their trophy case (sans trophies). … The Jaguars executed their first-ever preseason player-for-player trade on Aug. 17 when they flipped center Luke Fortner to New Orleans for defensive tackle Kaelen Saunders.