Jaguars Tight Ends Are Searching for Familiarity In Another New System
Ron Middleton was stumped. The Jacksonville Jaguars tight end coach was trying to recall all of the offensive coordinators he’s worked with since coming to Duval in 2013. The list proved too long to cover.
“If you gave me a minute, yes I could. Yeah, [Jedd] Fisch. Yeah, Jedd, it was Jedd. I’m sorry, it’s too much work, man.”
We’ll help you out Coach.
The five OC’s since Middleton joined the staff in 2013 have been: Jedd Fisch, Greg Olson, Nathaniel Hackett, John Defilippo and now Jay Gruden. This has occurred over two head coaches.
It can be exhausting for a position coach, having to continually learn—and teach—a new offense every couple of years. It’s certainly not energizing, according to Middleton.
“Energizing? I wouldn’t say energizing, but it keeps it fun. It’s fun, I’ll say. All the coordinators have had a positive approach to football. I think the tight ends’ role, of course I’m biased, is super important and I’ve been fortunate enough to have all the coordinators in that have given my guys [that role.]”
Diplomatically, Middleton points to injuries and otherwise that have kept the tight ends under utilized, which he says is of no fault of the coordinators.
But now under his fifth OC, Middleton and his unit have been given an offense that not only wants to fold them in; it depends on their production.
Jaguars offense will depend on tight end production this season. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Including the offseason addition Tyler Eifert, the Jags have six tight ends on their offseason roster. Eifert is going into his eighth year and James O’Shaughnessy his sixth year. No other guy at the position has more than two years. General manager Dave Caldwell and the front office have taken tight ends in the past two drafts (Josh Oliver, third round 2019; Tyler Davis, sixth round 2020).
During the 2019 season, O’Shaughnessy was sixth on the team in receptions (14 for 153 yards, two touchdowns). But the rookie, Oliver, faced an injury riddled season. He was inactive for the first six weeks, played four games (three receptions, 15 yards) before incurring a season ending back injury. As Oliver was placed on the injured reserved list, the Jags brought in veteran Nick O’Leary.
There are two free agent tight ends currently on the roster, but Charles Jones—heading into his second year—comes with in-game experience. When Oliver was sidelined with the aforementioned injury, Jones was promoted to the 53-man roster. Undrafted rookie free agent Ben Ellefson is currently on the roster.
Finally recovered, Josh Oliver broke a bone in his foot during a non-contact running drill on Sunday and will be out for some time.
Taking on yet another new offseason with a relatively young room can prove too much for some. But Middleton is comfortable with the switch to Gruden’s offense for his unit…primarily because he’s already familiar.
“For the guys and for the team, I feel real good about it. You know I worked with his brother [John]. He and I worked together at Tampa for a while. I kind of figured the tight end was going to play a more important role, a more vital role in his offense which is a good thing, like I said. For the players, and I think for the team, I’m excited. We’re going to prepare like we always have but I think it’s going to be a good a thing, like I said, for the guys and for the team.”
It also helps that Eifert—who was brought in to be the leader and main target for the group—is remarkably familiar with the offense as well.
Until now, Eifert had spent the entirety of his career with the Cincinnati Bengals. While in Cincinnati Eifert played only one full season—2019—due to injuries. But over the past seven years, he’s accumulated 185 receptions for 2,152 yards and 24 touchdowns. He played for Gruden when the coach was with the Bengals Eifert’s rookie year. That familiarity along with more than half a decade of experience will give the tight end room the steadiness for which it’s been looking.
Eifert has led all NFL tight ends since 2013 with touchdowns in less than 60 games. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
“I’ve really been in it my whole entire career, in one form or another," said Eifert.
"You do kind of see how it evolves and a couple of words change and you know with [Cincinnati Bengals Head] Coach [Zac] Taylor last year, he got a lot of terminology from [Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean] McVay, who was with Gruden [at Washington]. So, it all kind of comes full circle now with some of the changes and things like that,” explains Eifert.
“And it is interesting for me, now I’m the older guy and I’ve been in this offense before and it’s new to everybody else, so yeah, I do get some questions about the way things are—just little things here and there about different plays and techniques and things like that.”
While O’Shaughnessy hasn’t had five offensive coordinators with the Jaguars, he has had five in the league and is now on this third with the Jags. It’s a transition for everyone though, and with kickoff for the 2020 season a little less than a month away, he leading by example and leaning on the two who do already know this offense—Middleton and Eifert.
“A lot of us, even new coaches, are still learning the system, learning the little things. And offense can be so nuanced, depending on who you’re going against, the defensive coordinator, the style of player you go against, there can be a lot of small changes to it. And since [Eifert has] played with Jay, knowing all the things he wants in different scenarios, it’s just a great resource for us that when we have questions on a look, we can just reference it to him.
"I think this is one of the best groups we’ve had since we’ve been here. We’ve got a lot of us tall guys...we have a lot of versatility, people that can block end lines, split them out. And then you have Eifert, who is a Pro Bowl-caliber player, which if anyone has been watching him the first couple practices, you see why.
"He’s a heck of a route runner, he can fight in the pass game and in the run game. And he’s just a great leadership guy, we haven’t had veterans like that, that often in the last couple of years who have had Pro Bowl experience. So, to have somebody in that room sharing their knowledge, little tips—you know, I can even think of 2-3 little tips that he has given me that I’ve never heard before and they really help me out. So, we’re all very fortunate to have him in our room.”
For a unit that has been largely forgotten for the past few years—Jaguars scoring offense ranked 26th in the NFL in 2019 and no tight end recorded more than 15 catches, more than two touchdown catches or more than 153 yards—having the background in a new system can be the difference maker. For starters, it’s one less thing for Ron Middleton to recall. And he’s confident that will bode well for his unit.
“Hopefully, this year everything falls into place and the tight end position can be afforded the opportunity to do a lot of the things that I think we’re more than capable of doing.”
