AFC Notes: Colts, Jaguars, Texans, Titans

Colts

Colts HC Frank Reich praised QB Sam Ehlinger but is still going to take some time before deciding if the young quarterback will remain on the roster heading into 2022.

“Sam has had a phenomenal preseason,” Reich said, via Nate Atkins of the Indianapolis Star. “It’s hard to imagine having a better preseason than he’s had. He’s done everything he’s needed to do.”

Jaguars

Jaguars first-round LB Devin Lloyd believes that he’ll be ready to take the field when the team opens its season against Washington.

“I’m just building it back up slowly, they’re trying to ease me into the practices and limiting my reps but it feels really good,” Lloyd said, via Sports Illustrated. “It’s strong, it’s building its strength back up. It’s really sore right now, as expected, but I’ll be ready to go Week 1.”

Lloyd was a converted safety his freshman year at Utah. His ability to cover the field as well as get after the quarterback makes him an intriguing chess piece in Caldwell’s defense.

“The talent that you saw coming out of college— athleticism, speed, length—he’ll hopefully be able to go out there and just make plays for us,” Jaguars DC Mike Caldwell said. “He has a unique ability to be able to cover and also pressure the quarterback. We like that about him, and with his length and all the tackles he made in college, you know he can play the run, so we just want to continue to see him go out there and find his niche and make plays for us.”

Texans

Texans TE Brevin Jordan feels that he is beginning to come into his own and has the ability to be one of the league’s best tight ends after finding himself struggling at times during his rookie season.

Texans HC Lovie Smith saw what Jordan could do as a rookie and thinks he has the potential to be a much bigger contributor in 2022.

“This year means more to me than any football season I’ve ever competed in,” Jordan said, via D.J. Bien-Aime of ESPN. “I want to show everybody that I can be a three-down tight end. I can block, I can run routes. I can block these dudes, and I can run past these guys. My first day in pads last year, and I was just getting tossed around. I was like ‘I gotta get bigger, I gotta get stronger.’ It was a whole different game.”

“I love what he did in year one of being a young football player,” Smith said. “He’s listed as a tight end, but he can play in line, he can move out. It’s a tough matchup because he has big wide receiver skills. Just another weapon that we have to be able to use.”

Titans 

Titans GM Jon Robinson has plenty of tough decisions to make ahead of the new season, one of which will be if he will continue forward with veteran P Brett Kern, or move on to undrafted rookie P Ryan Stonehouse. On Monday, the team elected to release Kern and move forward with the rookie

“That’s a tough decision that we’ve got moving forward, deciding what direction we want to go,” Robinson said this weekend, via Nick Gray of the Tennessean. “Both of those guys have certainly earned the right to be on a 53-man roster and be a punter in this league.”

• Jordan Schultz made an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show and said he’s heard in conversations with other teams that the Titans might have been an under-the-radar landing spot for 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo. 
• Tennessee was reportedly interested about a week ago, per Schultz. They currently have third-round QB Malik Willis and Logan Woodside as backups, but Schultz points out Willis has improved dramatically.