Jacksonville Jaguars' coach Gus Bradley is a big believer in what big, angular safeties can do for a defense.
And former Gator Josh Evans fits the bill.
A sixth-round selection by the Jaguars in the 2013 NFL Draft, Evans is a defensive back with size, a trait of value to the scheme Bradley ran in Seattle, and now Jacksonville.
Under the tutelage of Bradley, the Seahawks in 2012 produced a top-five defense, an All-Pro safety (Earl Thomas) and two Pro Bowl cornerbacks (Richard Sherman, Brandon Browner).
Not coincidentally, the Jaguars have put a premium on the safety position in 2013.
Drafting FIU's Jonathan Cyprien in the second-round and Evans in the sixth augments that philosophy and facilitates Bradley's defense that employs a hefty amount of man coverage and physical safety play.
Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox
Bradley's preference at the safety position is two-fold. With length and size in the secondary, he can afford to drop a safety down versus the run to create more eight-man fronts.
And with larger corners funneling receivers to the middle of the field, safeties such as Evans, rangy and instinctual, become more active versus the pass, leading to more jumped routes and turnovers.
This echoes what Bradley and Pete Carroll uniquely combined in Seattle with safeties Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas.
Enter Josh Evans.
Evans is a versatile player, as his tape at Florida would suggest. He may flash at strong safety, the role Chancellor plays in Seattle, but the majority of his work will come playing single-high safety in Jacksonville's Cover 1 and Cover 3 alignments.
Evans' speed and recovery, coupled with his experience defending the deep middle, illustrated in the photo below, could earn him playing time in 2013.
In 2012, Florida allowed just three passes of 50-yards or more, and finished the season without allowing a single 300-yard passer. Evans finished the year with three interceptions and five pass break-ups.
Throughout the preseason, Evans has showed aggressiveness at the line of scrimmage and has shown great maturity keeping his outside shoulder free to guard the edge, ideal traits for a safety to have versus the run.
During his time at Florida, Evans lined up at the LOS often, as illustrated below, leading to a team-high 83 tackles. This kind of flexibility will give Bradley an array of options.
Bradley was known for using Thomas and Chancellor interchangeably in Seattle, which could pay dividends for Evans given his versatility to play both positions. He can play single-high safety, he can blitz, cover flats and cover in two-deep coverages.
Through two preseason games he's collected six tackles, nine combined, including a five-tackle performance versus the Jets on Aug. 13.
Whether that is good enough to supplant veteran safety Dwight Lowery remains to be seen. But given his tools and experience, Evans appears to be the right fit for what Bradley is trying to build in his secondary.
Follow Chuck Kingsbury on Twitter @chuckkingsbury.
Safety Josh Evans (9) tackles wideout Dorial Green-Beckham (15) during Florida’s 14-7 win against Missouri on Nov. 3 in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
Support your local paper
Donate Today
The Independent Florida Alligator has been independent of the university since 1971, your donation today could help #SaveStudentNewsrooms. Please consider giving today.
