Publix Tailgate Show: TE coach Ron Middleton

Tight ends coach Ron Middleton discusses the tight end group ahead of the Week 16 game against the Bears with J.P. Shadrick on the Publix Tailgate Show.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let's start with two weeks to go a thirteen game
skid and trying to keep guys going down the stretch here,
not worry about all the outside noise there's plenty of that,
we know, but focusing on the task at hand, and
that's going out and performing against the Bears this week.
It's gotta be tough to say it was easy. I
would be lying to you. But you know, the one

(00:21):
thing that that you have to lean on is the
fact that that that you're professional and you remind your
players that they are professionals, and that on the whole,
lot of guys wish they would be in the position
that they're in. You know, we get paid to do
a job. We can't guarantee the outcome, but what you
can guarantee is that you're gonna prepare yourself the very

(00:44):
best of your ability. You're gonna go out there, You're
gonna you're gonna play to the very best of your
ability and let the chips fall what they may. If
you do that, then you can look at yourself in
the mirror, regardless of the outcome, and live with Rod
Lton with the Jaguars tight ends. Coach, Let's get into
your room and Tyler Eiffort. It feels like the last

(01:06):
three four weeks or so, I think he's only missed
two targets at that time, and you knew he was
going to be productive as this year kind of went along.
He's a veteran, he's been around the league for a while.
Has there been anything different over the last month with Tyler?
Our plan for him? You know, he's his career has
been plagued with injuries here and there, and um, whether

(01:28):
nagging or season ending. He came in with the right
attitude first and foremost, and I think UM coach Marone
and the training staff but sat down and they had
a plant that got a plan for him as far
as we know what his strengths are, we know what
his weaknesses are, we know why we got him here,

(01:51):
so we're not gonna try to ask him to do
things that you know that that that we have other
people to do. Therefore we can get the best out
of his abilities. So I think that's first and foremost
the plan that we have for him, as far as
um not asking him to do everything, but to concentrate
on the things that he's really good at. And it's

(02:13):
worked out, you know, he's cone frotable. He knows his role.
I guess that's that's I went the long way of
saying that that he plays his role. He's playing his
role and he's comfortable with that. If we asked him
to do a couple of things here and there that
everybody is not expecting him to do, he has over
delivered in every phase in my opinion. Yes, Ron Middleton

(02:36):
with a Jaguars tight ends. Coach James O'Shaughnessy came into
the year with the knee thing, trying to work his
way back to productivity. We're seeing him on the field
a little bit more as of late. It's been a
difficult year for most everybody, but tell us about James
and how his progression has gone. Now at this point,
you know, he's not he's not healthy yet. He's still working,

(02:58):
but he's he's out up busting it. But I think
he's done some good things for us this year. I
can't wait to see him completely healthy to see where
he can go from there. You've got some young bucks.
Eric Sobert's tight end, Uh, he's a third year player.
Then Tyler Davis is really a youngster. He was out
there holding last week of all things and strangest of circumstances.

(03:20):
But will those guys get any time. There's one of
those where it's kind of a little late in the
season here. Well, you know, Eric, when when we lost
we lost Bruce a fullback, Eric stepped up. You know,
he came to me and said, hey, coach, I can
I can play that fullback spot. Like get out of here.
You're narrow your narrow hill. But you know he's like coaching,

(03:41):
and I'll tell you what. He has done extremely well
at the fullback position. I told him to day say,
hey man, that's that's what separates you from everybody else.
So you can, um, you can play that fullback position.
And we're not gonna just overdo it with him back there.
But to sprinkling in enough, I was six snaps a
game with spot. He's done really really well at that

(04:03):
at that fullback spot. Tyler is uh, the arrow is
still up on Tyler. I think the injury set him
back a little bit way back. And uh, we we
got to remember he's still learning the position. But as
far as size and speed and um strength, I mean,
he's going to develop into a productive tight end in

(04:26):
this league. It's you know, it just hadn't all clicked
for him yet. And um, you know, converted quarterback, that's
what he did in college. Held, he held the ball
and you know, holding for for he was the holder.
So I'm glad he was here to be able to
do that with U with almost not having cooking out there.
So he came through big time for us last week