Freddy T always gave all he had

Freddy T always gave all he had
February 17
Jacksonville Times-Union
columnist Gene Frenette

"Of all the tough, heartbreaking goodbyes in Jaguars history, saying farewell to Fred Taylor probably ranks as the most agonizing.

I'm not dismissing that unforgettable walk by coach Tom Coughlin in 2002 to Tony Boselli's house to inform him that, because of salary-cap problems, the franchise left tackle was being made available to the expansion Houston Texans, who took Boselli off the Jaguars' books. That ranks up there, too, on the gut-wrenching list.

But what the Jaguars brass did Monday - general manager Gene Smith, coach Jack Del Rio, senior vice president Paul Vance and Wayne Weaver boarding the owner's plane to meet with Taylor at a Fort Lauderdale airport hotel to break the news in person - speaks volumes about what No. 28 meant to this franchise.

And that is, just about everything.

No matter what becomes of Maurice Jones-Drew or future franchise backs, there's no duplicating Fred Taylor. He's one of those one-of-a-kind backs who managed, for most of his career, to get better with age.

But the time comes for every player when his value and salary don't quite add up. Or the fuel in his tank gets close to empty. Or the working arrangement becomes too complicated.

So, the team decides not to postpone the inevitable. And if the player decides he wants to give it one last run somewhere else, as Taylor told the higher-ups Monday, then releasing him in mid-February gives him every possible avenue to pursue that opportunity.

"This is what we felt was best for us," Del Rio said. "Acknowledging all the great things [Taylor did], but it's time for us to move forward. It's time for a younger version, if you will, to get his turn. It's like when Fred came in and other people moved out of the way, and he became the guy. Now, it's somebody else's turn.

"But anytime you have respect and admiration for somebody, not only the way I do, but everybody in the organization does [for Taylor], it makes it tough."

Taylor's departure is another reminder that the NFL is a replacement game. What the Jaguars and the greatest back they've ever had did Monday was probably the right thing for both of them. No messy divorce. No he-said, they-said sniping about contract renegotiation. Maybe a tiny disagreement on how productive a fit Taylor can still be at age 33, but at least this way, it's as clean a break as you can expect under the circumstances.

"We want to see more Maurice [Jones-Drew] and more Greg Jones," Del Rio said. "As you work through it, it's difficult to come up with a role that's going to be acceptable to everybody. So, it makes it awkward."

Just like that, Taylor is going, going, gone. But certainly never forgotten."
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