David Garrard always had the confidence that he would be a good starter in the NFL and he proved last season that he probably should have started over Byron Leftwich the whole time.  Garrard doens’t have the best arm in the league but it’s more than strong enough to make all of the throws he needs to.  Garrard is also great at avoiding the blitz and running the ball as he proved last season when he ripped the heart out of the Pittsburgh Steelers in last seasons’ playoffs.  Garrard played in 12 games (all starts) for the Jaguars last season and he completed 208 of 325 passes (64%) for 2,509 yards with 18 TD passes and 3 interceptions (102.2 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 49 times for 185 yards (3.8 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Garrard should build on last seasons’ success and add to his already impressive career numbers.  Garrard has now played in 40 games (30 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 521 0f 864 passes (60.3%) for 6,052 yards with 36 TD passes and 16 interceptions (87.7 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 164 times for 822 yards (5.0 ypc) with 7 TD runs.  The only thing that could slow Garrard down this season is if he gets injured.

The Jaguars will be in trouble if David Garrard gets hurt as they have replaced Quinn Gray (Texans) with Cleo Lemon.  Lemon has had problems adjusting to the offense of the Jaguars as it’s more convential than the one he played in under Cam Cameron in Miami last year.  Lemon has a good arm and he has enough mobility to avoid the pass rush.  But, he’s not very polished and he throws a lot of passes that have fans scratching their heads trying to figure out what Lemon was thinking.  Lemon played in 9 games (7 starts) for the Dolphins last season and he completed 173 of 309 passes (56%) for 1,773 yards with 6 TD passes and 6 interceptions (71.0 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 31 times for 102 yards (3.3 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  The Jaguars will be much better off in 2008 if Cleo Lemon doesn’t add anything to his career numbers.  Lemon has now played in 13 games (8 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 211 of 377 passes (56%) for 2,185 yards with 8 TD passes and 7 interceptions (72.2 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 34 times for 109 yards (3.2 ypc) with 4 TD runs.

Todd Bouman might be able to beat out Cleo Lemon for the #2 job in training camp but it will be a uphill battle seeing how Bouman last appeared in the NFL in 2005 with the Saints.  Bouman has played in 42 games (6 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 129 of 230 passes (56.1%) for 1,683 yards with 11 TD passes and 11 interceptions (75.3 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 21 times for 86 yards (4.1 ypc).

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B