In a week that’s been filled with bad optics for Jaguars coach Urban Meyer, one of the worst moments came postgame after the team’s 20-0 shutout loss to the Tennessee Titans. Asked about rookie safety Andre Cisco, Meyer said that he thought Cisco, who has seen a lot of action on special teams but only sparing reps on defense, got more opportunities there in the Titans game.
The only problem is, Cisco recorded zero defensive snaps, as has been the case in six of Jacksonville’s games this season. Of the seven games he has appeared in, he’s recorded double-digit snaps on defense in just three of them.
On Wednesday, Meyer backtracked on his comments from after the game, stating that he wouldn’t sacrifice winning to give reps to young players, such as Cisco.
“I do, I do, we all do, but I’ll tell you what we need is we need a win,” Meyer said. “We need a win. This organization needs a win. These players have worked so darn. We need a win, and if those guy, our staff, believes they can get in there, I’m pushing it as well. I’d like to see what Jordan Smith can do. He was way behind; he’s worked his tail off. He was not ready to contribute for a couple months just physically, and you have to give him credit, he’s really done a nice job.
Jay Tufele’s got some playing time. He’s going to earn more as we continue. But the one is [Andre] Cisco, he’s the guy that is a talented guy. He has a really good day on special teams. He has gotten reps over the last few weeks, but I usually don’t mandate that type of stuff. We had that conversation, and we have to win a game.”
I’m not sure if Meyer has seen the Jags’ placement in the AFC South standings, but it doesn’t seem like there’s much to sacrifice.
Maybe Cisco isn’t ready, but for one of the draft’s most intriguing prospects, he’s had an incredibly quiet rookie season. He was taken in the third round but was once considered a first-round quality player before a knee injury did some damage to his draft stock. Cisco may not have been 100% during the offseason, but he seems to be now.
Instead, most of the reps have gone to Andrew Wingard, a player who was considered questionable to make the final roster. Wingard hasn’t been terrible, but he also hasn’t been good enough to warrant keeping a potential future starter off the field.
Really, aside from quarterback Trevor Lawrence and cornerback Tyson Campbell, none of the rookies have been able to make much of a difference this season. That hasn’t always been the coaching staff’s decision, as Jay Tufele, for example, missed a good portion of the season with a hand injury, but more often than not it has been.
Considering the Jags took a value and caution-based approach to free agency despite having the most cap space in football, the fact that most of the rookies aren’t contributing meaningfully has resulted in the team struggling in many of the same ways it did during last year’s 1-15 campaign.
Questions surrounding the usage of players like Cisco are just the latest black mark on what has been a chaotic tenure in Jacksonville so far for Meyer.