Is Jaguars Backup QB a Lemon?
Cleo Lemon Might Help the Jaguars Repeat Last Season's Success
It was clear to anyone who watched the Jacksonville Jaguars last year with any regularity that David Garrard had achieved what Byron Leftwich never had - he was "the MAN."
Even staunch Leftwich supporters had to admit that Garrard got it done on the field and were impressed that he led an improving Jaguars team into the AFC playoffs; coach Jack Del Rio clearly pulled the trigger on his most powerful weapon by cutting Leftwich on the eve of the 2007 season.
When Garrard got injured playing the Colts on Monday Night Football, Quinn Gray stepped in and went 2-1, allowing the Jaguars to keep the momentum going. Gray also made a name for himself by maintaining the status quo in Garrard's absence, a pleasant surprise for fans since he had languished as QB3 for a while when Leftwich was still in town. Those three games made Gray a valuable commodity in this year's free agent market.
It was obvious the Jaguars would need to acquire at least one quarterback in free agency and possibly one in the draft, since as a free agent Gray would be going for the green elsewhere. There was no QB3 to step in and take over for him.
Enter Cleo Lemon, who showed up on the Jaguars' radar last week.
Lemon was a cog in the constantly revolving Miami Dolphins' quarterback carousel. Despite his unfortunate last name, he isn't what I'd consider a lemon. His profile on Jaguars.com says that he "completed 173 of 309 passes for 1,773 yards with six touchdowns and six interceptions for a 71.0 passer rating" in the 2007 season. That's respectable, considering he only played in 9 games for the Dolphins.
Surely, there was some concern amongst fans when they learned of Lemon's acquisition, but the worry should be put to rest.
Garrard was struggling when the Jaguars hired Mike Shula as their quarterbacks coach. Obviously Shula did something right with Garrard, as the former interception machine only threw three interceptions in the entire 2007 season. That's outstanding, especially in light of the knowledge that Peyton Manning doubled that number in one game. So, who's got the laser rocket arm?
The smart football fan can see that Shula is definitely in his element as the Jaguars' quarterbacks, since Quinn Gray made huge improvements also. There is every reason to expect that Shula can do the same for Cleo Lemon. There's raw talent there; Shula just needs to peel away the problems and squeeze Lemon for all he's worth.
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