Maybe I just enjoy playing devil's advocate, or maybe I just don't agree with much of the outrage following the Jaguars 16-10 loss in Carolina. I just don't see how Jack Del Rio has become a scape goat for the Jaguars' poor offense. For as much grief as he's given for the offense, he's been given no credit for the defensive success. Why? You tell me.

As of this morning, the Jaguars have the 5th ranked defense in the NFL. Are we really thick enough to believe Jack Del Rio, a head coach with a strong defensive background, has nothing to do with the Jaguars improved defense? I don't mean to blast this fan base, but we're turning into the French during the late 18th century. We're ready to chop heads at the drop of a hat.

Yes, the Jaguars' offense is bad. Actually, terrible is a better word for it. That means this team has a long way to go to get good, but that doesn't mean we should be ready to fire the head coach after 3 weeks. That doesn't get us anywhere. Let's give Del Rio his fair shot at making the playoffs. After all, the Jaguars are just 1 game out of first place in the division.

Now I want to address the play calling issue. Yes, the play calling was far too conservative, but it very nearly worked. On the 3rd down screen to Deji Karim on the drive before the Panthers touchdown drive, a lineman, Uche Nwaneri if I remember correctly, missed a block that would have led to a Jaguars' first down. If he makes that block, the Jaguars could very likely have won the game. It's not like the Jaguars chose a strategy that had a 0% chance of getting them the win. They gave the game to their defense instead of the offense. That's a move I like, especially considering the lack of offensive success.

If there's anything I can guarantee, it's that the Jaguars will improve as the season goes along. This is a young offense with a rookie quarterback. The Jaguars defense is still gelling. Let's just take a deep breath and prepare for a rough few weeks. Let's also suspend the use of the guillotine until the season is over. An interim head coach doesn't help anything. The Jaguars made their bed, now they need to sleep in it.

Jack Del Rio is handcuffing this team & the results are pathetic.  Del Rio needs to go.  Once again he has cost the Jaguars a victory by playing so conservative that it literally makes fans sick to their stomachs to have to watch the players run the ball over & over again.  Even when they have absolutely no hope of getting a first down unless they throw the ball, Jack stubbornly runs MJD into a wall of defenders for no gain.  How can Wayne Weaver stand to see his team struggle?  When is enough enough? Why is he letting Del Rio waste the talents of players like MJD, Lewis, Gabbert & Thomas?  How can he sit back year after year and watch as offensive coordinators come & go, but still not see that Jack is the problem?   When will he finally open up his check book and sign a true # 1 WR?  Del Rio has had 8 years to fix this team and still they play horrible offense.  This team could have been rebuilt twice by now.  I am quickly losing all respect for Del Rio.  How much longer must we put up with his inability to open up the offense?  Why move up in the draft for Gabbert if you're not going to let him throw the ball?  Jack should not be the head coach in Jacksonville anymore. 

When it rains it pours.  The Jaguars dropped another game today.  The Jags had the lead going into halftime, but Del Rio once again went into ultraconservative mode, refusing to give Blaine Gabbert any real chance to open up the passing game.  The Jags ran the ball time and again, even when in 3rd & long situations where the Panthers defense was obviously loading the box to stop MJD.  Not until the Panthers took the lead in the 4th quarter was Gabbert allowed to throw more.  Combine that with the fact that there were some dropped passes (Gabbert threw them perfectly), the snap was blotched 4 times and the game was played in monsoon-type weather and you end up with another loss for the Jags.  It seemed at times that the only WR Blaine was targeting was Mike Thomas.  The Jaguars clearly are suffering without any real threat at WR. 

There's a lot about this game that I need to address; so, I'll get right to it. This isn't a very good team. I'll be the first to admit this. I expected the Jaguars to be a lot better than they have been, especially on offense.

To Blaine Gabbert's credit, he didn't play badly. He was never really given an opportunity to drop back and pick at the defense, and that's exactly what I expected. I don't think it was a bad strategy either. The Jaguars have a solid defense, but their offense is doing them no favors.

My biggest concern going forward is that the Jaguars can't get in the end-zone. They've had 2 touchdowns in 3 games, and the most recent 1 was pretty flukey at best in it's nature. The simple fact is that they have to find a way to produce points. This is only week 3, but their season is starting to look bleak.

Now I want to address the situation regarding the review at the end of the game. The receiver was tackled in bounds, and as such, the clock was running. They stopped the play for review right as Gabbert was taking the snap. I was personally sure that the clock would start when the ball was marked ready for play, and I was right. Jack Del Rio should have been aware of that, but I understand why he didn't think it would.

My biggest problem was that no official went to Del Rio and said, "Hey the clock will start when the ball's spotted if the call is upheld." That's all it would have taken, and it didn't happen. It would have saved the officials and the NFL a lot of criticism. The rule was carried out correctly, and that's really all there is to it. The entire problem would've been solved with some simple communication.

The Jaguars play the Saints next week at home which, in all reality, will likely drop their record to 1-3. The good news is that the division is still very close, especially with the Texans losing to the Saints. Further good news comes from the fact that the Texans play Pittsburgh next week.

The Jacksonville Jaguars will have Eben Britton back in the line-up for this Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers.  Eben has missed the first two games due to a back injury.  Tania Ganguli of the Florida Times Union reported that Britton will be back, but not as the starting RT.  Instead, he could be moved inside to LG.  The Jaguars apparently really like Guy Whimper at RT and plan on keeping him there.  Current LG rookie Will Rackley will be moved down the depth chart to allow Britton to become the starting LG.  This would give the Jaguars a very solid starting O-line consisting of Eugene Monroe at LT, Eben Britton at LG, Brad Meester at C, Uche Nwaneri at RG and Guy Whimper at RT.  The Jaguars believe that this will give them a better chance of protecting QB Blaine Gabbert.  It makes sense to do whatever it takes to protect your franchise QB.  The Jaguars will then have Will Rackley, Jason Spitz, John Estes, Cameron Bradfield and Daniel Baldridge as back-ups.

What’s Next: Cam Newton vs. Blaine Gabbert
Blaine Gabbert, on the other hand, was supposed to be given a year of grooming.  A year to prepare.  A year to learn the office.  But then came the terrible preseason of David Garrard.  He was cut in favor of the always practice-sharp Luke McCown. But after a terrible four interception game agains the Jets last week, McCown has been benched in favor of the rookie.  With only two weeks of watching real NFL football from the bend, Gabbert must step into the shoes once held by Byron Leftwich, 1st round pick expected to bring the franchise to the elite level of the NFL.

Del Rio smartly changes scout team offense
I give Jack Del Rio huge credit for coming up with a system that’s been far more beneficial to Blaine Gabbert through the first two weeks of the season. Offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter spelled it out for the Jacksonville media Thursday.

New week, same approach
Koetter, the Jaguars’ offensive coordinator, said while all of that is true – and while one of Blaine Gabbert’s strengths is obviously a very special right arm – it also remains true that the 2011 first-round draft selection is still very much a rookie entering his first professional start.

Flashback: Jaguars @ Texans - 9/28/03
While there is certainly hope that Gabbert could be more than that for the Jaguars, especially with the early successes of Cam Newton and Andy Dalton, it's probably unfair of Jaguars fans to expect as much. Instead a statline like Leftwich's in his rookie debut and season is probably a better bar with which to grade.

Blaine Gabbert & the Hype Train. Hop aboard!
So how does this apply to Blaine Gabbert?  I’ve already said I believe he’s experienced the Peak of Inflated Expectations and the Trough of Disillusionment once already, in the preseason.  That said, I believe we have to hit the reset button and hop on board the Blaine Gabbert Hype Train once again.

Now that the move to start rookie quarterback Blaine Gabbert has been made, we have to ask. Will the move save the Jaguars' season? To answer that, we first have to ask; does the Jaguars' season need to be saved?

The Jaguars had a bad game against the Jets. I've been trying to be logical all week, and all come out front and say this. I was wrong to support Luke McCown as the starter. There. I said it. Here's why I was wrong. This team isn't as good as I thought they were. My expectations were too high, but let me be very up front about something else. I still think this team can make the playoffs. Here's the problem. It would take great play from Gabbert for them to do so.

Starting Blaine Gabbert is certainly a risky move. Jack Del Rio has to know that he's coaching for his job, and the Jaguars are playing for Del Rio's job. There's a lot of big-name coaches that could use a new job, and Del Rio has to be feeling the pressure.

In all reality, I don't expect Blaine Gabbert to take the Jaguars to the post-season this season. At this point, considering the current quarterback situation, I expect the Jaguars to finish at or near .500 for the season. That's not terrible, but this re-building project is taking longer than I really expected it to. The Jaguars have been cursed by being near the middle of the pack. They've been drafting right around 10th, and that's slowed down the process. Look at the Lions. That's a team that's been drafting in the top ten for years. Since they cleaned house, they've been hitting on most of their picks, and it's now showing on the field.

So, does the Jaguars' season need to be saved? If we're talking about making the playoffs, yes. If we're talking about playing competitive football week in and week out, I don't think so, but it's too early to tell. Now we need to answer our other question. Is Blaine Gabbert the guy to save their season this year? I think he can be, especially if the defense can continue to play well. The Jaguars will also need to lean on their running game. With a balanced offense, I think Gabbert can be the most effective rookie quarterback in the league this year.

I've lowered my expectations for the season. A playoff birth is still possible. Don't write that off just yet. Just taper your expectations some. There will be road bumps, but Blaine Gabbert can become a great quarterback if he's given time to develop. It may not be a playoff year for the Jaguars, but I think it moves the Jaguars one step closer.

Here's the downside. If the Jaguars don't make the playoffs, they'll be starting over with a new head coach next season. The possibility of having a new HC next season is starting to look very likely, and I'm curious who the candidates could be. Let's try not to put the wagon in front of the horse and focus on this week. We could learn a lot about Gabbert this weekend. I don't know about you, but I'm excited to see the game this weekend. You should be too.