JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jaguars are off and running in rookie minicamp, but it’s not just for rookies.
Among the 31 players taking part in the camp Friday afternoon, were a sampling of veterans, including one very notable receiver — Jarvis Landry.
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What was a five-time Pro Bowler doing at a camp tailored to draft picks, undrafted free agents and second-year players?
“It’s a good opportunity,” Landry said.
That opportunity surfaced because of health reasons that shelved Landry all of 2023 as he recovered from an ankle injury. To show teams that he’s still NFL material, Landry grabbed the workout spot with the Jaguars and got right to work.
“It’s exciting. It’s good to be back out here and be around instruction and football and such a beautiful organization,” Landry said. “So, I’m excited, happy about it.”
Landry spent the early part of Friday at the Miller Electric Center working off to the side with rookie Brian Thomas Jr. and receivers coach Chad Hall, something that coach Doug Pederson alluded to before they took the field.
“I think, yeah, it is a really good learning experience for a guy like Brian to come in here and see Jarvis, see how he handles these two days. Listen, this is geared more for rookies, these two days,” Pederson said. “Jarvis is a vet and he kind of knows what it’s like. I think it will be good to see how Jarvis handles himself as a professional, and it will really at least make an impression on Brian this weekend.”
For Landry, it was an opportunity to show that, at 31 years old and coming off no football games since December 2022, that he still looks the part of an NFL receiver. Landry said that he had interest from other teams besides Jacksonville but liked the opportunity (and location) here more.
There’s no commitment to Landry other than letting him get some reps and show what he’s got left. The work on the field was light on Friday, but Landry looked very good cutting, starting and stopping on the turf.
Once Landry began running routes and making catches, he looked like a player who knew his way around a field. Landry is entering his ninth year in the league and five seasons of 976 or more receiving yards. For a team breaking in rookie receiver Thomas, a little bit of veteran help was invaluable on the first day of minicamp.
Thomas, the No. 23 pick in last month’s draft, spent a good bit of time working with Hall and Landry. The rookie from LSU is expected to be the team’s No. 3 receiver behind Christian Kirk and Gabe Davis. Landry gave Thomas high marks after their first camp practice together.
“Elite. Elite. Elite,” Landry said of Thomas. “So just watching him out here and seeing firsthand in person, I’ve seen him on TV a couple times, but seeing him firsthand, he’s elite.”
Pederson mum on playcalling
The offensive struggles last season could be pinned on a number of areas like poor offensive line play, injuries and regression of some players. But the playcalling of offensive coordinator Press Taylor came under fire as the team struggled throughout the year. The Jaguars went from 8-3 and first place in the AFC to 9-8 and missing the playoffs. Pederson was asked throughout the season about taking playcalling duties back from Taylor, and he resisted in doing so. Those questions haven’t gone away. On Friday, Pederson was a bit terse in his response about who would be calling plays.
“I don’t play a game until September, so we got some time,” he said.
Injuries to young players
Second-year players Cooper Hodges and Ventrell Miller missed their rookie seasons due to injury. Christian Braswell missed all but three games with an injury. They would have likely been at rookie minicamp but Pederson said they couldn’t participate due to an interesting perk.
“Because they’re on IR, they get a pension credit, so they can’t be a part of the rookie minicamp, which is kind of interesting,” Pederson said. “But Ventrell’s doing extremely well. He’s healthy and he’s moving around really well. He’s competing and doing some really good things out there.”
Crash course for rookies
Minicamp is the first glimpse of life in the NFL for a bulk of the players in attendance. Friday was an introductory glimpse of what that looks like. But when the offseason program picks up steam over the coming weeks is the real jolt to the system.
“These two days we kind of prepare them for next week, because once they get in here, obviously they will be, now they’re with an NFL club. Right now they’re just rookies. So, come Monday, when everybody starts walking in here and they start seeing all the guys, it makes an impact on them,” Pederson said. “A lot of these guys, obviously they were starters in college, and now they’re going to have to take backup roles and they’re going to compete for starting positions or at least compete for that backup spot, and it changes just a little bit for them. This weekend though, from the meetings to the on the field stuff is really going to prepare them for the next five weeks I guess that we are here.”