Find someone who supports you like outside linebacker coach Mike Smith does with Gabe Jacas. We should all be so lucky.
“I'm not a gambler, but I kind of look at maybe anything in life is gambling. If you got a kid that's big like him, that's athletic like him, that's meaner than a wet mule, and he loves football.
“Not going to say he's going to be Jason Taylor or LT [Lawrence Taylor] or any of that stuff, but it's going to be very hard for him to fail, and so I know who the kid is and what he wants to be, and he's going to work at it to be that. So I'm excited to have him and excited to work with him every day. Glad he's here.”
As someone unfamiliar with mules, we later asked Smith what that was all about. He said if you’ve ever seen a wet mule, you’d know why he went with that reference. So be forewarned: don’t get the mule wet. But I digress...
Jacas’ preseason performances have been lacking. He’s gotten playing opportunities but has made very little impact. That hasn’t been the case on the practice field, where the rookie has had some productive days. That’s not to say consistent - Jacas still comes and goes - but at least we’ve seen plays/periods when he confirms to me why I was a fan of his pre-draft, and why the Patriots wheeled three picks to move up and select the edge rusher in round two.
One of the biggest issues for Jacas is all that time he missed during the spring. The coaching staff, Smith included, made it clear that it would be a hurdle for the University of Illinois product, and despite the belief that it will eventually come together for him, there’s no way to fast-forward time on task, though he’s certainly trying.
“That's such one of the biggest stages of a young man's career,” Smith said. “Really, anybody, any player that misses a whole spring and all the different things that we're adding and changing after a season and just working on your technique, your footwork, your hands- it's a struggle with anybody. But for a rookie, it's very tough.
“That's why I'm shocked kind of where he's at and where he's progressing right now, just on the defensive standpoint and learning, because you're talking about a guy that didn't come close to doing as much as that we're asking him to do right now (in college vs. pros). You're adding all the dropping concepts and the way we teach rush and setting edge and alignments and understanding for him. I mean, it's impressive where he's at, and he's got a long way to go. I mean, a long way to go. I mean, he should have a long way to go, but I think it says a lot about him where he's at right now.”
Based on the current state of that edge room - Harold Landry remains on PUP - Jacas will be part of the rotation when the Pats open the season in Seattle. While they’d love for him to announce his presence with authority and be a force, that’s probably not realistic. More to the point, defensive coordinator Zak Kuhr would like him to work on the little things and believes in doing so, the production will follow.
“He's got to really focus on the technique and the fundamentals from ground one,” Kuhr told me. “But he's willing. He's a great, great kid. He works his ass off. He's physical. He's violent. So he's fun to coach. He's fun to be around, and he's just got to keep working on, you know, from one to two to three to four.”
Kuhr was talking with his hands when he said the last part, indicating that’s how Jacas can make the progress they want. And if he does get the “one to two to three to four?”
“I would say the violence, especially on practice, is consistent,” Kuhr added. “It's just now the technique with it. Sometimes, when you try to be violent, you let the fundamentals of technique get out of hand. Now you're in a bad position, not able to make a play.”
There are multiple examples of that littered all over Jacas’ preseason tape. Whether it’s not understanding the way the tackle is set and how that can determine how he needs to attack, or taking an invitation to come upfield because the offensive play is designed to attack his gap, Jacas has made those mistakes. A key going forward would be to stop repeating errors, or at the very least curb how often he makes them. Either way, Smith has his back.
“He's doing all the right stuff, and he's getting better every week,’ he said. “I mean, this kid's going to be a special player. I don't think many coaches say that right off the bat, when a guy's going to be here (he meant has been here) for three weeks. He's going to be a special player.”