Tag: D.J. Chark

Takeaways from Jags’ third day of padded practices: D.J. Chark flourishes, again

D.J. Chark has been playing out of his mind at training camp and once again couldn’t be stopped at practice Thursday.

After having Wednesday off, the Jacksonville Jaguars returned to the field Thursday for another padded practice. With a few members atop the secondary depth chart missing, the Jags’ offense had themselves a day working a lot on red-zone drills.

Here are some takeaways from Thursday’s practice:

D.J. Chark continues to be lights out

D.J. Chark’s name has been unavoidable at camp and that was especially the case Thursday though the secondary was missing starters Ronnie Harrison and C.J. Henderson. Several media members praised the third-year receiver for the day he had and it sounds like he’s veering towards a Camp MVP Award.

Chark found himself on the receiving end of multiple Gardner Minshew II touchdown passes Thursday, further strengthening their connection which seems to be getting stronger by the day. Below are two clips showcasing the day Chark had as he snagged a one-hander and caught a few touchdown passes Thursday.

There was another noteworthy clip that surfaced of Chark as he was running up the sideline with veteran Tramaine Brock tight in coverage. However, at the last moment Chark was able to showcase a burst of speed for separation, bringing the ball down for a touchdown. This is one of the many plays where his development has been on display this summer as the Pro Bowler has clearly put in a lot of offseason work.

Tight ends fared well, even without Josh Oliver

For the fans who are nervous about the loss of Josh Oliver, Thursday’s session provided some encouraging signs for the tight end position. During red-zone drills, Minshew utilized Tyler Eifert and his big frame well as News4Jax’s Jamal St. Cyr caught two touchdown connections between him and Minshew.

James O’Shaughnessy’s connection with Minshew also seemed to be re-establishing in Thursday’s practice as the two connected for a pair of touchdowns on the day.

Jags get a key pass-rusher back

After sustaining a hamstring injury earlier in the month, K’Lavon Chaisson returned to the field, and with the hits the Jags’ depth on the defensive line has taken, he was a welcomed addition.

With Yannick Ngakoue remaining out, Chaisson will be a key player to watch heading forward, because as we all know, having a pass-rush is everything for a defense.

Other notes and tidbits

  • As mentioned, both Henderson (illness, non-COVID-19 related) and Harrison (concussion protocol) were missing from the Jags’ secondary Thursday, which gave the team’s young defensive backs a good look.
  • Linebacker Myles Jack missed his second consecutive day as he also continues to deal with a non-COVID-19 related illness.
  • Sirius NFL Radio was in attendance (well, virtually) at Jags camp and spoke to several members of the organization, including Dave Caldwell, Josh Allen, and Gardner Minshew among notables.

  • The Jags activated two players from their Reserve/COVID-19 list Thursday in running back Ryquell Armstead and guard Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms. They now only have one player on the list in offensive tackle Ryan Pope.

LSU in the NFL: Projecting D.J. Chark’s 2020 stats with the Jacksonville Jaguars

How could Chark fare as the team’s No. 1 wide receiver?

Ever since the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted him in 2018, former LSU wide receiver D.J. Chark has been a spark to the team’s offense at wide receiver.

In 2019,  he caught 73 passes for 1,008 yards and eight touchdowns on 118 targets while averaging 13.8 yards per catch. His 73 touchdowns ranked 29th in the NFL among all receivers, and his eight touchdowns ranked tied for ninth in the entire league.

He was primarily the No. 2 receiver last year, but that could change in 2020. Former Jaguars wideout Marquis Lee signed with the New England Patriots during the offseason. The move puts Chark in a prime position to become the team’s top receiver.

With that said, how well could the former Tigers star fair as a No. 1 receiver this season in Jacksonville?

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Chark will be catching passes from second-year quarterback Gardner Minshew II, who passed for 3,271 yards last season and started nine straight games for the Jaguars in 2019.

The former LSU wideout could make his claim as the top receiver in the AFC South this season, too.

Basing this projection off of last year’s stats, Chark can easily exceed the 1,000-yard mark again in 2020.

His touchdown numbers should increase as well assuming he becomes the primary target. With a solid quarterback entering his second year, Chark could go anywhere from 1,000-1,300 yards this season and 15-20 receiving touchdowns.

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He is expected to be one of the best players on the entire team this season. Better yet, Chark is one of the rising stars not only at his position in the NFL, but of all positional players in the league.

His numbers increased significantly from 2018 to 2019, and should increase even more this season.

It will be interesting to see how well Chark plays for the Jaguars and whether he can improve from last season as the team’s potential top target in the passing game.

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Doug Marrone, D.J. Chark discuss leadership D.J. Hayden brings to Jags’ locker room

The Jags will be enduring a lot of changes to their locker room but one veteran who will return is D.J. Hayden, who the team has praised.

Training camp marks a good time for NFL teams to start establishing their locker-room leaders and Doug Marrone has already singled out a few for the Jacksonville Jaguars in his press conferences. Among them has been nickelback D.J. Hayden, who will be heading into his eighth season in the league and third with the Jags.

“He’s a guy, as a coach, you never want to take for granted,” Marrone said of the veteran. “He’s always doing the right thing. If I was a young player and I walked into a locker room and I was looking to see what someone does, maybe because I didn’t know, he’d be one of the guys that I look at.”

Marrone is right, for a locker-room that will be among the youngest in 2020, Hayden’s experience could prove to be invaluable. That could especially be the case when looking specifically at how young the Jags are at cornerback between rookie C.J. Henderson, third-year player Tre Herndon, fourth-round selection Josiah Scott, and a couple of undrafted rookies.

Like Marrone, those who’ve been around Hayden have come into camp aware of the leadership Hayden brings to the table. That includes one of the team’s ascending stars D.J. Chark, who has battled Hayden for over two seasons now.

“I love going against D.J. [Hayden],” Chark told the media Friday. “He’s very confident, which is something that I always admire about any player. When you’re confident, it allows me to be confident and talk smack with you. You also can learn from guys like that. He’s very smart. He knows route patterns, based off your system.”

Hayden’s play on the field also hasn’t gone under the radar on a national level either. Just recently, he was named to Touchdown Wire’s top-101 players list by Doug Farrar and was the only Jag listed. Now, it will be a matter of finding out if his play will be infectious to the rest of the Jags’ young secondary. If it is, the Jags veteran could end up being instrumental to the team moving closer to a .500 record or better.

D.J. Chark discusses becoming a leader and wanting to give Jags fans a winning product

With the Jags losing many of its leaders this offseason, D.J. Chark says he wants to step up and fill the voids left by former veterans.

The Jacksonville Jaguars’ locker-room will look significantly different in terms of leaders in 2020. Playmakers like Jalen Ramsey, A.J. Bouye, Calais Campbell, Marcell Dareus, and Nick Foles are all now with other teams, which means a new group of young stars will now have to step up.

With a clear understanding of this, third-year receiver D.J. Chark has come into 2020 with a leader’s mindset after a phenomenal season where he was the first Jags pass-catcher since 2015 to register 1,000 yards and went to the Pro Bowl as a result. When looking at those accolades it’s obvious the talent is there, but Chark came into training camp wanting to also be a role model for the Jags’ extremely young team.

Chark also came into camp understanding that he’s a face for the franchise, which means he has to emphasize winning to his teammates.

“I feel like this city, this team, deserves something to look forward to,” Chark   said to the media on Friday. “That first starts with me as being a guy that’s trying to be there for my teammates, trying to get the right energy going. We are very young, so now I am kind of forced out of the shadows to speak a little more. At the end of the day, we just want to win, that’s what we are here for. Win, play football, and that’s really the mindset of talking to my teammates and learning this new playbook. There are no excuses once we get out there on gameday. We have to get it in now.”

This is certainly music to the ears of Jags fans who’ve only witnessed one winning season under Shad Khan (2017). At the same time, Chark’s mindset shouldn’t surprise many after he came from a Louisiana State Tigers program that had great success.

Alongside veteran Chris Conley, Dede Westbrook, and Keelan Cole, Chark will also be tasked with leading a receivers group that added two draft picks in Laviska Shenault Jr. and Collin Johnson. Of course, the group hasn’t had a problem with taking the young pair under their wings and Chark spoke highly of both Friday.

“After we got them [in the draft], I went to look at them [on film] a little bit, I was able to meet them this summer,” said Chark. “They were willing to come out here early and get some work in with me, the other receivers, the quarterbacks, and I was able to build a bond with them. They work hard, and they are great people as well. I think that is something that we need to continue to add to this team, just hard workers, people who want to come in and win games. One goal for me is to help those guys have a better rookie year than I did.”

It certainly would be huge for the offense if either rookie made a significant contribution as the offense had trouble scoring in 2019. As for Chark, it appears he’s ready to take another step himself and it wouldn’t be shocking if he bested his 2019 numbers with more familiarity with Gardner Minshew II.

ESPN lists Gardner Minshew as a fantasy sleeper

ESPN fantasy football guru Eric Karabell likes the growth Gardner Minshew showed as a rookie an believes he’ll take another step in 2020.

While the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 2019 season was one most fans would rather forget about, rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew II provided a ray of hope for the 2020 season after aiding the team to all their wins. As a result, he’ll not only be one of the most anticipated players to watch by Jags fans, but one of the most anticipated to watch in the NFL.

There are some national pundits who also picked up on the rookies success last year and believe he has what it takes to make a bigger impact in 2020. ESPN Fantasy guru Eric Karabell is the latest to jump on the bandwagon as he listed Minshew amongst the top sleepers at the quarterback position.

Gardner Minshew, QB, Jacksonville Jaguars: Minshew is more than just a fine mustache. A surprising QB2 when active as a rookie, Minshew not only has plenty of tools to succeed and overcome pre-draft concerns as a passer, he emerged as an underrated thrower of the deep pass, and only four quarterbacks rushed for more yards last season. The Jaguars seemed a bit indifferent to building a contending team for 2020, and the quarterback competition is over with Nick Foles gone, so expect Minshew to throw and run to his heart’s content — and pile on enough fantasy points to matter.

Despite the Jags adding more on defense than offense this offseason, Minshew very well could step his game up. An X-factor that could help him do that is new offensive coordinator Jay Gruden, who had success with Andy Dalton and Kirk Cousins in the early parts of their careers.

The Jags also will have a stronger receivers corps, though the key will be health with the group. They drafted big-target receivers in Laviska Shenault Jr. and Collin Johnson, who were stars on the collegiate level. They also added veteran tight end Tyler Eifert, who played under Gruden in Cincinnati and brings familiarity to the offense.

The Jags will also get a draft pick they were super high on back from the 2019 class in Josh Oliver, who ended up missing a majority of the season with a hamstring issue and a back injury that placed him on injured reserve. One of Minshew’s favorite targets, James O’Shaughnessy, will also be back off IR after sustaining an ACL tear in 2019.

Add the aforementioned names in with pro bowler D.J. Chark and veteran Chris Conley, and yes, Minshew could be very productive in 2020. Again, it will just come down to his pass-catchers staying healthy and his offensive line playing better than they did in 2019.

Ranking the top-10 WRs in the AFC South

Who are the top 10 WRs in the division?

With the departure of DeAndre Hopkins in March, this division lost its most talented receiver. While the move was good news for the Colts, Jaguars and Titans, it did raise a lot of questions as to who would take the top spot.

The 2020 season will be a “prove it” year for a lot of receivers either on new teams or fighting for another contract.

Here are the top 10 wide receivers in the AFC South entering the 2020 season:

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10. Michael Pittman Jr.

The addition of Pittman in Indianapolis is highly anticipated and he is expected to be an immediate part of this offense. With a rare combination of size and speed, he creates a matchup problem for many corners around the league. It should be an exciting 2020 for this reformed Colts offense.

9. Chris Conley

Conley did well with a change of scenery in Jacksonville last season. With 775 yards and five touchdowns in 2019, Conley proved he is a valuable target. Alongside Chark, these two will be a solid duo for Gardner Minshew this upcoming season.

8. Kenny Stills

Stills has quietly been one of the league’s most consistent receivers the past few seasons. He has proven to be a solid deep ball threat but has failed to really impress and take over a game. With a now crowded receiving corps in Houston, Stills will have a lot to prove in 2020.

7. Corey Davis

Another guy who has a lot to prove in a contract year, Davis has not seen the success in Tennessee that was originally anticipated. With A.J. Brown emerging as the No. 1 target for the Titans, Davis will have to find his role before he is given another deal.

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PFF: D.J. Chark listed among league’s top sure-handed deep threats

Not only has D.J. Chark Jr. been one of the more explosive receivers in football, but he’s been sure-handed with deep attempts, too.

When it comes to deep threats, Jacksonville Jaguars receiver D.J. Chark is among one of the best in football. He got to prove that last year after a breakout season where he registered a career-high of 73 catches, 1,008 receiving yards, and eight touchdowns, which earned him Pro Bowl honors.

However, according to Pro Football Focus, Chark hasn’t just been one of the best deep threats in football since entering the league, but also one of the most reliable. The popular database recently grouped him in rare company, pointing out that he’s one of the few receivers to not drop a pass of 20 yards or more since 2018 with 16 catches. In fact, only three receivers have been more sure-handed with deep attempts in Julio Jones (26), Allen Robinson (23), and Devante Parker (17).

I know what you all at home are thinking: it would’ve been great to pair both Robinson and Chark up, which definitely would be interesting. Nonetheless, this is a pretty impressive achievement on Chark’s part.

Heading into 2020, Chark likely won’t see a decline in deep opportunities as Gardner Minshew will need him to take the next step. With an offensive coordinator like Jay Gruden by his side and a receivers coach like Keenan McCardell, fans have to like his chances to improve in 2020.

Watch: Gardner Minshew, Chris Conley, D.J. Chark, members of Jags’ offense link up for workout

With virtual workouts over, several members of the Jags’ offense got together at a local high school to begin building team chemistry.

Due to the nation’s coronavirus pandemic, the NFL season has gotten off to a very unusual start. Players weren’t able to have organized team activities, minicamp, or go to their respective facilities (until last week) and have had to resort to organizing things on their own.

The Jags recently jumped onboard with the league’s workout trend, putting together an offensive workout Monday, according to the Instagram account of receiver D.J. Chark. Others who were seen in attendance were quarterbacks Gardner Minshew and Josh Dobbs, receiver Chris Conley, and various other skill players from the roster.

The Jags recently wrapped up the virtual part of their offseason that replaced OTAs and it was recently announced that no team is allowed to have minicamp. That said, the Jags and 29 other teams are set to return for training camp on July 28 under a new Collective Bargaining Agreement stipulation.

The Jags’ offense will have to put in a lot of work to get settled once they return this summer as they will be installing a new offense under Jay Gruden. With that being the case, look for the Jags’ offense to schedule more of these workouts (at least what the rules permit) down the road.

Mike Garafolo believes Gardner Minshew, D.J. Chark will be best QB/WR duo in AFC South

NFL insider Mike Garafolo really likes what he saw out of Chark and Minshew in 2019 and believes they could be the AFC South’s top QB/WR duo.

When looking at the national perception surrounding the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2020, fans would be hard-pressed to find an analyst high on the team. A big reason for that is the personnel they have on offense as many aren’t high on either quarterback Gardner Minshew II or the personnel around him.

Despite all of the negative feedback, however, it appears that at least one national analyst isn’t quite ready to count the Jags’ offense out. That analyst’s name is NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, who singled out Minshew and receiver D.J. Chark as the best duo in the AFC South Friday on “Good Morning Football.”

 

Garafolo makes some great points about Minshew’s numbers being better than those of 2019 first overall pick and Rookie of the Year, Kyler Murray, in certain areas. As mentioned, the Arizona rookie had a lower quarterback rating (Murray’s was 87.4, Minshew’s 91.2), threw for one less touchdown (Minshew had 21), and threw double the amount of picks (Murray had six to Minshew’s 12). However, with him not getting more of a national spotlight playing in Jacksonville, his achievements have been heavily overlooked just like fellow 2019 draftee Josh Allen, who quietly went to the Pro Bowl and truly earned the nomination.

As for Chark, he was the Jags’ most improved player and his bond with Minshew was pretty fun to watch. In fact, their connection was so strong that Chark linked up with Minshew for four touchdowns within the first five games of the season. Additionally, all but two of Chark’s receptions came from Minshew during that period and the two linked up for 25 receptions and 443 receiving yards. So yeah, Garafolo is right to single out the pairing.

Now, with a year under their belts and a coordinator in Jay Gruden who most feel will be an upgrade over John DeFilippo, it will be interesting to see if Chark and Minshew take another step. If they do, the Jags could prove a lot of their doubters wrong and reach the .500 mark this season or maybe even better.

Jay Gruden says he would like to utilize D.J. Chark in the slot more

Jay Gruden is really impressed by the film he’s seen on D.J. Chark but feels there are more ways he could be utilized.

Jacksonville Jaguars receiver D.J. Chark Jr. was undoubtedly the team’s most improved player in 2019. After a 2018 rookie season in which he struggled and only caught 14 passes, he bounced back last year by leading the receiving corps with 73 catches for 1,008 yards and eight touchdowns. He also went to the Pro Bowl alongside defensive linemen Calais Campbell and Josh Allen.

Despite that success, coordinator Jay Gruden believes Chark is just scratching the surface and could be utilized in the slot just as well as on the outside.

“He’s got the skill set with the size, speed and ability to come in and out of cuts,” Gruden said. “I think we can do a little bit more with him. I’d like to get him inside and do some more things with him in the slot. But he’s an excellent specimen. And the thing that I have come to know about DJ in the limited time I got to meet him was that he’s hungry.”

This is something Chark won’t have a problem with as it’s another creative way to free the young receiver up. While Dede Westbrook is the player who is expected to see the most snaps in the slot, switching things up occasionally won’t hurt, especially when considering Chark’s size (6-foot-4, 194-pounds).

As we previously pointed out last week, the slot is a spot that has seen a lot of production in Gruden’s offenses in the past. His last primary slot receiver, Jamison Crowder, accumulated 221 catches for 2,628 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns throughout the last four seasons while mostly playing at the position.

Playing Chark in the slot is also something that, of course, could help quarterback Gardner Minshew II, too. With Chark seeing a total of 118 targets last year (the most on the team) it won’t matter where he plays as Minshew clearly likes going to him.