Cornerback Greg Newsome hasn’t been with the Jacksonville Jaguars for very long, but head coach Liam Coen is encouraged by his growth within Anthony Campanile’s defensive scheme.
Newsome, whom the Jaguars acquired in a trade with the Cleveland Browns, has only played in two games at this point since arriving in Jacksonville.
“Greg’s getting more and more comfortable,” said Liam Coen on Monday. “He did have some really good matchups last week. He had a couple balls caught on his way where he’s maybe a little deep in his zone.
“But man, he’s getting more and more comfortable. You saw him in man coverage a few times on Davante and have some really good reps. So I think you’re starting to see a little bit more comfort level.”
In Newsome’s first game with the Jaguars against Seattle, he played only nine snaps, which did include surrendering a deep touchdown catch.
However, the following week against the LA Rams, Newsome allowed four receptions on six targets, but held pass catchers to only 8.3 yards per catch, according to PFF.
Helping Newsome adjust quickly to the new defense is his skill set, which is well-suited for Campanile’s vision-based zone defense.
We will see what Newsome’s playing time looks like moving forward. In the Jaguars’ most recent game, he played 25 snaps, sharing some of the playing time with Travis Hunter, who played 14 snaps, while Montaric Brown and Jourdan Lewis were the two constants at the cornerback position.
“He’s very engaged in the meetings,” Coen added. “Like the guy sits on the edge of his chair, he’s looking right at you in the eyes. You can tell it’s important to him. So got a lot of belief that’ll continue to improve.”
This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: Liam Coen evaluates play of recent Jaguars’ addition on defense
Reporting by Paul Bretl, Jaguars Wire / Jaguars Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
