AFC Notes: Jaguars, Texans, Titans

Jaguars

Jaguars HC Urban Meyer recalled the process of the team signing TE Tim Tebow, explaining GM Trent Baalke, TEs coach Tyler Bowen and OC Darrell Bevell were in attendance of his workout and came away mightily impressed by the former quarterback. 

“He mentioned to me that ‘I’m in the best shape of my life,’ and you can tell he is. And we had a chat and I said, ‘Well’ — he said, ‘Can you have a couple guys look at me?’ — and I said, ‘Well, obviously, let me think this thing through. You know, I don’t want this to turn into something that, you know, if it’s — but I said, ‘As long as it’s confidential and not a — yeah, I’ll let some guys look at you.’ And I showed up, and I left. On purpose. You know, and our G.M. was there, our tight end coach, and our offensive coordinator were there. And they put him through a workout, they came back to me and said, ‘My gosh, this guy’s in incredible shape. He’s a big athlete. Our tight end room has been struggling.’ . . . . They gave him some things to work on, and then they brought him back. . . . They came to me and said, ‘I think we should give him a shot,” said Meyer, via ProFootballTalk. 

Meyer was non-committal when asked about Tebow’s likelihood of making the 53-man roster but mentioned that he’s been “going great” in practice thus far. 

“And what’s the percentage of making the team?” Meyer said. “We don’t know. This is uncharted waters. This is gonna be very difficult. But he’s been doing great. He’s been doing great in practice. He’s learning the offense. As you can imagine, he’s working as hard as anybody. I see a good camaraderie amongst the team with him, and it’s been good so far.”

Meyer added Tebow is essentially trying out for the Jaguars this offseason in order to make the active roster. 

“First of all, Tim’s one of 90. And the thing that I settled in with now, we have 90 and when you kick the ball off you have 48 I believe it is. Forty-six. This to me is a tryout for a lot of guys, and he falls into that category. To answer your question, he’s working his tail off.”

Texans

• Texans OC Tim Kelly said third-round QB Davis Mills has impressed so far: “He’s come in here and come to work. Davis is in here busting his butt and doing all the right things.” (Aaron Wilson)
• Kelly is also happy with the versatility of the running back room: “It’s definitely different running backs there. That entire room, each guy offers a different skill set.” (Wilson)
• Kelly added he is high on TE Jordan Akins: “As far as Jordan Akins‘ ability after the catch, that’s one of the best things that he does. He’s able to break tackles, turn a three-yard checkdown into a 16-yard chunk play.” (Wilson)
• On working with QB Pep Hamilton, Kelly said it’s been a smooth transition so far: “It has been great working with all those guys, being able to pick their minds and talk to Pep about how he views certain things. It has been really good for me.” (Wilson)
• Texans TE coach Andy Bischoff spoke highly of TE Kahale Warring: “Oodles of talent, it’s just about putting it all together.” (Wilson)
• Bischoff also mentioned the team was excited to draft fifth-round TE Brevin Jordan: “A guy that talent-wise a lot of people thought would be off the board. We were elated to get him.” (Wilson)
• Bischoff praised Texans HC David Culley, whom he worked with in Baltimore: “Coach Culley is full of energy, that’s consistent on a daily basis. He’s always going to take the positive approach. What I’ve seen in him as our leader here same energy, a man with a play every day.” (Wilson)
• Hamilton coached QB Tyrod Taylor with the Chargers and believes he is gonna be a huge asset for the young quarterbacks: “Tyrod was a tremendous asset to Justin (Herbert). Great example of what it means to be a pro.” (Wilson)
• Hamilton, who is close with Stanford HC David Shaw, said he’s been watching Mills play since he was in high school: “I had the opportunity to evaluate Davis way back when he was in high school, a good friend and colleague David Shaw, often talked about him. He shows tremendous promise. He’s working hard.” (Wilson)
• Regarding third-round rookie WR Nico Collins, Hamilton said: “Big body wide receiver tremendous catch radius, can make contested catches.” (Wilson)
• Texans RB coach Danny Barrett said RB David Johnson‘s experience is a strength of his: “Veteran guy, natural leader, his ability to be around the guys and talk about things from his experience.” (Wilson)
• Barrett added the running back room as a whole is a strong one: “Collectively, great group. I like the skill set from each guy. Each guy has a different something to bring to the table.” (Wilson)
• Barrett believes RB Rex Burkhead will be a strong addition to the team: “He can help us all with his experience and ability to make plays.” (Wilson)
• Texans OL coach James Campen mentioned OG Max Scharping as someone who has stood out: “He has worked extremely hard. He’s in a very competitive situation. Like Max, like everyone else, the expectation is very high.” (Wilson)
• Campen also believes OC Justin Britt is a strong addition to the team:“He was one of the best centers in football until he got hurt. I know he’s excited to get back on the field. He’s got leadership traits that are very positive for the group.” (Wilson)
• Campen said OT Marcus Cannon will stay at right tackle despite former first-round OT Tytus Howard being in that spot: “The competition is more widespread than just two players. We have eight tackles on our roster right now. Marcus has been playing RT for a long time in this league. I don’t anticipate him moving very much.”
• Texans WR coach Robert Prince spoke very highly of WR Brandin Cooks: “He shows those guys the right way to practice, great leader. He’s not a talker. He’s a doer. He’s very engaged and willing to take coaching. When your top guy is willing to do that, it’s easy for the other guys to follow.” (Wilson)
• Prince also thinks Collins style is a necessary addition to the wide receiver room: “Loved his size and catch radius and ability to make contested catches. We felt like we needed to add that to the room.” (Wilson)
• Texans DC Lovie Smith is excited to coach LB Zach Cunningham: “You want a guy who’s going to be around the football a lot. You don’t have to reinvent that with Zach. He’ll have an opportunity to blitz, excellent blitzer. Eager to see him take another step in the pass (coverage) part of it.” (Wilson)
• Smith also said the team has high expectations for CB Bradley Roby: “Excellent speed, quickness, change of direction, willing tackler. We need him to be our (No.) 1 corner. The division is getting stronger at the wide receiver position.” (Wilson)
• Smith added OLB Whitney Mercilus is going to be used differently than in years past: “Whitney can run. He can rush off the edge. We start with that. Whitney has proven he can win on the outside. He’s in good shape. He’s going to play lighter than he did last year.” (Wilson)
• Vikings QB Kellen Mond‘s father, Kevin Mond, said the Texans wanted to take Mond at pick No. 67 before the Vikings took him. (Chris Tomasson)

Titans

The Titans were the beneficiary of a weak market for WR Julio Jones, as other teams were wary of adding a 32-year-old receiver due to make $15.3 million coming off a year where he played just nine games. To his credit, Jones has battled numerous nagging injuries but had only missed four games in six seasons entering 2020. Other teams didn’t want to be on the hook if the wheels fell off in 2021, though, while the Titans were comfortable with the risk. 

“I think that’s something you always look at—’What does his skill set look like based off the film and the age?’” Titans GM Jon Robinson said via Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. “I thought he was still playing at a high level last year. The durability, he takes care of his body. We felt comfortable with it. He’s going to take care of his body, make sure nothing comes up, but it’s part of the game. There’s a 100% injury rate in the National Football League, but I know he’s going to do everything he can to stay healthy, and we’re going to do everything we can to (help him there).”