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With the 26th pick the Jacksonville Jaguars select...
2008-04-09 21:24:00
30 more minutes until my pick is revealed! Check Mocking the Draft at 3:00 for the pick. Of course, we'll debate it here as well, but we've got some guys working damn hard on this mock draft, and I'd encourage you to take a peek at what's going on. I think you'll approve of the pick, though I'm entirely open to criticism. -Chris
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The Jacksonville Jaguars select...
2008-04-09 20:55:00
Defensive Tackle Trevor Laws.The "correct" pick was Jeff Otah, according to my Value Board.  As I explain in my reasoning, the Jaguars only get Laws in the early part of the draft is if they trade back into the early second.  I like the player though and I think he'd be a damn fine addition to our line.Your thoughts?-C
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Safety Gerald Sensabaugh Signs Tender!
2008-04-08 23:43:00
Good things come in threes, Jacksonville completed their trifecta by signing safety Gerald Sensabaugh to his second round tender. Good for him, he'll get 1.47 million dollars this season and will have a chance to prove his value to the team this year as he'll be playing for a new contract.  Gerald is a very tough player who's absence forced the Jaguars to play the Sammy Knight game last season.  I look forward to seeing him fill out our secondary. Jack, David, and Gerald, not a bad couple of days. IMPORTANT: It's almost time for me to pick in the SB Nation Mock Draft!  If you've got any suggestions as to the pick, please let me know! -C
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David Garrard signs Contract Extension: 6 years, 60 Million!
2008-04-07 23:18:00
[editor's note, by River City Rage]: I'm on the road right now, so this is a bit stale. Thanks Freek1969 for posting this!David 's contract is fantastic. It's good for the team and it's good for David. Fantastic! I'll be back in full force tomorrow![End Note] WOW!  6 year deal worth $60 million dollars...$20 million of it is guaranteed...just under Tony Romo's $28 million guaranteed.  he was asking for Romo kind of money and he came pretty darn close, though Romo totally turned the Cowboys franchise aroun. Do we all think that Garrard is truly worth that in the long run? Do we draft a QB and have him sit behind Garrard for a few years?
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Jack Del Rio Contract Infomation Released:
2008-04-05 08:24:00
I speculated that Jack Del Rio would get between 4.5 and 4.8 million dollars per season.  It turns out that I was way wrong.  Jack Del Rio's new contract, according to Gene Frenette of the Florida Times-Union will average over five million dollars per year.  That's Super Bowl winning coach Tom Coughlin money.  That's a statement about where Wayne Weaver expects this team to go. Wow. He will receive the 3.8 million this coming season as was negotiated two years ago.  After that it's four years and a little over 20 million.   Wow. Go Jack, I'm sure you're having an extra happy birthday. As for me, I'll be returning to my roots this weekend on a surprise trip to Jacksonville and Central Florida for a bit of a job hunt.  (If anyone needs a net-savy employee, email me!).  I'll be posting, but doing so on the road, so bear with me! Also, my first article for New Era Scouting is up.  You can read it here. -Chris
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SB Nation Mock Draft Update!
2008-04-04 02:40:00
As everyone should know, the SB nation Mock Draft is underway! We're nine picks deep right now, with all the action happening over at Matt Miller's Mocking The Draft. This is not your normal mock draft, not by any stretch of the imagination. We've got thirty of the best team writers out there as well as the collective insight of New Era Scouting adding insight and analysis. Of course, our Jaguars won't be picking till sometime next week, probably on Wednesday, but it's worth checking out. If you recall, I'm sticking to my Draft Board, so as people come off we'll see who the Jaguars might end up with. Obviously my top ten or so is hit pretty hard. There's not much in the way of surprises in the draft, maybe the pick of Leodis McKelvin at number seven. I have University of South Florida's Mike Jenkins as the best Cornerback in the Draft, but it's not a bad pick for the Patriots. Top five players still unpicked: Ryan Clady, OT Boise State, Mike Jenkins CB USF, Rashar...
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Jack Del Rio signs 5 year contract: David Garrard just around the corner!
2008-04-03 23:48:00
There's a whole lot of quiet days during the offseason.  Days where the best thing you can hope to find is a vague draft preview or a juicy rumor.   Then there are days like today where we get two big fat stories that put a smile on your face and a spring in your step because you know that the long term future of your favorite franchise is coming together quite nicely. First thing I do every morning is check my RSS Reader for the latest round of stories off the internet.  On any other Thursday for the last many weeks it's been the same old stuff.  JagNation will have a scoop about a draft prospect, Ask Vic will sarcastically not answer questions, and I'll wonder if anything of substance will happen.  We've got quite a few weeks until the draft, though it's rolling ever closer.   It's just plain slow. Then I see this (note, that story is no longer posted), saying that Head Coach Jack Del Rio signed a contract extension and would have a press confer...
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Jack Del Rio Signs Contract Extension: Five Year Deal!
2008-04-03 18:29:00
Update [2008-4-3 14:30:30 by River City Rage]:: Contract is for 5 years, money still unknown. More to come! Jaguars.com reports that Head Coach Jack Del Rio has signed a contract extension.  The exact terms have not been released yet, and a quick search of the internet shows that it's not been leaked yet either.  The team plans on having a press conference at 1:00 EST to officially announce the extension. Congratulations Jack on a well-deserved raise.  He's been one of the lowest paid coaches in the league, though he did sign a three million dollar a year extension in 2006 that expired after the 2008 season.  In the NFL, you don't let coaches have a "lame duck" season unless there's an obvious Heir Apparant or you're intentionally trying to run your team into the ground. Seattle's Mike Holmgren is the NFL's highest paid coach at 8 million per year.  Tom Coughlin just won the Super Bowl and received a 4 year, 5.25 million dollar per year extensio...
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Jacksonville Jaguars offer Third Round Pick for Jason Taylor
2008-04-03 01:35:00
[editor's note, by River City Rage] Props and thanks to reader NASF for pointing this story my direction!Update [2008-4-2 22:2:41 by River City Rage]:: JagsMac and MyTeamCanBeatUpYourTeam from the Jaguars.com Message Boards have an interesting idea. Trade our first and Third round pick for Jason Taylor and Miami's Second Round pick. We move back six spots on the first day and have two (solid track record) Second Round picks, and get Taylor. Not a bad idea, not bad at all... The Miami Herald is offering up another piece of the Jason Taylor puzzle.  What makes this one different is that it's not their "blog" making the connection, but rather their actual sports section. The Quote: Even the Jaguars -- who appear at this point to be the team with the most interest in Taylor -- are believed to be willing to give up only a third-round pick. The Dolphins likely would only take a first-round choice or an early second-rounder for him. A third round pick for Jason Taylor, not a ...
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The Official Big Cat Country 2008 Draft Value Board!
2008-04-02 21:30:00
With the SB Nation Mock Draft well under way, it's time that we start to consider who we'll pick when it (finally) comes to our podium time.  I've constructed the Official Big Cat Country Value Board , though we've got a few days to adjust it.  I'd like a little input on this so that it's set and ready to go by Friday, that way when it's time to pick all we have to do is select the highest player that's left. Now, making a value board is pretty hard. You can't let things like "need" and "want" get in the way. It's supposed to be a strict ranking of players in order of talent and value, ignoring things like team needs and all that other superfluous nonsense. Unfortunately it's damn hard to ignore things like that. Another factor that must be ignored is the actual draft order. Just because I've got Matt Ryan ranked 8th does not mean that I think the Baltimore Ravens will select the quarterback. Though it just happens to make perfect sense. Keeping all this ...
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April First: What could possibly go wrong...
2008-04-01 06:55:00
My brother gave me an important piece of advice. "Don't believe anything you see on the Internet today." Wise words, wise words. -Chris
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SB Nation Mock Draft!
2008-03-31 20:18:00
Update [2008-3-31 15:36:18 by River City Rage]::The Phinsider has selected DE Chris Long with the first overall pick!Welcome to the 2008 SB Nation NFL Mock Draft ! Here's how this works - each NFL blog community of SB Nation (plus a few guests) will be playing decision-maker for the NFL team that they cover.  Each "GM" will make their team's selection, back up the selection with analysis, and then Matt Miller will take it from there with analysis of the player and pick.  We sincerely believe that you won't find a more insightful and accurate mock draft anywhere else leading up to draft day. More details: 3 picks per day.  We plan on posting three picks per day here, so be sure to lock your browsers in to Mocking the Draft and check back morning, early afternoon and evening! No Trades.  Last year, we included trades in our mock draft, which made for entertaining discussion but also caused delays.  We're eliminating trades this year in the hop...

Quick Bytes: Owners in Palm Beach, I'm in bed edition...
2008-03-31 06:48:00
Quick Bytes: The daily digest of everything you need to know about the Jacksonville Jaguars. Ugh.  Yeah, your humble narrator is still down with what is probably the bubonic plague.  At least it feels like it.  Still, there's no excuse for an ill writer such as myself to leave his post high and dry.   We've got something very exciting happening right now at SB Nation.  Yes, it's time for the OFFICIAL SB NATION MOCK DRAFT.  Last year I selected Cornerback Leon Hall with the 17th pick, Defensive End Tim Crowder with my second, and Safety Saby Pisitelli with the third.  Not a bad slate of first day picks if you ask me.   Anyhow, starting tomorrow the SB Nation football bloggers will be doing a full mock draft of the first few rounds.  Three picks a day will be posted on our draft site Mocking the Draft, hosted by Matt Miller of New Era Scouting.  Yes, we've got a real live scout and draftnik who will be grading and analyzing our ...
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History of the Jaguars: A trip down memory lane...
2008-03-28 21:16:00
Your humble narrator is recovering, thankfully, from a bit of an illness.  Despite this, the Big Cat Country household is planning a Garage Sale this weekend.  The best part about a Garage Sale, in my opinion, is digging through stuff you've forgotten about and finding a bit of gold amongst all the flotsam and jetsam. In this case, I found a few pieces of Jaguars memorabilia from my more youthful days in Jacksonville.  You see, my family held season tickets from 1995 to 1999, and you can't help but accumulate some cool Jaguars stuff just from going to the Stadium 10 times a year for 5 years (yeah, I  include preseason games in that mix). I thought you might enjoy a little walk down memory lane. The first tidbit from Jaguars History comes from May 4th, 1995.  My fathers business from time to time had him working with the occasional Jaguar after the team was awarded to Jacksonville.  In this case, one recently drafted player impressed him so much durin...
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Quick Bytes: Uh, no quick bytes...
2008-03-26 07:12:00
Very tired, might have the flu. No quick bytes for you this morning, sleep wins. There's a couple posts below this worth your time though! -Chris
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Jason Taylor might be a Jaguar? Sounds Familar...
2008-03-26 04:03:00
Huh, look at what Pro Football Talk found. That sounds really, really familiar.  Almost like I've read that before. Oh Wait... We did hear about this before.  Right here on Big Cat Country, no less. The Miami Herald Blog reports:I have been told by one NFL scout and one NFL assistant coach that Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio (pictured) likes the idea of trading for Taylor . I am not sure exactly how far Del Rio has gone with this -- be it considering it and discarding the idea or actually pursuing the issue. But I do know the scenario of adding Taylor has been on the coach's mind. I will continue snooping around with some league sources and ask Del Rio about it directly at the NFL's annual meeting in Palm Beach next week. We'll soon find out if there is fire associated with this smoke. So there you go, my informed speculation gets a little more interesting. -Chris
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Jaguars Signings: They had nowhere else to go...
2008-03-25 21:11:00
Finally, a big time Jaguars Free Agent Signing.  Ok, slight exaggeration, but even though these four players had nowhere else to go it pleases me that they'll be under contract and ready to hit the weights in offseason conditioning. Who signed? Tight End Greg Estandia, who I think is a legitimate "jar on the shelf" Safety and Jacksonville native Jamaal Fudge, he who lets me make very immature jokes. Defensive End Jeremy Mincey Defensive End James Wyche Backups and developmental players, mainly, but now that they're under contract they'll be ready to participate in offseason conditioning. I also found out a few more players that are confirmed participants in OTC: Tony Pashos, Brad Meester, Khalif Barnes, Reggie Williams, Matt Jones and Dennis Northcutt.  I'm sure more guys are there, I'm only reporting the ones that are confirmed. -Chris

Quick Bytes: Jerry Porter is the king of Smiles Edition!
2008-03-25 04:37:00
Quick Bytes: The daily digest of everything you need to know about the Jacksonville Jaguars. Happy Tuesday! Before we get into the news and linky goodness, I've got a little housekeeping.  For many months I've been sitting on a little secret.  This secret involved the future of Big Cat Country, the site I'm sure you've grown to love and cherish.  It's going to get a lot better here in the next few weeks as (hopefully) we transition into Big Cat Country version 2.0!! SB Nation developed an entire new interface, and unlike a lot of site "upgrades", this one is actually better than what it replaces.  Our Baseball Blogs have been the first to change, you can visit Athletics Nation for a sneak peek. I'm pretty excited about it, to say the least. :  The 2008 Jaguars began their Offseason Conditioning Program today.  Confirmed in attendance were Wide Receivers Jerry Porter , Mike Walker and Troy Williamson, Quarterback Cleo Lemon, Cornerback Drayton Flore...
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NFL Draft Scenarios:: Worst Case Edition
2008-03-25 03:47:00
This post is more of a "thought experiment" than a serious consideration of draft scenarios.  Call it the result of not enough sleep. I'm mining through some Mock Draft s for any useful predictions and stumbled across an interesting, albeit terrifying scenario. Oregon Running Back Johnathan Stewart falls to 26. More specifically, what happens if Johnathan Stewart is the highest rated player on the draft board when the Jaguars select at pick 26?  There's a bit of a debate happening within the fan base about the merits of Best Available Player (hereby referred to as BAP) and Position-Specific Selection (PSS).  The former requires a team to pick the highest rated player when their name is called, the latter is when a team picks the player that fills the greatest need, rather than greatest value. Despite the Zero Sum games that Vic Ketchman plays on Ask Vic there is, in my opinion, a happy medium between the two. A couple of points: The New York Giants, in rec...
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Quick Bytes: Goodbye Quinn Gray Edition!
2008-03-24 05:36:00
Quick Bytes: The daily digest of everything you need to know about the Jacksonville Jaguars. First off, huge thanks to my Brother for putting together the "logo" for "Quick Bytes".  I enjoyed putting together the "Free Agency Update" posts, and I'm turning that into what should become a daily (posted late at night) series that gives you a one-stop resource for all the Jaguars news and quick commentary.  Sitting around and refreshing your screen all day waiting for feature pieces is frustrating, Quick Bytes will give you a quick fix.   Without further adu... : Quinn Gray says he's about to become a Texan.  For veteran minimum, according to Pro Football Talk.  I'm stunned, no shocked that the Jaguars situation at quarterback is so locked down that Quinn Gray feels that going to Houston and still having the same distant shot at starting as he would have in Jacksonville.  Even if the Texans trade Sage Rosenfels, he's a number two getting lousy money....
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Jack Del Rio ruined my March Maddness Bracket
2008-03-21 21:57:00
Readers of this site know that I've got some respect for Coach Del Rio. I think SOMEHOW his University of Southern California pride got into my head as I filled out my bracket. Sure, I don't follow College Basketball until after Selection Sunday, and yeah, I thought "OJ Mayo, big stage, they'll go far".   And I'll EVEN ADMIT that I put my National Championship match-up as a crosstown battle of UCLA and USC.  Of course, my love for all things Bruins leads me to take the Bears as my overall winner, my entire midwest region is ruined. I'm even winning overall in my group, but with 25% of my bracket busted, I'm out like trout. Anyone else have any luck with their brackets? -C
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David Garrard Contract Extension: How Much is he Worth?
2008-03-21 05:26:00
We've seen a few reports this week regarding an imminent contract extension for Quarterback David Garrard. Sort of. First we had the NFL.com report saying that the parties were "closing in" on a new contract.   Good news, I'd like to see Garrard locked up long term with a nice fat (incentive laden) contract that secures our short and medium term future.   Except that it might not be so close as Vito Stellino reports: "Nothing is any different today than it was two months ago,'' Al Irby said Wednesday, despite a report on the NFL Network that the two sides would reach a deal soon. "Maybe this week, maybe next week. "It could take two days, two weeks or not get done at all. This is the way negotiations go. One minute you're going down the right track, but then a snag can set you back.'' Irby said he's staying positive because the two sides are in constant communication, but he added that he thought the deal would be finished by now. Coming with these often conflictin...
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Phillip Merling: Better Know a Draft Prospect
2008-03-18 20:29:00
The least you should know about Phillip Merling... Height 6-4 Weight 276 lbs 40 Time Did Not Run (Hernia) Compares To: JUSTIN TUCK-New York Giants...Both defensive ends will make a nice living coming off the edge. They have impressive size, though Merling is best playing on the move to utilize a sudden initial step to slip past blocks. He is not a good stack-and-control type and must do a better job of protecting himself from low blocks, but he is quick to provide outside run contain and shows a quick swim-and-spin move that generally gets him into the backfield to pressure the pocket. He won't read and react in an instant, but has closing speed to seal the deal, even in long pursuit, once he locates the ball. He has to improve his lower-body strength, but there is enough athletic ability there to get by as his body continues to mature.) Fun Fact Interview ...
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Jacksonville Jaguars News and Notes: Sunburns and Sobriety Edition!
2008-03-18 04:02:00
Ah reality coming back from a week at sea to the grind of normalcy.  I sincerely apologize for not being more active on here, but like I've said a dozen times, it was just too slow and expensive.  Big thanks to Brian from Buffalo Rumblings for helping me out.  Thankfully it was a quiet few days and nothing of real note happened though there's still a few things that we need to catch up with. Jason Taylor Watch: Day 12 It's been 12 days since I reported that the Jaguars were interested in Jason Taylor.  Since that happened, Jason has come out and said that he wants to stay in Miami.  While I'm glad to hear Jason's wanting to remain with the Dolphins, I still call complete and total BS on any report saying that Taylor's not on the trade block.  Seriously, I won't buy that Jason Taylor remains a Dolphin until he suits up on opening day in the Aquamarine and Orange.   You know what smells really strange is that Taylor and Bill Parcells have n...
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Happy St. Patricks Day!
2008-03-17 19:09:00
Yes, it's that magical day when all who walk the earth celebrate their Irish heritage, even if there's none to be found.  St. Patrick's day holds a special place in my heart as I've had many a glorious one.  I know everyone is dying for some Jaguars content, and trust me, it's coming.  But for now, let's celebrate the day when everyone is Irish, and nobody should be sober. First, we need a drink: Long time readers will know exactly what that is. Then, we need a song: Finally, a Toast:St. Patrick's Day Toast Here's to a long life and a merry one. A quick death and an easy one A pretty girl and an honest one A cold beer - and another one! So there you go, raise a pint on this happy day!  I'll be back shortly with actual Jaguars content! -Chris
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Vacation's Almost Over!!!
2008-03-14 20:24:00
QUICK POST! Internet is costing me about a dollar a minute out here and it's dreadfully (probably intentionally) slow.  I'm somewhere between Cozumel Mexico and Tampa Florida and I'll arrive back in the US of A tomorrow morning. After I recover from a sunburn and stumble back toward sobriety, I'll dive back into what I've missed over the last many days with the Jaguars and the NFL. If anyone wants to fill me in, please go right ahead in the comments! -Chris

Monday Evening Jags Update
2008-03-11 01:41:00
Brian Galliford, head blogger at Buffalo Rumblings here, filling in for RCR while he's cruising.  Jealous?  Me too... me too.  Some Jags notes for y'all to ponder until something "newsworthy" happens...   Former Jaguars QB Quinn Gray is visiting with the Green Bay Packers, who just lost Brett Favre to retirement.  Gray would be a good fit as Aaron Rodgers' backup in Green Bay, and has enough potential to fill in adequately in spot duty for a team that is still expected to be a playoff contender.   Here's some more Jason Taylor speculation by Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald.  (On a Bills-related side note, I hope a Taylor-to-Jacksonville trade goes through.  He's terrorized my Bills for long enough, and I respect the man enough to want to see him make a run at a championship.  He can do just that in Jacksonville.)   File this one under the "... seriously?" category: A police report says a man charged with DUI works f...
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On Vacation!!!
2008-03-10 18:40:00
Great news! My lovely fiancee is taking me on a cruise. The downside is that in a few hours my internet will get really spotty. And as much as I love being glued to my computer, fruity cocktails, lounge chairs and five days in the western caribbean will dominate my time. But fear not, I will try and stay up to date. If anything you could help us out by posting any breaking news in the comments! Thanks! -Chris!
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Traveling: Slow News Day
2008-03-08 19:46:00
Sorry for the lack of updates, I've got a trip EARLY tomorrow morning and I've got a slew of things to get ready. I'll be back later, hopefully, with a real update. -C
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Jacksonville Jaguars Free Agent Update: Friday Edition
2008-03-07 08:15:00
We're one full week into Free Agency, can you believe it?  This has been, without a doubt, the most exciting "non-game week" I've had since Big Cat Country came to exist.  Big thanks to all the commenter's, as well as NASF and Cuffs for all the contributions.   What do we know: As of today, very little.  I've heard from yet another trusted resource that the team is still in pursuit of Jason Taylor .  I'll have more on my Jason Taylor thoughts further down the post. The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Jaguars have interest in Safety Eugene Wilson, but there's no visit on the horizon  as far as I know. Jaguars Quaterback Coach Mike Shula took Delaware Quarterback Joe Flacco out to dinner at his Pro-Day.  Flacco's stock is rising big time after his combine, though he's got some "small school" questions.  I'm not sure what to read into this one, so I'll just throw this one out there. New Jaguars Cornerback Drayton Florence got reame...
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