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The
Jacksonville Jaguars need a major cultural rebuild after the
franchise’s tumultuous stint under former head coach Urban Meyer and only
winning four games over the last two seasons. General manager Trent Baalke and owner Shad Khan’s
decision to hire head coach Doug Pederson and signing guard Brandon Scherff
were good starts.
Scherff met with the media last week and discussed how he can help
the struggling organization. During
his seven seasons in the NFL, he has developed a reputation of being a locker
room leader while also becoming a five-time Pro Bowler.
“I just try to do everything the right way, just try to be that
leader on and off the field for anybody,” he said about why he’s described as a
cultural leader. “If we have young guys, I try to lead by example and show them
the right way to do things. And just go about my business and do everything at
100 percent.”
He added that Pederson, offensive line coach Phil Rauscher, and
quarterback Trevor Lawrence played a significant factor in his decision to sign
with the Jaguars. Scherff said he reached out to several players he knew that
had experience of playing under Pederson and heard nothing but great things.
Scherff believes he can help Jacksonville’s offensive line unit
that gave up 32 sacks last season and struggled to develop push in the run game
by leading by example.
“I would say just continue to do what I’m doing and just, like you
said, just focus on taking care of myself first,” Scherff said. “If I’m not
doing the right thing, then I can’t help them. So, just doing the right thing
and trying to be that leader for them. If they have questions, I’m going to try
to help them out as much as I can.”
Scherff, who is also a
one-time All Pro is a much-needed addition who should help the franchise on and
off the field. And while it will be hard to top the leadership that Calais
Campbell once brought to the mix, his presence could have a similar effect on
the young group around him.
