Eagles vs. Jaguars Game Day Newsletter 1Aug15Eagles_Layout_NEW | Page 13

CT
New Jaguars quarterback earning trust,
building confi dence with new team
JACKSONVILLE – So far, so good.
Quarterback Nick Foles has not taken a snap
for the Jaguars in a game yet, but if the
offseason program and the fi rst few weeks
of 2019 Training Camp are any indication,
he has changed the mindset and earned the
confi dence of a team looking for stability from
the quarterback position.
The new Jaguars offense looks smooth. The
ball comes out clean. There seems to be a
chemistry forming on the practice fi eld with
receivers. All-Pro defensive backs are seeing
looks they haven’t seen on a Jaguars practice
fi eld.
Yes, it’s early – only Preseason Week 2, but
consistent quarterback play can raise the level
of play of people around him, on both sides of
the ball.
Tonight the Jaguars host the Philadelphia
Eagles, the team that Foles led to a Super
Bowl LII title and another deep playoff run last
season – both times off the bench. It is easy to
see why Eagles fans hold Foles in the highest
regard, and at least so far in the offseason, it’s
easy to see why the Jaguars made Foles their
No. 1 priority in 2019 free agency.
The Decision
After the Eagles made the decision to go with
Carson Wentz as their franchise quarterback
and signal-caller of the future, it did not take
long for the Jaguars to set their sights on
Foles.
“We thought Philadelphia had the opportunity
to franchise [tag] him,” Jaguars General
Manager Dave Caldwell said in March
immediately after signing Foles. “We were
not sure, but we thought that would be tough
for them to do considering their current cap.
Once they decided not to franchise him at the
[NFL Scouting] Combine, we heard immediate
reports that he was going to Jacksonville.”
Caldwell said the conversation with Foles’
agent was open and straightforward in the
open negotiating period at the start of free
agency. The Jaguars’ front offi ce had their man.
“I think through the whole process, as you
know, we looked to upgrade our team,”
Caldwell said. “We felt like Nick was the guy
that could do that for us and I talked to Coach
Coughlin, Coach Marrone, Coach DeFilippo and
went through our end-of-season evaluations
and free agent reports and unanimously
decided that he was the guy we would go for.”
Coming off the bench for two seasons in a row
to lead the Eagles to the playoffs, including a
win in Super Bowl LII, earned the respect of
Executive Vice President of Football Operations
Tom Coughlin.
“It’s very diffi cult not to recognize under what
circumstances he came in to play in both
seasons and how he responded,” Coughlin
said. “In order to be able to do that, you have to
be on your game because you never know as
backup quarterback when you’re going to get
your chance.