Although the departure of Luke Joeckel has indeed left a big void, it seems that the Jaguars are gearing up to replace their left guard, and may have already found the right candidate.
As the Jaguars are getting ready to face the Chicago Bears in their upcoming match, it seems that veteran lineman Patrick Omameh is going to be next man up for Jacksonville – something that has sent made certain bookies with their NFL betting lines very happy. Having served as the swing tackle for the team through the first four games, it was perhaps the hard work that he did in relief of Joeckel that earned him the opportunity to be considered as the first candidate to replace Joeckel went the latter went down during the Jaguars’ Week 4 win over the Indianapolis Colts. Omameh held his ground in London and protected quarterback Blake Bortles down the stretch.
Bortles, who considers Luke’s sudden and unexpected departure “super unfortunate”, emphasized upon that fact that Joeckel will indeed be missed. However, he also mentioned that this is, after all, a good opportunity for Omameh to showcase his talents. Admiring and appreciating Omameh’ s stellar performance in London, he said how he believed that Omameh was capable of achieving more and “all the confidence in the world in him.” Bortles added that Omameh will be at a better position than his predecessor, given that he has got an extra week to observe the films, and prepare accordingly, since he has already played in various different capacities within the team. Needless to say, Bortles is eager to see Omameh get out on the field as the left guard.
Starting over the previous two seasons in Tampa Bay and Chicago in over 25 games, Patrick Omameh has already played in 14 games (nine starts) for the Bears. Therefore, in addition to showing his talents as a left guard, Sunday’s game will also serve as an opportunity to show his former team everything they are missing.
Omameh, the man himself, is over the moon. “I get excited about every opportunity, every game, every week,” Omameh said. He further added that while it is not something new for him as he has already done it before, he certainly appreciate the opportunity to go out and do something that he has dearly missed doing.
A talented and versatile player with the ability to play to play multiple spots, Omameh has been given several opportunities since joining the Jaguars this summer. His abilities have been noted by his teammates and coaching staff alike, and needless to say, they certainly have taken advantage of the trait.
Bortles said that a player who is versatile enough to “bounce around and play all over the line” is indeed a valuable asset for any team to have in the league. He further added both he and the team appreciate the fact that Omameh is not stuck to a niche and is capable of doing different things.”
Omameh, on the other hand, firmly believes versatility is a virtue of the entire team, and not just himself. He said that unit has always been working on the principle of “step in and step up” and that Omameh has only added to that principle over the past couple of weeks.
“Versatility is one of our strengths,” Omameh said. “We know regardless of the situation we find ourselves in, we have somebody that can go in there and get the job done.”