AFC Notes: Will Anderson, Arik Armstead, Tony Boselli, Jaguars, Texans

Jaguars

Jaguars DL Arik Armstead commented on the team hiring HC Liam Coen and said that he still believes the team can shock teams next season with improved play given some of the players on their current roster.

“When I came to Jacksonville, looked at the roster and looked at, you know, the situation they were in before, you know, being 8-3 and seemed like, you know, things were headed in the right direction,” Armstead said, via John Shipley. “You know, I was, I was excited, and I still think, you know, talent-wise and when you look at our roster, we have a team that can compete. And I think we showed that in games, you know, I think seven or eight games were one-score losses. And, you know, just in my experience, you know, losing games like that, in that fashion, and it’s got to be something, you know, it’s a mentality, it’s a, you know, schematic thing, you know, something that we got to figure out.”

“But one thing that is promising is that we never gave up on each other. You know, I’ve been on some good teams in the league, and I’ve been on some bad teams. And one thing I will say about this team is that we stuck together. You know, we still went out there and played hard for one another. And I think we can build upon that,” Armstead added. “I think we have the guys to be successful and the talent that we need to be successful. I’ve been on some teams where it’s kind of like, yeah, we’re kind of outmatched. And I never felt like that this season when I went on the field, I looked around the guys I’m surrounded by, I’m like, man, we got some we got some dudes who can really play. And, you know, exciting thing about this opportunity we have is no one’s going to be checking for us. No one is going to be expecting anything from us. So we got an opportunity to shock some people.”

Jaguars

New Jaguars Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tony Boselli has high expectations for the Jaguars in the coming seasons.

“I think that’s why, you know, you talked, during the process of the head coaching search, a lot of people talked about this was the one of the best jobs, if not the best job that was open. And we believe that, and we’re not in a rebuild,” Boselli said, via John Shipley. “We’re not rebuilding. We’re going to get this thing right, and we’re gonna go get the right players. We got the right head coach, we’re gonna get the right GM and our expectations. We have high expectations for this team, but we have a lot of work and a long offseason.”

Boselli commented on the team’s offense led by QB Trevor Lawrence and added that the team has a No.1 wide receiver in Brian Thomas Jr.

“I think it’s very positive overall across league circles. This roster and kind of the opportunity that we have, we have a lot of really key positions locked up under contract, starting with Trevor Lawrence,” Boselli said. “I believe, and I have a strong conviction, that Trevor Lawrence will bring a Lombardi Trophy to Jacksonville as the starting quarterback of this team. I believe that, and I believed this the day I met him and we drafted him, and that has not changed one bit. We got a No. 1 receiver in Brian Thomas. You know, give Trent and his staff and the coaches that were here a ton of credit for going and finding a, you know, top-level, No. 1 wide receiver that we think is just going to get better. So you have Brian Thomas. You have two starting caliber tackles that I think are better than what we’ve seen so far, and I think the staff will get even more out of them. And so you look at the offensive side of the ball, like key positions that everybody is trying to make sure they have a guy in those positions, we have those, and I’m not leaving out any. We have a lot of other good players around positions. But you think about key positions.”

On defense, Boselli believes the team can build on players such as CB Tyson Campbell, along with pass rushers Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen.

“And then the defensive side. We got two pass rushers, you know, and we got two defensive ends that, you know a year ago, at 27.5 sacks, led the NFL in sacks,” Boselli told Shipley. “So people look at that and say, Man, they got two ends. We got a we got a corner in Tyson, who’s a quality, strong starting corner. And like, we, like, listen, Tyson’s a good football player. Had some injuries but man, he’s a good football player. And so we have a lot of what are the key positions that you want to get high caliber players. I think we have those guys. And so that gives us a ton of excitement.”

Texans

Houston has won a playoff game in each of the last two seasons after three years of four wins or less. Texans DE Will Anderson believes they are on the right track but spoke on how they can take the next step and become true contenders.

“We’ve got to execute better,” Anderson said, via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. “We’ve got all the right pieces, we’ve got all the right people in the building, they’re going to keep bringing in great guys, but as players — as much as you want to look at coaching — as players, we’ve got to take it upon ourselves: How are we sacrificing our time, how are we watching film together, what are we doing to make sure that we’re getting enough out of the day to be ready for Sunday, to get ready for these big games.”