Sam’s Commentary

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Palmer’s Local Friends: “You’d have loved him even if he wasn’t a golfer”

It’s terrible that it takes the passing and mourning the loss of a mutual friend to reconnect you with people who were integral parts of your life at one point. They drift away for various reasons but in this case, the death of Arnold Palmer brought a lot of people back into my life who […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguars Squander Chances, Lose To Ravens

It was a pretty forgettable first quarter for the Jaguars against the Ravens. Two first downs, two penalties and a bunch of punts that moved the field position around a bit. The Jaguars got a couple of breaks thanks to Ravens mistakes but they looked sluggish and out of sync for the 5th quarter in […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Arnold Palmer: No One Like Him

You know people won’t live forever but with Arnold Palmer you thought that might be possible. He lived life with such passion and spirit yet with a humility and grace that never wavered. Palmer battled several illnesses over the past two years and died today at age 87 of heart complications. Usually tucked in the […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguars/Ravens: 4 To Watch 4

1. Attitude In the opening week against Green Bay, the season was full of promise. You could tell the week leading up to the game that the Jaguars had a new swagger, a new confidence in their roster and their ability. Despite losing to the Packers, they didn’t lose that in the days leading up […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Bradley, Jaguars At A Crossroads

Even in the aftermath, there wasn’t anything to like in the Jaguars 38-14 loss to the Chargers on Sunday. Just about every phase of the game broke down leaving many more questions than answers from the coaches and the players. Head Coach Gus Bradley’s assessment was about the same. “We talk about the truth. There […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguars/San Diego: 4 To Watch 4

1. Pass Rush Saying he didn’t let them ‘pin their ears back’ Gus Bradley gave the defensive line credit for their effort against Aaron Bradley last Sunday. Rodgers was able to sidestep the rush and get the ball down field, perhaps more effectively than any other quarterback in the league. This week, Phillip Rivers presents […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Graeme Mcdowell Owns Restaurants, Wants To Play Golf

Dark woods, understated lighting and plenty of glass greet you as you step inside the new Nona Blue Tavern in Ponte Vedra. International and PGA Tour player Graeme McDowell and his two partners opened the doors to their second restaurant on Wednesday, donating a check for $15,000 to Tom Coughlin and the Jay Fund, money […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

After Further Review: I Feel A Little Better Because They Don’t

In recent years the breakdown of every Jaguars loss included some form of “We’re getting better, we’re getting closer” when you talked to the players and coaching staff. Not so after Sunday’s game against Green Bay. If there was one overriding emotion in the locker room it was anger. Even Head Coach Gus Bradley’s press […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Exciting, Encouraged: Jaguars Still 0-1

“Start fast, finish fast,” is how Jaguars Head Coach Gus Bradley described his philosophy going into the 2016 season. That would be a departure from the previous three years where the Jaguars are 1-10 in September. “We’re very aware of that,” linebacker Paul Posluszny said this week. “Start fast, start fast has been something we’ve […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguars: 4 To Watch 4

Jaguars: 4 to watch 4 1. Does the left side of the offensive line work? When he named Kelvin Beachum as the starting left tackle, Head Coach Gus Bradley admitted that it really wasn’t a competition. He awarded Beachum the job for his “body of work.” Yes, Beachum was an elite left tackle for the […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguars And Packers, More Similar Than You Think

On the surface it looks like a mismatch of a still-learning quarterback in the Jaguars Blake Bortles and a 12-year veteran Aaron Rodgers. But closer inspection shows a lot more similarities between the two quarterbacks and the receivers and running game they rely on. Bortles has spent the recent off-seasons working specifically on his quarterback […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguars Roster: Bigger, Faster, Stronger

Looking over the 75 players who were vying for the 56 final roster spots on the 2016 Jaguars, Head Coach Gus Bradley declared this team “bigger, faster and stronger,” than teams he’s’ coached in Jacksonville in the past. “It’s an exciting time,” Bradley continued, talking about the cutting process. “We have some really good football […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Plenty Of Jaguars Fans In London

Each year when the NFL closes Regent Street in the shopping heart of London, they put on a fan fest that rivals the NFL Experience at the Super Bowl. There are obstacle courses, kicking demos (very popular) cheerleaders and a bunch of Jaguars fans. “We came over for a couple of weeks around the game […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Are The Jaguars ‘Hoping” For Success

“I’m not a big fan of hope,” former Jaguars linebacker Tom McManus once said to me during an analysis of a game. Hope is a funny word when it comes to professional sports. On one hand fans can hope things go well. On the other, hope shouldn’t be a part of a coaching staff’s decision […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguars Know Bengals Effort Won’t Fly

I was surprised by Gus Bradley’s upbeat mood after the game Sunday night against Cincinnati. Sure, the second and third teams were competitive and won the game in the end but the starters looked miserable in the first half. Bradley is a very positive coach, so I asked him if it might be a good […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Wake Up Call For Jaguars Vs. Bengals

If nothing else, the first half against the Bengals should have served as a giant wake up call for everybody associated with the Jaguars. “We played pretty bad at every position. When you play bad, you don’t score a lot of points,” quarterback Blake Bortles said in the second half. Players, coaches, front office people […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Arrow Up On Jaguars

Looking at the Jaguars through two preseason games and three weeks of training camp some things about the team are starting to take shape. 1) A year under his belt in the offensive system has helped Blake Bortles take command and get comfortable. They time spent in the offseason throwing to Allen Hurns and Allen […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

South End Zone Project: Khan Wants To Get It Right

In February of this year when the Jaguars made a big splash unveiling their Shipyards project vision; Jaguars Owner Shad Khan said a renovation of the South End Zone could be completed before the 2016 football season began. While the project went through various design stages and permitting processes, that timeline got pushed back with […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguars vs. SD: Nothing To Like

Whatever we watched last week against the Packers we watched the opposite this week against the Chargers. From the opening snap, Phillip Rivers and San Diego did whatever they wanted against the Jaguars on offense and defense, looking dominant in a 38-7 rout. For all of the tenacity last week against the Packers, the Jaguars […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Will Gus Bradley’s Coaching Experiment Work?

Just about all the talk, all the prep and all of they hype are behind them now. The re-tooled Jaguars will take the field on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers with new expectations. Last February I asked Owner Shad Khan what his expectation level would be for 2016 and he said, “Better than 5-11 […]