Thompson expects to fit in Gruden’s offense again
When the Jaguars pursued running back Chris Thompson in free agency last month, he did not need much convincing about their offense being a good fit for his skill set.
He knew from the way Jaguars offensive coordinator Jay Gruden utilized him when they were paired together with the Washington Redskins that he is likely to be featured as a third-down back again.
“He is one of the biggest reasons I was able to have the success that I had in Washington and to be able to stick around there,” Thompson said. “Throughout this whole process and all my time there in Washington, he believed in me. He gave me every single opportunity that he possibly could. Me coming here to Jacksonville, being familiar with his offense, it is good for me.”
Thompson played for Gruden when he was the head coach of the Redskins from 2014 through last season before he was fired after a 0-5 start.
A fifth-round pick by the Redskins in 2013 out of Florida State, Thompson emerged as a dual-threat under Gruden. Thompson totaled 1,194 yards rushing and caught 212 passes for 1,772 yards and 10 touchdowns in seven seasons with Washington.
But Thompson, 29, recalls one of the most impactful moments in his career came after he ended up getting cut by Gruden in 2014 but was added to the practice squad.
“He talked to me afterward, after the last preseason game, and told me what the situation was,” said Thompson, a former Madison County High School football star. “He let me know from Day 1 — [he said] ‘I know this is going to be a hard year for you. You are probably mad and upset at everybody because you got cut, but I want you to come back here because I know the type of player you can be.’ It was tough, but having him and knowing that he had my back meant a lot.”
Thompson, 5-foot-8, 195 pounds, expects to complement Leonard Fournette as a receiving threat out of the backfield. Fournette, who is in the final year of his contract, made a team-high 76 catches for 522 yards last season. However, Fournette averaged just 6.9 yards a catch and did not make a touchdown catch.
“A couple of games that I watched over the past year, Leonard doesn’t get tired too much,” Thompson said. “Knowing Jay’s offense, I’m going to have some opportunities. There may be some sets where he may be able to get some running backs out there on the field at the same time. So its kind of a wait-and-see thing.”
Since head coach Doug Marrone hired Gruden in January as coordinator, he has worked behind the scenes to implement his offensive system and get a few players on board he has previously coached to help make the transition smoother.
Similar to Thompson, it did not take much for tight end Tyler Eifert to be sold on the Jaguars and Gruden when he sought a new team in free agency after playing seven seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Eifert played only one season with Gruden as a rookie in 2013 with the Bengals when he was the team’s offensive coordinator.
But it was impactful enough to be reunited.
“Me and Coach Gruden go back like seven or eight years. We get along great,” Eifert said. “Learning a new offense can be challenging at times. You feel like you are never going to get it. Eventually, over time and all the reps, it clicks. Having that familiarity with the offense is nice. There is some new stuff in here, but being familiar with it and having a general idea of what’s going on makes it a lot easier to learn.”
With no chance of on-field work, the Jaguars have conducted a virtual offseason program due to the coronavirus pandemic. But quarterback Gardner Minshew and others are taking advantage of having both Thompson and Eifert around in the virtual meetings to learn some of the intricacies of Gruden’s offense.
“It’s players-only meetings, so Gardner asked me a couple of questions here and there about what Jay is looking for or with a certain play call, how is he going to play it or what he expects the routes to look like, things like that that I’m able to help out with,” Thompson said. “I think, overall, he’s grasping it well. I think it’s going to be no problem for him to catch on to it, as well as the playmakers.”
Gruden’s offensive system is designed around quick-reads, play-action passing, end-around plays, and taking shots down the field. He also uses various formations that will likely receivers like secondrounder Laviska Shenault lining up in the backfield or Thompson running a route from the slot.
The Jaguars need to be more creative in their play-calling after ranking 26th in scoring (18.6 average) and 31st in red-zone scoring percentage for touchdowns (40.43) last season under former offensive coordinator John DeFilippo, now the quarterbacks’ coach with the Chicago Bears.
“He [Gruden] wants to put guys all over the place,” Thompson said. “For him, the more playmakers, the better he’s going to spread the ball around. There’s not going to be one guy who is going to be the full focus of the offense.”