Category: Calais Campbell

Report: Former Jags DL Calais Campbell considering retirement after the 2021 season

It seems the 2021 season could be the last for former Jacksonville defensive end Calais Campbell, who was traded to Baltimore in March 2020.

The 2021 season could be the final one in the career of former Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Calais Campbell. The now-Baltimore Raven said on Tuesday that his 14th season in the league could very well be his last, according to comments obtained from the team website.

“That’s something I’m still figuring out, I guess,” Campbell said. “I kind of take it one year at a time. I know that I’ve got this year in me for sure. I’m going to give what I have this year, and then we’ll re-evaluate once the season ends.

“It’s definitely something you think about. I used to say when I was younger I wanted to play 15 (years). I didn’t realize how hard 15 was going to be. This is 14 for me. I know I’ve got this in me for sure. I’d still like to play 15. Hopefully I’ve got another one. We’ll see.”

Campbell totaled a franchise-record 14.5 sacks as the face of Jacksonville’s front seven in 2017, but as he began to age, his production dropped off over the next two seasons. He was eventually traded to Baltimore for a fifth-round pick last spring.

In the 12 games he appeared and started in with the Ravens in 2020, he totaled just 28 tackles and four sacks, both the lowest since his rookie season in 2008.

Campbell missed time last season after testing positive for COVID-19, an experience he describes as not for the faint of heart. Though he believes he’s fully recovered, the effects he felt still linger in his mind.

“Sometimes, I feel like it kind of comes and goes, I guess I really can’t be sure until we get to the thick of things,” Campbell said. “I’ve been really good for the last couple of months. I haven’t had any real issues. It lingered for a while. I still don’t wish that on anybody, it’s such a tough thing to go through. You don’t feel like yourself, even when you’re past the symptoms that everybody has. I definitely feel a lot better. I feel like I’m ready to go out there and dominate, have some fun. I hope I stay that way.”

Campbell said he has received the vaccine but wouldn’t pressure his teammates to do the same, in spite of his experience with the virus.

“To each their own. Each person has to do their own research and figure out what’s best for them. As a team, we’re working toward something great here. I feel like everybody supports each other.”

Though it’s clear that if he had it his way, his career would extend beyond the 2021 season, this year may be a farewell tour for one of the best NFL defensive linemen of the last decade.

Calais Campbell excited to see Jags’ direction under Urban Meyer, Joe Cullen

The Jags have new leadership in the building and former team captain Calais Campbell is optimistic about the changes made.

While he may not be with the team anymore, Calais Campbell has kept tabs on the Jacksonville Jaguars even since joining the Baltimore Ravens. As one of the league’s more likable faces, he still has several friends on the roster, especially on the defensive side.

When the Jags return to their training facility, Campbell will also have one of his former coaches from Baltimore in the building, Joe Cullen, who is now the team’s defensive coordinator. On Thursday, Campbell was asked about the Jags’ outlook on The Jake Asman Show and expressed that he was excited to see where the Jags go heading forward.

“Yeah, you know, I’m excited for them. I mean, the defensive coordinator [Cullen] was my D-line coach this year, so I’m happy to see my coach get some love, and end up in a place where I know I’m familiar with the guys,” Campbell said this week.

“He has some beasts like Myles Jack and Josh Allen. I mean, those are two of my best friends and guys I have a lot of respect for, so I can’t wait to see them have some success and go out there and create a standard of excellence in Jacksonville that I tried to get going when I was there during my time.”

While 2021 will mark Cullen’s first year as a defensive coordinator, it won’t be his first with the Jags. He was once their defensive line coach under Jack Del Rio from 2010-12. However, after bouncing around the league and settling in Baltimore, he’s finally earned a defensive coordinator job with Jacksonville and many fans are eager to see the changes he brings.

As for Myles Jack and Josh Allen, they made a lot of history with Campbell when he was a Jag. Jack was apart of a 2017 “Sacksonville” unit with Campbell which was one of the most ferocious units in the last decade and garnered 55 sacks. In 2019, Campbell took Allen under his wing and aided him to a Pro Bowl season where he registered 10.5 sacks, a rookie-high for Jacksonville.

Campbell also discussed the Jags’ acquisition of coach Urban Meyer and told Asman that he was one of the most respected names in football. Afterward, Campbell discussed Trevor Lawrence, who is expected to come in and be the Jags’ future in April.

“I enjoy watching [Lawrence]. He can make every throw. He just has a very special arm, and he makes plays in big moments,” Campbell said.

“But, for me, he’s still gonna be a rookie and I gotta see him develop because to me, you can hype anybody up, but when you got to get on that field and play on Sundays and lead the team. You got to earn that respect, so I’m not gonna give him too much love just yet. But I think he has a chance to be special, but I gotta see him earn it.”

If Lawrence is the player most have projected him to be, it would be the blessing Jags fans have long needed. A successful beginning in the NFL could also put Lawrence in a situation where he eventually crosses paths with Campbell, as the Ravens have been a consistently good team for quite some time.

Calais Campbell speaks on reaching out to Ryquell Armstead during COVID-19 battle

Calais Campbell revealed that he’s spoken with former Jags teammate Ryquell Armstead, who has been dealing with complications from COVID-19.

ESPN insider Adam Schefter was able to provide an update on Jacksonville Jaguars running back Ryquell Armstead, who initially went on the team’s COVID-19/ Reserve list in early August, then again weeks later.

Per Schefter’s sources, Armstead is expected to make a full recovery after having to be hospitalized twice with “significant respiratory complications” from the coronavirus. As a result, he’s expected to miss the remainder of the season.

On Monday it was revealed that at least one player in the NFL has heard from Armstead and that was former Jags defensive lineman Calais Campbell, who is now with the Baltimore Ravens. In a recent interaction with the media, Campbell revealed that Armstead “sounded like he was in good spirits” and felt pretty good about the progress that he’s made with the complications.

This is certainly great to hear from the perspective of Jags fans as coach Doug Marrone revealed that Armstead could be out for “a while” before Week 1 of the regular season. It’s also great to see the Jags’ former team captain reach out to his old teammates from time to time to check on them.

Armstead was a player in line to see significant playtime with former first-round pick Leonard Fournette being waived. However, due to his unfortunate circumstances and Devine Ozigbo (hamstring) going on injured reserve, James Robinson was thrust into the starting role at running back.

As for the Jags, Armstead’s battle with COVID-19 isn’t the first reported occurrence that linked the team with the coronavirus. They also had to place 13 players on their Reserve/ COVID-19 list (12 of which were from their practice squad) over a week ago, starting with offensive lineman KC McDermott. Contact tracing revealed that 11 others from the practice squad needed to join McDermott on the list, however, all of them have returned to the facility while he remains away.

Defensive lineman Josh Mauro, who was suspended, also joined the aforementioned players on the Reserve/ COVID-19 list, but was released last week.

Calais Campbell talks about being surprised by Jags’ decision to trade him

During his time in Duval, Calais Campbell my have been the most loved Jacksonville Jaguar on the roster in the eyes of fans. That’s exactly why many hated to see him traded, however, the team was in a situation where they needed to reallocate money …

During his time in Duval, Calais Campbell my have been the most loved Jacksonville Jaguar on the roster in the eyes of fans. That’s exactly why many hated to see him traded, however, the team was in a situation where they needed to reallocate money after two straight losing seasons.

In a recent interview on “The Pat McAfee Show,” Campbell was brought on as a guest and was asked whether he envisioned being traded from Jacksonville. Like most fans, Campbell admitted that he was indeed shocked and that he expected to play out his contract in Duval.

“No, I didn’t know it was coming. Obviously, I guess it’s always a possibility, and being an older person in this league, I’ve seen it all so you’re never surprise,” said Campbell to McAfee. “I was expecting to be in Jacksonville throughout the remainder of my contract and maybe even longer. I thought maybe an extension would come before a trade would come. So I was kind of caught off guard but it happened to be to one of the best teams in football, so it was kind of a win-win situation.”

Those are words that may hurt Jags fans as Campbell was a solid player both on and off the field and probably the best free-agent signing in team history. While the team wasn’t winning, he still garnered the respect of pretty much every fan, and quite frankly, the fanbase has rarely seen a star of his magnitude who was an example on and off the field.

All of this isn’t to say the Jags didn’t want Campbell either, though. There was talk of an extension last season, but nothing came into fruition and Campbell played on his deal for a 2019 cap hit of $14.5 million. It’s unknown if they tried the same in 2020, but he told Action News Jax that restructuring would have to “make sense” financially earlier this offseason, so maybe the conversation occurred a second time.

While it was a move that left the fans heartbroken, moving on from Campbell made sense because taking the $15 million cap hit from him in a season where the Jags may not make the playoffs would’ve been questionable. Instead, they elected to use the money on younger options who could be around for longer and help out their long-term future.

As I’ve said in the past, it’s easier for a front office to pay high salaries when the team is winning. However, general manager Dave Caldwell has proven he can find bargain free-agent deals on the defensive line (like Sen’Derrick Marks), so maybe that played into the Jags’ decision to move on from Campbell.

PFF projects Jags to start 4 rookies in 2020

PFF believes four of the Jags’ top-5 draft picks will be starters for the team once the season begins and, of course, C.J. Henderson is one.

The Jacksonville Jaguars surprisingly used all 12 of their draft picks this April, which means the team will be one of the youngest in the NFL. They also could end up starting a lot of the rookies they drafted after parting ways with veterans A.J. Bouye, Calais Campbell, and Marcell Dareus.

The good folks at Pro Football Focus recently took a crack at projecting the lineups of all 32 teams, and unsurprisingly, the Jags almost had a handful of rookies in their lineup. That included one rookie on offense in fourth-round pick Ben Bartch and three rookies on defense in pass-rusher K’Lavon Chaisson, cornerback C.J. Henderson, and defensive tackle Davon Hamilton.

Offense

QB: Gardner Minshew
RB: Leonard Fournette
WR: DJ Chark
WR: Chris Conley
Slot: Dede Westbrook
TE: Tyler Eifert
LT: Cam Robinson
LG: Andrew Norwell
C: Brandon Linder
RG: Ben Bartch
RT: Jawaan Taylor

Defense

DI: Taven Bryan
DI: Davon Hamilton
EDGE: Josh Allen
EDGE: K’Lavon Chaisson
LB: Myles Jack
LB: Joe Schobert
CB: CJ Henderson
CB: Rashaan Melvin
CB: D.J. Hayden
S: Jarrod Wilson
S: Ronnie Harrison

Starting with the offense, it’s not shocking to see PFF slot Bartch in at the right guard position because they haven’t given veteran A.J. Cann overly impressive grades in the past. He’s only graded over 70 once in his career, and this past year, Cann was given a career-low of 55.3.

The issue with slotting Bartch as a starter is the fact that many in the Jags’ front office referred to him as a project player when he was selected. When adding in the fact that the team likely won’t have a minicamp and possibly won’t return until training camp, the rookies may be a little behind the curve. That being said, fans should probably expect Cann to start in 2020.

It’s a given that the Jags first selection of April’s draft in Henderson would be slotted in as a starter. The team lost both of their 2019 starters at the cornerback position, trading with Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Bouye, so Henderson was arguably the biggest acquisition of the offseason with linebacker Joe Schobert.

With the Jags saying they will move to more 3-4 looks on base downs, Chaisson could get a starting role alongside Josh Allen as the team’s go-to pass rushing duo. However, if Yannick Ngakoue decides he wants to play on the franchise tag, that could complicate the snap count for Chaisson. Still, the Jags took him with the No. 20 overall pick, which is an indicator that they have plans for him to see the field a lot.

Lastly, Hamilton is a player who I listed as someone who could be the Jags’ biggest surprise of 2020 in a recent episode of “Bleav in the Jags.” Like most rookies, he’ll have to go through a veteran in Al Woods though, who will be entering his 11th season. While it could be a difficult task, it’s hard not to like Hamilton’s chances because Woods is the oldest player on the roster at 33 years of age.

Calais Campbell says Jags had plans to draft him in 2008 before they traded up

The Jacksonville Jaguars’ history is full of draft day misses that fans look back on until this day. While Dave Caldwell has been heavily criticized by fans during his seven-year tenure as general manager, he’s been far more successful than the …

The Jacksonville Jaguars’ history is full of draft day misses that fans look back on until this day. While Dave Caldwell has been heavily criticized by fans during his seven-year tenure as general manager, he’s been far more successful than the regime before him in terms of the selections he’s made.

One of the more costly mistakes taken under former general manager Gene Smith was the selection of Derrick Harvey in the first-round of the 2008 NFL Draft. In addition to just spending three seasons with the team, it hurt the franchise even more when looking at the fact that they passed on first round selections Aqib Talib, Chris Johnson, and Duane Brown to get him. 

But wait, it gets worse.

Per former Jags defensive lineman Calais Campbell, the team had informed him that he was going to be the pick at their original spot (No. 25), but evidently there was a change in heart as they traded up to the No. 8 slot to take Harvey.

Not that he meant to, but this definitely put salt on the wounds of Jags fans who’ve already been through a lot. Hey, at least he was able to join the team down the road while providing them with some of his best seasons though.

Harvey ended up playing just three seasons with the Jags and finished his overall career with 92 career tackles and eight sacks. Campbell, on the other hand, came out with a better supporting cast and even got to participate in a Super Bowl after the Arizona Cardinals took him in Round 2, so Jags fans can at least be happy about the situation he avoided. He ultimately had a very successful run with the Cardinals, receiving two Pro Bowl nods while accumulating 501 tackles and 56.5 sacks.

Jags, Ravens make Calais Campbell trade official

Calais Campbell is officially a Raven.

The Jacksonville Jaguars became one draft pick richer, though it came at the cost of a key veteran. The team announced that the transaction to send Calais Campbell to the Baltimore Ravens was completed Thursday. As a result, the Jags will receive a 2020 fifth-rounder (No. 153 overall).

The Ravens’ fifth-round pick to the Jags was originally No. 170 overall but was upgraded after the team received a higher fifth-round pick from the Atlanta Falcons during their transaction involving tight end Hayden Hurst. With the pick the Jags will have 12 in all (eventually), with multiple selections in the first, fourth, fifth and sixth rounds.

The Jags decided to trade the veteran last week to provide themselves with a little cap relief. The Ravens took on all of the expenses freeing the Jags of the $15 million cap hit Campbell would’ve been. After the transaction was reported, it was also announced that Campbell agreed to terms on a new two-year deal worth $27 million with $20 million of it being guaranteed.

Campbell signed with the Jags in 2017 via a four-year deal worth $60 million that included $30 million in guarantees. He was very productive for the team during his time in Jacksonville acquiring an All-Pro nod (2017) and going to three Pro Bowls while accumulating a total of 195 tackles and 31.5 sacks. He should fit right in with the Ravens talented defense which is viewed as a top-5 unit by most.

Report: Jaguars fifth-round pick from Ravens upgraded after Hayden Hurst trade

The Jacksonville Jaguars have loaded up on draft picks for the next two years and their riches got better Monday – well, slightly. The original fifth-round selection they received from the Baltimore Ravens (No. 170) for trading Calais Campbell …

The Jacksonville Jaguars have loaded up on draft picks for the next two years and their riches got better Monday — well, slightly. The original fifth-round selection they received from the Baltimore Ravens (No. 170) for trading Calais Campbell Sunday was upgraded. Due to the Ravens receiving a higher fifth-round selection from the Atlanta Falcons during their transaction for Hayden Hurst, the Ravens will now be giving the Jags the newly acquired fifth-rounder (No. 153) instead.

The Jags will enter the 2020 NFL Draft with 11 picks after trading Campbell. The transaction also put the Jags in position where they have multiple draft picks in the first, fourth, fifth, and sixth rounds.

With the Jags heading towards a rebuild a lot of the late-round selections could provide the team with depth if they keep a majority of them and they may even get lucky on some like they did with quarterback Gardner Minshew II. More early-round selections could be coming in the future, too, as Yannick Ngakoue has come out to say that he doesn’t want a long-term deal with the Jags.

Podcast: Jags Wire discusses Calais Campbell trade, new CBA

James and Phil recorded a bonus episode of “Bleav in the Jags” where they evaluated the ins and outs of Calais Campbell being traded.

The Jacksonville Jaguars were one of the hottest topics of the weekend after they traded veteran defensive lineman Calais Campbell to the Philadelphia Eagles for a fifth-round pick. To discuss the ins and outs of the transaction, Jags Wire contributor Phil Smith and I recorded a bonus episode of “Bleav in the Jags.”

Why was it time to let the veteran go? What’s the affects on the salary cap? Why didn’t they get more compensation? All of this an more was discussed in our latest episode.

Afterward, we briefly shared some thoughts on the new Collective Bargaining Agreement in which the NFL Players Association signed.

Feel free to listen to the archived episodes of Bleav in Jags, too, and subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or Spotify.

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Calais Campbell calls his time with Jags an once-in-a-lifetime experience

Calais Campbell’s trade may have upset the fanbase but there clearly was no hard feeling on his end after releasing a statement Sunday.

In addition to a new Collective Bargaining Agreement getting done, the Jacksonville Jaguars were one of the popular topics in NFL headlines Sunday. The team shocked the football community by trading Calais Campbell to the Baltimore Ravens for a 2020 fifth-round pick, further indicating that they were heading towards a rebuild.

Clearly, the transaction was a business move more than anything as the Jags simply didn’t want to take a $15 million cap hit for an aging player after attempting to lower his cap figure in the past. Sunday, Campbell seemed to understand that and released a very classy statement to the fans of the Jags and the organization.

In just three short seasons, Campbell built a strong bond with the Jacksonville community and the fans simply won’t forget what he’s done for them on and off the field. Through his foundation, the CRC Foundation, he especially helped a lot of children in the community, whether it was with his Christmas with Calais holiday shopping sprees or holding bowling events at Main Event.

On the field, Campbell was quite productive during the brief time that the Jags were good (2017) and afterward. He was named to three Pro Bowls while with the team and was also named an All-Pro (2017) while accumulating 195 total tackles and 31.5 sacks.

Simply put, his contributions made him the soul of the Jags and now a big void will be left. At least he left the organization with several good memories and on good terms, though.