JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Mike Caldwell doesn’t need to look far to find the excitement around the Jaguars.
The defensive coordinator said that the biggest thing that he’s seen between his first year in Jacksonville and now is the rock-solid commitment by players to get better. And that doesn’t mean just getting better on the practice field.
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Starting inside linebacker Foye Oluokun is one of the veterans who should be enjoying the week off. Instead, he’s one of few players who didn’t take up coach Doug Pederson’s offer to skip the three days of mandatory minicamp. That type of investment is proof that what the Jaguars are doing is working.
Oluokun has been at TIAA Bank Field and then on the practice field helping out as a de facto coach for the players who are taking part. Why would a veteran like Oluokun be giving up time off for the rigors of a mandatory minicamp that isn’t mandatory for him?
“Well, he’s not supposed to be [out here]. That’s the first thing,” Caldwell joked on Tuesday morning. “Think I told you guys last year, that his nickname, we call him James Brown, the hardest working man in show business. And that just continues. He’s sat in every meeting. So, I told him yesterday, like you might want to come up here and do the installation.”
For the Jaguars to continue on their ascent in Year 2 under Pederson, there are naturally big things — outside of that dedication and commitment — that need to happen.
The biggest is the growth of Trevor Lawrence, who emerged as a franchise quarterback during the second half of the season. He’s looked more confident and been able to handle far more of the mental part of the playbook than he did in Pederson’s first season.
“I told Trevor in the exit interview, we build this offense for him. We built game plans for Trevor. And then we piece everybody around them based on what they do really well,” said offensive coordinator Press Taylor. “And so obviously, last year, it was a little bit of we had a feel for where he was at this time last year, but we didn’t really know.”
Assuming Lawrence continues his upward trajectory, what other things need to happen for Jacksonville to improve on last year’s 9-8 finish?
The large rookie class from 2022, headlined by first-round picks Travon Walker and Devin Lloyd, needs to take a significant step forward. While both played well in spurts last year, there was too much inconsistency and games where those two didn’t make an impact. Caldwell said that while Walker, the No. 1 overall pick last year, gives Jacksonville’s defense an excellent building block, he’s not the only player who has improved on that side of the ball.
“Not the main reason [for the optimism], but he’s one of the big reasons. The main reason is because we got guys that are out there working and gotten better,” Caldwell said. “They will continue to get better and we’ll put them in position to be able to get after the quarterback. In the growth they achieved so far, we’ll just continue to see that go.”
The receiving corps was good last year, but it needs to play better. The trade for Calvin Ridley last season, on paper, could deliver a bona fide No. 1 alpha wideout that the team has lacked since Allen Robinson left Jacksonville.
The coaching staff has seen enough in OTAs and minicamp to feel good about where things are headed. Pederson felt confident enough to give veterans off this week.
“It’s funny because when you’re a good team, your best players are your hardest working players,” Caldwell said. “And you look around on this team and you look at our best players, they’re the hardest working players. So that’s the reason why we’re able to do some of the things we’re able to do.
Most took him up on it. Oluokun is one who didn’t.
“Now, I’d like to see him [Oluokun] gone and getting away and getting refreshed but he’s here and we love seeing him around there and hopefully he doesn’t put on cleats today,” Caldwell said.