Tag: Mike Caldwell

Mike Caldwell: Andre Cisco is ‘ready to take that next step’

Is Andre Cisco primed to become one of the NFL’s best free safeties?

Andre Cisco didn’t see the field much as a rookie with the Jacksonville Jaguars, despite Urban Meyer saying otherwise. It wasn’t until the 2022 season that Cisco stepped into the starting lineup on a full-time basis and showed what made him a third-round draft pick.

Now, entering his third season and his second as the Jaguars’ starting free safety, Cisco may be primed to step into the top tier of NFL safeties.

“You can see the comfort in him,” Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell said on Tuesday. “He’s a talented, good player. You can just see that he’s ready to take that next step. He’s out there, and he’s comfortable. His ability is going to take over.”

Cisco finished the 2022 season with three interceptions, 10 pass deflections, and one sack. In a preseason game on Saturday, he forced a sack on the Dallas Cowboys’ first possession when his blitz moved quarterback Cooper Rush right into the arms of Jaguars defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton.

“There are different ways to be able to use his ability,” Caldwell said of Cisco. “Being able to rush the quarterback, playing the middle of the field. He’s a talented player that we’ll be able to use in a variety of ways.”

“Early on in the game, he had a great up-the-field tackle. That’s one of the things he’s improved on. Blitzing, he’s able to do that. The coverage skills, you know he has that, but just being able to be a well-rounded, play-making safety. That’s our vision for him, and that’s what he’s turning into.”

Cisco has two seasons left on his rookie deal before he sets to become a free agent in 2025.

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Mike Caldwell: Travon Walker’s ‘toolbox is expanding’ in year 2

Defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell likes what he’s seen from Travon Walker in his second Jaguars training camp.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are pinning a lot of hope on the growth and development of outside linebacker Travon Walker.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft exploded out of the gates last season with an interception and sack in his regular season debut. But he cooled down significantly and finished his rookie year with 3.5 sacks.

After opting against adding much pass rush help in the offseason, the Jaguars need to see a new and improved version of Walker in 2023. Defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell offered hope Monday that things are progressing smoothly.

“You love to see the continual improvement in the run game which was strong last year, we just need him to step that up,” Caldwell said of Walker. “Then in the pass game, you see the rushes. At times, he’s winning on the edge. He’s powering and he’s countering now. His toolbox is expanding and you see the progress going on.”

Fellow outside linebacker Josh Allen offered an even more glowing review of Walker’s progress last week when he told reporters that he expects the No. 1 pick to “dominate” this year.

Jacksonville finished the 2022 season with 35 sacks, 26th most in the NFL. In the offseason, the Jaguars allowed Arden Key, who finished third on the team in sacks, to join the Tennessee Titans in free agency.

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Mike Caldwell: ‘It’s time for K’Lavon Chaisson’s hard work to pay off’

Mike Caldwell isn’t giving up on outside linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson.

K’Lavon Chaisson hasn’t looked like a first-round pick in his time with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The No. 20 overall selection in the 2020 NFL draft has just three sacks in his career, one in each of his three seasons with the Jaguars.

Unsurprisingly, Jacksonville wasn’t interested in picking up the $12.141 million fifth-year option on his rookie contract, which means Chaisson is now set to become a free agent in 2024.

But Mike Caldwell doesn’t think that ship has sailed. In a press conference Friday, the Jaguars defensive coordinator said he’s optimistic about Chaisson’s chances at finally making an impact.

“The tools are there and he’s a smart and talented outside linebacker,” Caldwell said. “He has ability to rush, he’s shown it, and we’re just waiting for him to be healthy and get his opportunity to get out there and show what he can do.

“When you look at it, he’s never really had the chance for a full season. We’re waiting for him to be healthy. When you look at him from the time we got here to now, the work he’s put in, it’s time for his hard work to pay off for him.”

Chaisson, 24, missed about two months during the 2022 season after suffering a meniscus tear. While he returned for the last five games of the regular season and the Jaguars’ two playoff games, he didn’t see many defensive snaps with Arden Key ahead of him on the depth chart.

Earlier this week, Jaguars coach Doug Pederson said Chaisson is currently the No. 3 outside linebacker for the team behind only starters Josh Allen and Travon Walker.

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Tyson Campbell ‘coming out of his shell’ as a leader, says DC Mike Caldwell

After two years in the starting lineup, Tyson Campbell is emerging as a defensive leader for the Jaguars.

The Jacksonville Jaguars offense has its leader for the foreseeable future in quarterback Trevor Lawrence. On the other side of the ball, cornerback Tyson Campbell has the opportunity to become the same kind of cornerstone.

The 23-year-old cornerback has already racked up 31 starts in his NFL career and emerged as one of the best young players at his position in 2022. After finishing the year with an 80.8 defensive grade from Pro Football Focus — seventh highest in the NFL among cornerbacks — Campbell is now emerging as a leader in the Jaguars secondary.

“You can see him come out of his shell a little bit,” Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell said of Campbell on Tuesday. “He’s a guy that guys look to. He’s a player and he’s able to step out now and kind of talk to the young corners about how to do this and even talk to the safeties about how they’re supposed to be over the top of him at times.

“Being able to play as much as he has early on his career, that’s just going to help him. You’re thrown into it and he’s had his success and he’s able to help the young guys out.”

Heading into his third NFL season, Campbell has been spotted helping out rookies after offseason practices.

The cornerback also recently hosted the Tyson Campbell Football Camp for local kids in Jacksonville and donated $10,000 to Jacksonville’s Parks and Recreation Department.

Campbell, a second-round pick in the 2021 NFL draft, has two years left on his rookie contract and is eligible to sign a contract extension with the Jaguars after the 2023 season. Given his impact in 2022 and his emergence as a leader in both the Jacksonville defense and the local community, a massive deal for the cornerback could certainly be on the way in 2024.

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Jaguars DC Mike Caldwell to participate in Coach Accelerator program

Mike Caldwell is one of 40 assistant coaches set to participate in a program that will connect him with NFL owners and executives.

The NFL will host a Coach Accelerator program next week in Minneapolis, Minn. and Jacksonville Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell is set to be a participant.

The program “aims to increase exposure between owners, executives, and diverse coaching talent,” according to the NFL.

Caldwell, 51, was one of 40 assistant coaches invited by the NFL, which  sought to bring in coaches with a high likelihood of being considered for a head coaching job in the future.

“In the year since its inception, we’ve been encouraged by the positive response to the Accelerator from both club owners and participants,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing to build on an incredible program that supports diverse talent.”

The Jaguars hired Caldwell during the 2022 offseason after he previously spent three years as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ linebackers coach. Prior to that, he had stints as an assistant with the New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals, and Philadelphia Eagles.

In his first season in Jacksonville, the team finished 12th in points allowed.

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Mike Caldwell: It’s time for K’Lavon Chaisson to become the player he can be

Jaguars coaches are hoping K’Lavon Chaisson will step up in a big way in Dawuane Smoot’s absence.

The Jacksonville Jaguars had high hopes for K’Lavon Chaisson when he was picked 20th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. The First Team All-SEC pass rusher had 13.5 tackles for loss in his sophomore season at LSU, helping the team to a national championship win before leaving for the NFL at age 20.

But near the end of his third professional season, Chaisson has just two sacks and has been relegated to backup duties in Jacksonville.

Now Chaisson has a chance — perhaps his last one — at proving he can be a productive part of the Jaguars defense. With Dawuane Smoot out for the year with an Achilles tear and Travon Walker nursing an ankle sprain, Chaisson is expected to see more opportunities in the final weeks of the 2022 season.

“You see the speed, you see the size, you see the ability — he can drop into coverage, he can rush the passer,” Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell said of Chaisson on Thursday. “There’s ability there. You can see why he was drafted there [in the first round]. It’s time for him to become the player that he was in college; he can become that player now.

“He’s a very intelligent player. He knows the system and he’s working on his craft daily. He had the setback with the injury, but now he’s back healthy, continuing to work. He’s just a guy that, given this opportunity, he has to take advantage of it. Hopefully, we’re looking forward to him doing it.”

Chaisson, 23, was on the field for only 31 defensive snaps in the first five weeks of the season before a meniscus injury landed him on injured reserve. He returned in Week 14 and has played 36 defensive snaps in the last three games.

In addition to Caldwell speaking highly of Chaisson on Thursday, Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson had good things to say about the pass rusher on Wednesday.

“He’s worked extremely hard,” Pederson said. “He knows and he understands that even with a healthy Smoot his role was kind of a four-core special teams player, and he came back ready to attack that and be the best teams player he could knowing he was going to have limited reps on defense.

“Now his focus can sort of shift a little bit toward the defense and really make an impact in Smoot’s absence. This will be big, this week and next week and if we continue on, but he’s put himself in a position to do that.”

The Jaguars rank 28th in the NFL in sacks with only 29 through 15 games.

Jaguars DC Mike Caldwell: ‘The talent is here’

Mike Caldwell says the Jaguars defense can be good with the players it already has.

The Jacksonville Jaguars defense allowed 40 points in Week 13, never forcing the Detroit Lions to punt or turn the ball over in a blowout loss that dropped the Jaguars to 4-8.

With much of the talk this week centered around what Jacksonville can do to right the ship, defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell said Thursday that the team isn’t in need of an infusion of new players.

“I think the talent is here,” Caldwell said in a press conference. “We’re happy with the players here. We just have to get them understanding that when you do the right way, you have to do it the right way over and over and over again.

“There are times when we’re right on point. Then there are times when we’re not. That’s part of coaching, we all own that, we’ve got to get those guys playing the way they need to play over and over and over.”

The Jaguars used a pair of first-round picks on defensive players, Travon Walker and Devin Lloyd, in April, as well as a third-round pick on Chad Muma. Jacksonville also added defensive lineman Folorunso Fatukasi, linebacker Foye Oluokun, and cornerback Darious Williams in free agency.

After solid results from the new-look defense early in the season — including a shutout of the Indianapolis Colts in Week 2 — the unit has regressed as the year has gone on. It has now allowed at least 27 points and 400 yards in three straight weeks.

Caldwell may be hesitant to throw his players under the bus by saying they’re not good enough and new talent is needed. But the results tell another story and it’s hard to imagine the Jaguars not addressing their defensive woes with more draft picks in 2023.

Mike Caldwell: It’s ‘definitely important’ to get Dawuane Smoot more snaps

Dawuane Smoot leads the Jaguars in sacks, despite playing less than 50 percent of the defensive snaps in every game this season.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have a former Pro Bowler starting at outside linebacker in Josh Allen and drafted the other starter, Travon Walker, with the No. 1 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. But nine games into the season, it’s Dawuane Smoot who leads the team in sacks.

Smoot, 27, has been especially effective as of late with 3.5 sacks over the last two games to bring his season total to five.

“[It’s] definitely important to get him on the field,” Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell said of Smoot on Thursday. “There are certain situations where we want to try to get him more reps, and once he’s out there, he’s performing well and doing a great job. He’s really motivating other guys to do the same thing. We’re really excited about it.

“His versatility really speaks for itself; he’s a guy that can play inside, can play outside. He can drop into coverage; he can rush the quarterback. He does so many things for us that we just have to get him on the field and let him go.”

Smoot first joined the Jaguars as a third-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, but didn’t record his first sack until the 2019 season. He finished that year with six sacks, then 5.5 in 2020, and six again in 2021. With eight games left on the schedule, Smoot is in line for a career year.

Through the first nine games, his season-high snap count was 31 and he hasn’t yet played more than 50 percent of the defensive snaps in a game.

Perhaps more concerning than Smoot’s lack of snaps is the inability of Allen and Walker to turn more opportunities into production. Allen hasn’t recorded a sack since Week 4, despite playing in at least 72 percent of the snaps of every game this year. Walker’s been on the field for at least 78 percent of the snaps every week and has 2.5 sacks.

Mike Caldwell on Josh Allen: ‘You need your good players to play good’

The Jaguars’ Josh Allen is on a four-game streak without recording a sack.

The Jacksonville Jaguars weren’t interested in sending away Josh Allen ahead of the trade deadline, but the team also expects more production from its three-time defensive team captain.

Allen, 25, started the year with three sacks through the first four games of the season. Since then, he’s gone four straight games without a sack and three straight without a tackle for a loss.

“Teams are paying attention to him,” Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell said Thursday. “They’re chipping with backs and tight ends. Last week the interior guys had success, and Josh did his part as far as keeping the quarterback in the pocket for the most part. He’ll just have to continue to do that, then hopefully his plays will come.

“The message really this week has been ‘Raise your level,’ everyone, and Josh is one of our good players, and you need your good players to play good.”

The decision to rebuff teams interested in Allen suggests the Jaguars see the pass rusher as a cornerstone to build around. The 2019 first-round pick is set to play the 2022 season on the $11.5 million fifth-year option of his rookie contract.

On Thursday, the Miami Dolphins dished out a five-year, $110 million extension to Bradley Chubb, days after acquiring the 2018 first-round pick. In 49 games with the Denver Broncos, Chubb tallied 26 sacks and earned Pro Bowl honors in 2020.

Allen has 23.5 sacks in 48 career games and earned Pro Bowl honors during his rookie season in 2019.

Jaguars DC Mike Caldwell: ‘There’s no loss of confidence’ in Shaquill Griffin

Mike Caldwell hasn’t lost confidence in Shaquill Griffin.

Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Shaquill Griffin had an awful game in Week 7 against the Indianapolis Colts.

Griffin, 27, gave up nine receptions, 131 receiving yards, and the 32-yard game-winning touchdown that was hauled by Colts rookie Alec Pierce. The pair of pass interference penalties picked up by Griffin didn’t help his cause either.

On Thursday, Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell came to the veteran cornerback’s defense.

“As a corner, you have plays, you have to have a short memory,” Caldwell said. “He does that, he moves on, and he’s back in here trying to get back healthy and trying to do the things we want him to do.

“They make plays, we make plays, but we just have to make more plays. We have confidence that Shaq can go back out there and do it, there’s no loss of confidence in him. We’re just ready for him to get another shot.”

Regardless of Caldwell’s confidence in Griffin, it’s looking increasingly likely that the team will play without him Sunday, anyway. A back injury that the cornerback says he’s been dealing with since training camp has flared up and kept him out of action at Wednesday and Thursday practices.

Griffin joined the Jaguars in 2021 on a three-year, $40 million contract. His $16.44 million cap hit is the only one on the Jaguars books this season above $10 million.