With the addition Dom Capers as a defensive advisor, there were some who thought the Jacksonville Jaguars could move to a 3-4 defense, which was the scheme he used during his time with the Green Bay Packers. Those speculations became even stronger after the Jags added Jake Ryan, lost Telvin Smith for the year and drafted Josh Allen, but Todd Wash seemingly believes that won’t be necessary.
Prior to Thursday’s organized team session, Wash not only told the media that he would be solely using Allen as a defensive end, but he also told them that the Jags would remain a 4-3 team — at least they’ll be under him.
“We’ll look the same,” Wash said to the local media. “We’re a 4-3. That’s what we always have been. As long as I’m here, that’s what we’ll be.”
In a nutshell, this might indicate that Wash is willing to sink or swim with his 4-3 scheme, which has brought the Jags a lot of success. However, there were times last season where the Jags’ defense clearly lacked the ability to adapt to their opponents and was very vanilla. For that reason, fans have been calling for a change, which evidently will have to come from a 4-3 alignment — if at all under Wash.
Wash added that he and Capers have a solid relationship and that the veteran coordinator shares ideas with him, while also providing an extra set of eyes.
“We have a great working relationship,” Wash said Thursday. “Obviously, he has been in the league for 102 years longer than I have. It’s a great working relationship. I’m glad he chose us with the other opportunities he had. He’ll be a great addition to this staff. […] “When Dom is in there, he goes, ‘This is some of the stuff we’ve done different places that can add to your package.’ Sometimes, I say, ‘Hey, that’s good.’ Sometimes I go, ‘No, that doesn’t fit.’ He just gives another set of eyes with experience and we’re very, very fortunate to have him.”
Only time will tell if Wash has learned from his mistakes of the past, but with the offense being upgraded, the defense may not be as exposed as it was at times last season. However, if the Jags have trouble adapting to opponents week in and week out, and it becomes too much of an issue, coach Doug Marrone always has a fallback option in Capers if the defense needs to change its approach.
