Justin Blackmon: What His Off-Field Issues Mean to the Jacksonville Jaguars

For some athletes, especially young ones like Justin Blackmon entering into the first stage of their NFL careers, the idea of money, fame, fortune and time on their hands leads to disastrous results.

Blackmon, the fifth overall selection in April’s NFL draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars, proved that he is talented on the field but may not have the best judgment off the iron.

According to a Florida Times-Union report by Vito Stellino, Blackmon, the player the team had hoped would be part of its rebuilding process at the wide receiver position, was arrested in Stillwater, OK for a DUI and blood-alcohol level of .24, which is three times the legal limit.

This is the second time in 20 months that the 22-year-old Blackmon has had issues with the law and more specifically, alcohol.

The Jaguars moved up two slots in the draft to select the Oklahoma State All-American.

This is the fourth receiver drafted in the first round by the Jaguars (R. Jay Soward, Reggie Williams, Matt Jones and now Blackmon), who have had off-field character issues once they were drafted by the team.

Add Jimmy Smith, the team’s all-time leading receiver who had off-field issues as well, and you have to wonder if the Jaguars are just missing on their assessments of players or if they are just playing with a poor deck of cards.

The Jaguars also have already dealt with an off-field incident in the offseason concerning defensive tackle Terrance Knighton which resulted in surgery to his eye and a recovery process which leaves a timetable for his return still up in the air.

The last thing that new head coach Mike Mularkey needs is a team with a roster that looks like a police blotter.

The issues associated with Blackmon’s poor decision are many. It is mainly how the NFL, the team and Blackmon himself will deal with the indiscretion. Whether legal action is pursued or the NFL gets involved (Blackmon is not currently under contract with the Jaguars but is property of the organization), the team will have to deal with this so it does not become a more serious issue moving forward.

The Jaguars and its general manager Gene Smith have prided themselves on evaluation of talent and finding players who fit the team’s needs as well as have high “character." The team knew of Blackmon’s issues at Oklahoma State prior to drafting him.

Stellino's report states that according to Oklahoma law, "A first-time offender who is convicted on a DUI charge can serve five days to a year in jail, have his license suspended for 30 days and face an alcohol education and treatment program."

Blackmon was previously arrested in October 2010 on a Class C misdemeanor DUI charge. In that incident, Blackmon, then in college at Oklahoma State, was arrested in Carrollton, Texas at 3:45 a.m. He was driving 92 in a 60-mph zone.

Stellino also explained that Blackmon could be entered into the NFL’s Stage One Intervention Program that includes an evaluation, a possible treatment plan and random testing.

But what this does more than anything is cast a cloud over a team trying to move forward. The Jaguars had arguably the worst receivers in the league last season and arguably the worst quarterback in a decent rookie class. Free agency brought in Laurent Robinson and Lee Evans. The draft brought Blackmon. The moves brought hope. With that said, any improvement would be a welcomed sight.

At the time of his first arrest, Blackmon took responsibility for his actions, stating, “I made a mistake. I am embarrassed to be in this position. I am truly sorry. To my family, to my friends and to Oklahoma State as a whole, I look forward to redeeming myself and proving to everybody that this isn’t who I am. I am humbled by the experience, and I will grow from it.”

He needs to do the same thing with this incident. The fact that he came to the Jaguars and fumbled a golden opportunity to make an impact not only as a receiver, but also as a model citizen has now vanquished, and he must work to rebuild his reputation, which really has not been established yet.

While he is not in the same class as a Rae Carruth or Lawrence Phillips, two star players drafted into the NFL who had serious issues once they got into the NFL, Blackmon's recent actions speak to us as if he were a child who did not learn a valuable lesson. And to magnify things, the Jaguars had already dealt with the Knighton issue, where the defensive tackle was candid about the fact that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Make no mistake about this incident; while Blackmon has not been found guilty for the action, he has already come under fire in the court of public opinion, which is far greater. He will need a crash course in contrition to make things better in the town that adopted him as a savior.

Otherwise, Blackmon, even with all that talent, will fall into the category of wide receivers the Jaguars selected and just did not get it right.

And that will not help the team with an already uneven fan base.