The Hard Work is Paying Off for One Jaguars Player

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A new standard has been set with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Head coach Liam Coen seems to have the organization on the right track as they maintain a spot in the AFC Wild Card race heading into the final several weeks of the season.
The hard work is paying off for the six-win Jaguars heading across the country to Phoenix to face the Arizona Cardinals. It is especially paying off for one player who was on the practice squad earlier in the season and has emerged as a key blocker in the Jaguars' run game in the absence of tight end Brenton Strange. Coen spoke to reporters on Wednesday about the emergence of tight end Quintin Morris.
Quintin Morris getting deserving playing time after win vs. Chargers
The former Buffalo Bills tight end was not initially on the Jaguars' 53-man roster earlier in the summer. However, after Strange went down with a hip injury, Morris has seen the field often in a tight end-by-committee approach from Coen, who raved on plays he made for Buffalo and Sunday against the Chargers.
“Man, first of all, Quintin has made plays like in Buffalo I watched him a bunch," Coen said. "He made plays in playoff games more so though catching the ball and doing things athletically and in space and man, he gave us a boost on Sunday and he has been though. That's how he's been trending through all through special teams and then you go out and see him put it on tape, and be as physical and explosive as he was in numerous occasions."

Morris' recent play has impressed both Coen and tight ends coach Richard Angulo, who he called one of the best TE ringers he had ever been around, doing a swell job of preparing his players for action on Sundays.
"I want to see what he can do with the ball in his hands, too," Coen said. "So, I think [TEs Coach] Rich Angulo is one of the best tight ends coaches I've ever been around, and he has done a phenomenal job with the next man up mentality and getting those guys prepared and ready to play."
All of this comes back to the conversation that Coen had on Monday with reporters about hard work paying off for guys like Morris and young defensive players on the roster, with each player reaping the benefits.

"We talked about a little bit on Monday that B.J. [Green II] and Danny [Striggow] and [TE] Quintin Morris specifically come to mind. Obviously, there's others that have played their tails off on teams. Have not done anything else but what we've asked them...has it been perfect the whole time?" Coen said.
"No, but they've earned opportunities to go out and impact the game on offense and defense on Sundays. And it's why we talked about it in the offseason, I had [Special Teams Coordinator] Heath Farwell speak to our team and talk about his journey and how he made it. And so much of the league is built on that and usually when you have organizations that is an internal growth like that I think that's what you're striving for."
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Jared Feinberg, a native of western North Carolina, has written about NFL football for nearly a decade. He has contributed to several national outlets and is now part of our On SI team as an NFL team reporter. Jared graduated from UNC Asheville with a bachelor's degree in mass communications and later pursued his master's degree at UNC Charlotte. You can follow Jared Feinberg on Twitter at @JRodNFLDraft