From the day he stepped on the Jacksonville Jaguars’ practice field, Josh Allen has had the support of veteran Calais Campbell. When he was drafted last April, the rookie made it known that he wanted to learn from Campbell and the Jags’ other veterans and it turned out to be a good situation for him in the end.
Despite only starting in four games, Allen was able to achieve great heights as a rookie. He was able to set the Jags’ rookie sack record (10.5), lead all rookies in sacks during the regular season, and become the franchise’s only rookie to make the Pro Bowl.
While attending the annual all-star game, Allen spoke highly of Campbell, who also participated in the Pro Bowl and ended up being the game’s defensive MVP.
“That’s my big brother,” Allen said at the Pro Bowl. “If I see him doing something right, if I see something that I want to do, or something that he’s saying that I can really learn from, I’m going to be there. He’s definitely getting me involved with different players and stuff [at the Pro Bowl], so, that’s real big for myself and just a confidence standard. And he’s definitely hyping me up to a lot of people so now I’ve got to fill the shoes that he made for myself. Just being with him, it’s just an awesome feeling.”
Allen is certainly off to a good start in terms of filling Campbell’s shoes. However, despite that success, Campbell has made it a point of emphasis for the young Jaguar not to get complacent as he’ll be coming up on a crucial 2020 season in which the team must improve.
“I always want to keep him motivated so I’m going to always push him to do better,” Campbell said. “He has a lot he can work on, but for a rookie he did very well. He’s going to continue to get better and I can’t wait to see how good he becomes. I’m always going to push him to be the best he can be, but he had an incredible year.”
There are a lot of issues with the Jags’ roster but one bright spot fans can smile about is Allen. Most fans knew the team was fortunate to land him in April as he was projected to be a top-4 pick. From the moment he touched the field, he looked to part of an elite college player, and the crazy part about it is that he’s just scratching the surface.
As for the brotherhood between Campbell and Allen, the two will have at least one more season together as it appears the Jags are looking to keep the veteran on the last year of his deal. If the Jags can add some help at linebacker and in the interior of the defensive line, we could see the pair have an even stronger campaign as the Jags will look to re-establish the dominance from Campbell’s first year.