Via NFL.com:

The Jaguars signed cornerback Drayton Florence on a deal that will pay him $12 million guaranteed and $6 million per year according to NFL Network's Adam Schefter.

The Chargers allowed Florence to walk away as a free agent after Antonio Cromartie recorded 10 interceptions and earned his first trip to the Pro Bowl. The Jaguars now have three cornerbacks who have started in the NFL with Florence, Brian Williams and Rashean Mathis.

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san diego chargers

It all starts with attitude.

The San Diego Chargers, at 5-5, do not have one. It was evident watching the game, and it was made crystal clear in the locker room following an embarrassing loss:

“We need to get an attitude, period. We need to get an attitude around here,” said a furious Shawne Merriman.

Defensively, there was a reluctance to tackle people. Nobody past the front seven wanted to put a hit on somebody. Nobody wanted to play football. Instead, the secondary sat back and tried to play seven-on-seven. The Jaguars’ secondary, on the other hand, played with aggression and were viciously hitting people left and right. Fans were able to see a personal favorite of mine, Reggie Nelson, and how he affected the game. Nelson was the Jaguars leading tackler with 5 hits and 1 interception. Nelson hit Chris Chambers so hard that he drew an unnecessary roughness penalty from the referees.

Jaguars cornerback Brian Williams also had 5 tackles and Rashean Mathis added 3 of his own.

Yes the Chargers threw the ball more than the Jaguars did. But the Jaguars’ secondary came up and supported the run. They were hitting the Chargers receivers instead of dragging them down. Aside from Marlon McCree, nobody on the Chargers secondary had more than 2 solo tackles. Antonio Cromartie, who started the entire game, didn’t even appear on the stat line. No tackles, no assists. Cromartie has amazing cover skills, but unless he takes some classes at the Quentin Jammer School of Tackling, he’ll never be a complete player. He needs to use that big body of his and start running through people.

Clinton Hart? Don’t even get me started. He’ll get his one big tackle a game and then disappear. As a strong safety, you need to be a head hunter. You have to want to be physical and mix it up. If you blow a coverage you’ll be forgiven because you absolutely wreck running backs. But where is Clinton Hart? Standing around with a clean jersey. He gets credit for more tackles than he really makes. I’d like to see more solo tackles from our safeties instead of this assisted tackle nonsense.

Steven Cooper gets mad props from me. That guy plays angry. He brings it on Sundays. If you are on the opposing offense, you know where number 54 is because if you can’t see him, you’ll certainly be able to hear him. He talks trash and backs it up. He doesn’t just tackle you, he smacks you in the mouth. He runs through you.

Teams are staying away from Shawne Merriman. They are game planning against him like you wouldn’t believe. Shawne is understandably frustrated because they guy plays his heart out every Sunday, and yet after two weeks of embarrassing Chargers football, has only 4 tackles to show for it. Merriman is busting his butt and has to watch as teams go away from him and pick on the guys who don’t like to tackle people.

“This game is played with violence. It’s played with an attitude. I have no friends out there on the field. I just want to go out there and play football for 60 minutes. You have to go out and play aggressive for 60 minutes. That’s how you win a football game. You’ve got to want it and you’ve got to hate to lose. That’s the way we have to play as a team.”

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san diego chargers

For one reason or another, I have always like the Jaguars. I thought it was cool that they were, along with the Carolina Panther, a new expansion team. I liked their uniform colors and logo, and they had always struck me as a physical, punishing team (I think it was Fred Taylor who really brought that attitude to the team with his aggressive running style)

This Sunday, the Chargers are looking to get to a respectable 6-4 record by defeating a strong Jacksonville Jaguars squad. But the Jags aren't overlooking the Chargers. In their eyes, the Chargers are going to be one of the best teams they face all year.

Surprisingly, there are still many people around the league that view the Chargers as a very dangerous team; I say 'surprisingly' because there are plenty of people in San Diego that have all be written the Bolts off.

If you are a Jaguars fan you know how important this week's game is, and you are praying that the Jags find a way to win at home:

These Chargers have the same talent that produced the league’s most dominant regular-season performance a year ago. Their stats may not look like much this year, but we know from what they did last season that they are physically capable of playing at the highest level. The Jaguars should not, under any circumstance, take them lightly.

Here are 10 things the Jaguars have to do to beat the Chargers.

1. Stop Tomlinson—He’s not having a good year, but he’s still their number one threat on offense.

2. Pressure Rivers—He’s feeling the heat and it’s causing him to throw wildly.

3. Pound it—Adrian Peterson torched the Chargers for 296 yards rushing. The Jaguars need for Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew to have big days.

4. Ease him back—This will be David Garrard’s first action in nearly a month. It would be to his advantage if he’s allowed to play a secondary role.

5. Kick it out of bounds—Or kick it real high because Darren Sproles can make you pay.

6. Stay away from Cromartie—The young cornerback is on an interceptions roll. Try somebody else.

7. Understand the circumstances—This is an AFC game against a playoff contender. This one counts extra.

8. Enjoy the surroundings—The Jaguars are back home for the first time since Oct. 22, and that should provide a major energy boost.

9. Involve the wide receivers—Have they been on vacation? Jaguars wide receivers have caught 65 passes combined, which would rank them in third place among AFC individual leaders in receptions. Come on, guys.

10. Be physical—That almost always wins.

Via Jaguars.com

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san diego chargers

Jaguars Coach Jack Del Rio does his homework on teams. When asked about the Chargers roster, Del Rio was overflowing with superlatives, calling Shawne Merriman a 'wrecking ball', Darren Sproles an 'explosive athlete' Mike Scifres and Nate Kaeding 'one of the best in the league'... just to name a few.

Check out the video from his press conference yesterday:



Via Jaguars.com

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san diego chargers