JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jaguars posed a question on social media last week about who would be on a Jacksonville Mount Rushmore.
While we covered Jacksonville’s best-of Mount Rushmore list here, this list could be called Mount Bustmore. The players listed below wouldn’t appear on any best-of list for the Jaguars. Actually, it’s quite the opposite. These players (and a coach) couldn’t get out of town fast enough.
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Justin Barney and Jamal St. Cyr compile their bottom four in franchise history.
JB: LB Bryce Paup, CB CJ Henderson, WR R. Jay Soward, QB Blaine Gabbert
This is more difficult than I thought because the dubious choices are so prevalent. I went with one awful free agent choice and three draft picks as, what we’ll call, the Mount Bustmore.
Paup is widely regarded as the worst free agent signing in franchise history, although cases can also be made just as easily for Hugh Douglas, Jerry Porter, Laurent Robinson, Drayton Florence and Nick Foles, all of whom belong in the the dubious ring of (dis)honor, too. Paup’s tops the list for one reason alone — the timing.
In 1998 when the Jaguars were still a team on the ascent, Jacksonville gave a 30-year-old Paup a six-year, $21 million deal with $6 million guaranteed (roughly $40.5 million and $11.5 million, respectively, in today’s money). Paup was the defensive player of the year with the Bills in 1995. The problem … Paup came into a defense that didn’t utilize his pass rush skills as much as Buffalo did. He was miscast in a very good defense and out of position. The team cut him with four years left on his contract and just 7.5 sacks.
Unlike the other players mentioned above, each who came in during down times in Jacksonville and didn’t last longer than a year here, Paup was on two very good teams in Jacksonville. The 1998 team won the AFC Central and the 1999 team turned in the best season in franchise history, going 14-2 and reaching the AFC title game. Had the Jaguars invested that money in a better player or two instead of on Paup, they may have actually reached the Super Bowl for the first time.
Gabbert was thought to be the franchise savior, projected to possibly even go No. 1 overall early in the draft process. Jacksonville traded up six spots, from No. 16 to 10 to draft Gabbert. You know who went one spot later? J.J. Watt. Gabbert was thrown into the fire for a bad team and looked as you’d expect. Bad. He had 24 interceptions and 22 touchdown passes before Jacksonville dealt its quarterback of the future to San Francisco after three seasons. He was a 53% passer in town, and the worst first-round quarterback ever drafted by the Jaguars.
Henderson was the No. 9 pick in the draft in 2020 and it felt like he never wanted to be here. He played eight games as a rookie before an injury shut him down. The team traded Henderson for a backup tight end and a draft pick two games into his second season. Spending a top 10 pick on a guy you get 10 games out of is terrible. Even Derrick Harvey and Dante Fowler, top 10 busts in their own regard, produced more than Henderson. With just those 10 games under his belt, the former Gators player is the least accomplished first-round pick in Jaguars history. And that is saying quite a bit. Jacksonville also spent a first-round pick on another bust in that same 2020 draft, K’Lavon Chaisson.
Soward was the No. 29 pick in the 2000 draft. He was essentially a slot receiver. He played in 13 games and started just two in his career and was out of the league by 2001 due to substance abuse issues.
JSC: WR Justin Blackmon, OT Luke Joeckel, QB Nick Foles and head coach Urban Meyer
Mount Bustmore is a much more difficult list. My list is completely different than Justin’s. So, buckle up, this is a disappointing ride.
Blackmon was a no-brainer to me. Draft busts happen. You miss picks and there are guys that just can’t play in the league. But then there are players like Blackmon who have all the talent to be a star, but off the field, things get in the way. That earned him a spot here. Blackmon played a full season as a rookie and racked up 865 yards and had that huge game against Houston with 236 yards receiving. It was all downhill from there. No way around it, he is one of the biggest disappointments in Jacksonville history.
The other draft pick on my list is Joeckel. He was billed as a can’t-miss prospect coming out of the draft, only for him to turn into one of the biggest misses in team history. They called him “Baby Boselli!” When you get compared to the only Hall of Famer in franchise history that is a letdown. Joeckel is one of the biggest misses in NFL draft history which earned him a spot on my list.
The next guy is Foles. They paid him big money, only for him to play a grand total of four games! Foles signed a four-year contract worth $88 million and he never won a game! He lasted one season in Jacksonville and lost his job to a sixth-round draft pick. Foles was one of the worst free-agent additions in NFL history and definitely deserves a spot on this list.
The last guy needs no introduction — Meyer. I never thought there would be a worse coaching hire than Bobby Petrino but Meyer said “hold my beer.” He is the worst in NFL history. That earns him a spot right here on this list. Meyer was a home run swing of a hire, only to find out the team struck out. He didn’t last a season in the NFL. Meyer had more negative headlines than wins. From not flying back with the team, to trying to hire Chris Doyle or kick Josh Lambo. Meyer was the gift that kept on giving everything except wins. His space on Mount Bustmore should cast a shadow on everyone else on the list.