Jaguars camp report: Fans enjoy more 1-on-1 battles between Calvin Ridley vs. Tyson Campbell
The battles between wide receiver Calvin Ridley and cornerback Tyson Campbell are turning into the best entertainment in Jaguars training camp so far.
And why not? They're the two Alpha dogs in each position room and the end result will only make each other better by the time the regular season arrives.
After the two battled to a standoff in a receiver vs. defensive back one-on-one period Monday (one catch by Ridley, one incompletion on good coverage by Campbell), they went at each other numerous times in multiple periods on Wednesday at the Miller Electric Center.
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On the first play of another one-on-one period, Ridley beat Campbell on an out pattern, with Trevor Lawrence throwing. A few reps later, Ridley got a step on Campbell again but dropped a pass from Lawrence.
Campbell got good position on a deeper ball the next go-around and Lawrence overthrew Ridley.
Round two came in an 11-on-11 period. Ridley sped down the left sideline and went high, getting his fingertips on a ball that most wide receivers wouldn't have sniffed. But Campbell matched his vertical leap and knocked the ball away.
Their last confrontation came during the first play on a 7-on-7 period. Lawrence looked for Ridley at the snap but Campbell was right there and Lawrence took an underneath route to Christian Kirk.
If anyone is wondering if the confrontations are getting chippy (as has been reported from the Steelers camp between George Pickens and Joey Porter Jr.), don't worry. On one play when Ridley and Campbell lined up opposite each other, they exchanged a quick handslap before the snap.
"It's been great ... I love every bit of it," Campbell said after practice. "He's going to make Sundays so much easier for him and I'm going to do the same for him. I love competing against anyone. He's a great player. That's how we are ... we love competing."
Now for the nagging news: Ridley had three other drops during the day, one each during the one-on-one period, 7-on-7 and an 11-on-11.
Practice notebook
Weather: Partly cloudy, 81 degrees to start practice, 85 degrees at the finish.
Duration: Two hours, 10 minutes, full pads.
Injuries: Coach Doug Pederson clarified why some players have been held out of team periods (7-on-7 and 11-on-11). Rookie offensive tackle Anton Harrison has some shoulder inflammation and didn't participate Tuesday or Wednesday. Safety Andre Cisco has a sore hamstring and also has yet to play in team periods. Ridley (a toe issue that has been traced back to an ill-fitting pair of cleats) played sparingly on Tuesday in team periods but was a full go on Wednesday. Defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton (back spasms) has played some in the last two days. Linebacker Foye Oluokun has participated in only drills and individual work but his status was unknown.
Offense notes
Lawrence was 9 of 14 in 11-on-11 periods, 6 of 9 in the only 7-on-7 period and 5 of 6 during one 11-on-11 period in which the offense had to drove from their own 20-yard line. He capped that possession with a short TD pass to Evan Engram.
C.J. Beathard was 3 of 4 on his 11-on-11 turn from his own 20, and threw a short TD pass over the middle to Brenton Strange.
The 11-on-11 periods were heavy on the run and short passes to backs and tight ends.
Defense notes
While there were no interceptions for the first practice of the week, defensive backs and linebackers did get their hands on some balls. In addition to Campbell's acrobatic breakup of the pass intended for Ridley, Latavious Brini, Antonio Johnson, Devin Lloyd and Chris Claybrooks broke up passes.
Travon Walker slipped inside of Josh Wells to force Lawrence out of the pocket and might have had a sack under live conditions.
Campbell came up hard to stop Travis Etienne for a minimal gain on a swing pass.
Jordan Smith recorded his second "air sack" this week on Beathard, on the final play of the day.
Roy Robertson-Harris has had a solid camp and made a good play on an outside run by Etienne, closing down the edge and making the tackle for little gain.
Special teams notes
During a live 11-on-11 punting period (starting with the ball at the Jaguars' 25 and moved up in 5-yard increments), Logan Cooke averaged 51.0 yards on six punts from deep in his own territory. When the ball got closer to midfield and he was intentionally trying to get the ball downed or get out of bounds inside the opposition 10, he had three kicks downed inside the 10 and three touchbacks. On two of the touchbacks, the ball bounced around the 5-yard line and the Jaguars cover players couldn't get to it before it rolled into the end zone. His best kick was a 59-yarder that hit the 1-yard line and bounced out.
First sign of tempers
It took until late on the second day in pads for any needles to hit the red zone. On a goal-line running play by D'Ernest Johnson, guard Cole Van Lanen pushed linebacker DJ Coleman and Coleman took a wild swing at Van Lanen that missed completely.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars Wednesday camp report: Calvin Ridley, Tyson Campbell go at it again
