FOXBOROUGH - Gabe Jacas, we’re waiting.
Yes, there’s still plenty of time on the clock - we’re entering the 4th week of August, for crying out loud - but for a Patriots team in need of one of their edge rushers to pop, Jacas was given a ton of opportunities Saturday night and did very little with them.
“I mean, I think just still inconsistent.” Mike Vrabel said of Jacas’ not only tonight but over this last stretch of joint practices and preseason games. “I think that the effort is certainly there. The willingness. He is a very coachable player.”
Jacas started against the Eagles backups and, by my count, got 37 defensive snaps (24 in the first half), and was on all four special teams units. Philadelphia wasn’t game-planning for him (or anyone else for that matter). That meant plenty of chances to go one-on-one against fellow rookie Markel Bell and second-year pros Cameron Williams and Myles Hinton. Yet Jacas struggled to make an impact before the half; in fact, one of his most noteworthy plays benefited the opposition.
The Pats had just scored their first touchdown and had the Eagles pinned down at their own 15-yard line. Philly left Jacas unblocked off the left edge. Andy Dalton knew he was hot and got the ball out quick, but the second-rounder didn’t let up, taking two more steps before drilling the quarterback. While the defense celebrated what they thought was a Kindle Vildor interception (it wasn’t; the ball hit the ground), the referee threw that yellow hankie in Jacas’ direction, nailing him for roughing the passer. There was no argument from anyone on the Pats’ sideline.
“They were just saying like that's just how the league is,” Jacas said of the message he got from the coaching staff. “Like, you know, any second that he throws the ball, you get him, they're most likely to call that. So it's a learning lesson for me. But you know, then again, just gotta be careful.”
A couple of snaps later, on a 2nd-and-10 from the 30, Jacas was again unblocked and got one of the two pressures I had him down for, but they don’t come much easier than that. Dalton wisely threw the pass away, and the Eagles punted two plays later.
“Precautions” was the word Jacas used when discussing that rep, and he added that he needs to “capitalize” on those aforementioned opportunities.
The only other time Jacas made Dalton uncomfortable actually came on Philly’s first snap of the game’s first series. The former Illinois standout treated fellow second-rounder, tight end Eli Stowers, like a substitute teacher the day before a school vacation, jamming him at the line of scrimmage, then recognizing the bootleg and trying to close the distance between him and the QB. With no one open, the 38-year-old Dalton flung the ball into the turf.
But beyond that, Jacas’ first-half stat line was filled with a whole bunch of zeroes. In fact, the only tackle he recorded came as a member of the punt team, although that was a step up, or two, from where he was after the Colts game.
“Yeah, definitely improved in that role,” Jacas said of his work on special teams. “Just shocking and shedding on punt, and just playing middle linebacker once I release and check the blocker. I think you know I did that multiple occasions, and you know I haven't watched the film yet, but as we keep going, I can just keep improving on the little things, and keep getting better. It's a long season, so everything will come to me.”
“We are just putting a lot on him right now as far as special teams and covering kicks and playing on kick return,” Vrabel said. “We have to be able to see what he can do and what we, maybe what we feel like we can count on when the regular season comes. And I think he will just continue to improve because he has that type of attitude, and he is willing, and I know he will get back to work real quick.”
That’s something that gets brought up often during his brief time here in Foxborough. Jacas wants to be coached, and wants to learn. The broadcast team of Jason and Devin McCourty relayed the story of the rook asking them how they lasted so long in the league. It’s not just lip-service. Or at least, not yet.
His second-half - lasting two series - was more eventful. Jacas got in on a pair of tackles to begin the third quarter, one on a run away from him and another right at him. That the second tackle came 6 yards down the field wasn’t ideal, but it was just nice to see him involved. He also pushed the pocket on his final play against Hinton.
There is no denying the violence that Jacas can bring. We’ve seen it in spurts on the practice field, whether against teammates or in joint practices. But now, almost a month in, he has yet to pop. When you look at the rest of that room - Dre’Mont Jones, Elijah Ponder, and the still-rehabbing Harold Landry - Jacas is going to need to be on the field in the opener, even if that role is as a rotational piece. It would be nice to see him set a more consistent edge - Jacas went too far up the field on an 18-yard run - and give this coaching staff confidence that when he needs to give Jones or Ponder a break, it won’t be a net negative. That means getting back to work, almost immediately.
“Seeing the game first and foremost, just coming off the ball aggressive, just recognizing the backfield sets, and just kind of getting on keys pre-snap of what I can anticipate before the ball snaps,” Jacas said of what he needs to work on. “That alone right there just allows me to play faster, a lot more physical. Those are the things I say to myself that I can improve on.”
I don’t want to rush you kid, but the clock is ticking.