The Jacksonville Jaguars’ defense hasn’t looked anything like the elite unit fans witnessed in 2017 as they’ve lost a lot of talent. Arguably the biggest hit the group took was the loss of Jalen Ramsey, who was traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
As the next man up, the trade forced Tre Herndon into the starting lineup, who had never started in an NFL game until that point. Of course, as any player would, he had his highs and lows, but with just one game left in the season, Jags defensive coordinator Todd Wash and head coach Doug Marrone likes where the second-year player is.
“We were talking actually this morning, [Head Coach] Doug Marrone and I, and [Herndon] is playing extremely well right now,” said Wash. “He has not given up very many explosive plays. Guys are going to catch a ball on everybody at some point in time, but we are really pleased with his progress. He does exactly what we want him to do, not only in the pass game, but the run game.”
Herndon will enter the Jags’ season finale as the team’s leader in interceptions with three. When considering he didn’t start in two of the team’s regular season games in 2019, that’s quite impressive.
Marrone’s future looks uncertain at the moment, but if he returns that would be great for Herndon as Marrone is a big fan of him. Even before he was inserted into the starting lineup, Marrone praised the second-year corner often during training camp, and if Marrone isn’t fired, it’s possible he’ll be fine with keeping Herndon in the starting lineup for 2020.