The Jacksonville Jaguars left defensive lineman Jeremy Mincey at home for their game against the Houston Texans. Mincey was being punished for violating team rules. It was a strong message from head coach Gus Bradley.
“I needed it,” Mincey told Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union when asked about the wake-up call. “It’s time to re-focus and re-dedicate myself to football. Gus was just honest. He just made an example of me and I feel bad to be the example, but I’ll always fight back and will come back and do everything right.
“I want to be a Jaguar. I have a lot of love and respect for Coach Gus Bradley and the way he does things. I appreciate him giving me the time to re-focus and dedicate myself to football so you can see the real player in me and I can get back to who I am.”
“I hated to miss it,” he said. “I let my team down. But I’m back and it’s over with. We’re all human and we make mistakes.
“I was negligent as a football player and role model on this football team.”
The Jaguars got the win without him. Mincey admitted that this was the last straw situation and not a isolated incident and will also be fined. In case you were curious, Mincey blamed a newborn baby and his music business and “a whole bunch of other stuff” for distracting him from his responsibilities with the team.