FanHouse Jack Del Rio

LONDON – If you hated the thought of Toyota entering NASCAR or some Belgian company buying Anheuser-Busch, you won't like what Roger Goodell said Friday.

London is calling, and the NFL is listening.

It's thinking of putting a franchise here. Forget what you may have heard about warm beer and pickles on pizza, London would be a great spot for an NFL team.

A few candidates come immediately to mind. Buffalo, St. Louis, even Oakland unless Al Davis demands his old job back as the warden at the Tower of London.

But one franchise is at the top of the relocation list -- Jacksonville.

NFL Coaches Fight Club: the Tournament. Because we have nothing better to do than predict what might happen if head coaches started punching each other in the face.

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After watching Owen Schmitt try to give himself a lobotomy with his helmet prior to Sunday's Jags-Seahawks game, it's clear that being clinically insane is a prerequisite to playing professional football.

And that goes a long way in explaining Jacksonville head coach Jack Del Rio, a former NFL linebacker, whose motivational tactics border on the certifiable.

Six years ago, in an effort to encourage the troops to "keep chopping wood," Del Rio placed a stump and an ax in the middle of the locker room. Not long after, punter Chris Hanson missed the stump, found his leg, and needed surgery to close up the gash. In retrospect, probably not the best idea.

NFL Coaches Fight Club: the Tournament. Because we have nothing better to do than predict what might happen if head coaches started punching each other in the face.

Consider this hypothetical: what if two coaches met in a dark alley and threw down in a no-holds-barred brawl? Who would emerge victorious?

First, some background: back when I was in high school, when my friends and I were pretty creative in finding ways to avoid actually paying attention in class, we'd create brackets (think NCAA Tournament) where we'd pit our teachers against each other**. Whoever we thought would win in a fight advanced to the next round. It always ended with our offensive line coach against our wrestling coach in the finals and a huge argument as to who would come out on top.

Anyway, last week, the Back Porch staff somehow ended up discussing whether Rex Ryan or Tom Cable would win in a old school playground scrap. I passed along the above information, and shortly after that, an idea was born -- NFL Coaches Fight Club: the Tournament.

David Garrard's radio show has been canceled. Certainly shocking news to, well, David Garrard, since nobody else -- including head coach Jack Del Rio knew anything about it for the first few weeks it was on the air.

And after learning of Garrard's side job Del Rio kindly suggested that the Jags' starting quarterback find better uses for his Fridays. Like, I don't know, thinking about football.

"Less than 48 hours away from the game, it's not even a question," Del Rio said. "I don't even understand how anybody could ever advise somebody to think about doing something like that. It makes no sense."

The Jaguars finished a disappointing 5-11 in 2008, cleaned out a bunch of players in the offseason, and entered 2009 hoping to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Instead, the situation in Jacksonville looks as dim as ever.

The Jaguars opened the season with a Week 1 loss at Indianapolis, then got smoked in their home opener on Sunday -- in front of an announced crowd of less than 47,000. Things only got worse on Monday, with the announcement that veteran wide receiver Troy Williamson is likely out for the season with a shoulder injury.

Two years ago, David Garrard had his best season as an NFL quarterback. He started 12 games, tossed 18 touchdowns to just three interceptions, and completed 64 percent of his pass attempts. And according to Football Outsiders, he was the league's third-best quarterback in terms of total value (behind Tom Brady and Peyton Manning).

It confirmed head coach Jack Del Rio's decision to release 2003 first-round pick and one-time franchise quarterback Byron Leftwich, and it also led to the club giving Garrard a six-year, $60 million extension last offseason.

But 2008 didn't go well for Garrard or the Jags. The offensive line was decimated by injuries during the preseason and it only got worse from there. Garrard threw 15 touchdowns and 13 picks, was sacked 42 times, and was just the 15th-ranked quarterback in terms of total value.

With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are on the brink ... of something. Last year we thought it was a Super Bowl run. This year it could be collapse. Or maybe mediocrity. That's the beauty of parity, injuries and scheduling in the NFL -- a full-blown title contender can go to also-ran and then back to title contender quicker than Blake and Antoine can execute a patented two snaps and a twist.

The Jaguars hope that the 2009 NFL Draft will help them execute that second 180-degree turn, but in order to do that, they'll need it to be ... perfect. (Sorry, I've been watching way too much CSI: Miami lately.)

Byron Leftwich was supposed to be one of free agency's most sought after players. Instead, the former Jaguars first-round pick is still without a team, and didn't make his first visit of the spring till he talked to the Redskins last week.

Yesterday, Leftwich met with the Bucs -- a club in desperate need of a quarterback -- but left Tampa without signing a contract. And today, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Ed Bouchette writes that the Steelers, where Leftwich ably backed up Ben Roethlisberger during last year's Super Bowl run, are moving quickly to re-sign him.