Defensive tackle Arik Armstead had—at best—a lackluster season for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2024. Sure, most of the team had a lackluster season last year, but the eleven-year veteran came in with high expectations and a solid resume. So, what gives?
A lot of things went wrong in 2024, but the mind-boggling move to shift Armstead from the interior line to defensive end feels like a microcosm of the poor decision-making that seemed to be the cause of last year's epic collapse. Armstead himself approached the coaching staff last year and asked to be shifted inside, but—likely due to the roster makeup—it never happened.
On “The O-Zone Podcast,” #Jaguars DL Arik Armstead reveals he went to the previous coaching staff/front office while the team was in London in 2024 to ask if he could move back inside to the position he played more frequently w/ #49ers
Armstead says he’s excited to return to DT… pic.twitter.com/ckWLRQKMtO
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Arik Armstead if listed as defensive tackle on the Jaguars depth chart
With an almost entirely new coaching staff, Armstead has thankfully been moved back inside. He played inside with the San Francisco 49ers from 2021-2023, and he was named a Pro Bowl alternate in his final year with them. It's where he's comfortable, and where he's spent the most productive stints of his career.
For example, a look back at Armstead's final seven seasons with the 49ers shows him starting in every game that he was healthy. Last year, while he played defensive end—He started in only one game and played only 48 percent of the defensive snaps—both career lows for a season. The single highlight from a miserable 2024 season? Armstead won the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award—the second Jaguar to do so in five years (fan-favorite Calais Campbell won the award in 2019).
What does the move back inside mean for Armstead? "I'm really excited about this season and this opportunity," he told Jaguars senior writer John Oesher (11:00 mark). "I've been through a lot of situations throughout my career. Having success, having failures, going through adversity. I've always overcome them...I'll always have an opportunity to show the type of player that I am."
He continued, "When I look at playing inside...that's where I'm best [and] can have the biggest effect on the quarterback. Rushing against guards and centers, that's what I do best. When I'm playing [defensive] tackle full-time, now I'll have more opportunities to affect the game and be more productive."
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Final thoughts
Will moving Armstead back inside help return him to the dominant force he was in years past? Only time will tell, but the former 49er is definitely excited to prove to fans—and, maybe, himself—that he's still got enough juice in the tank to earn that starting role.
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