JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - New Jaguars Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tom Coughlin has seen a lot of success during his time as a coach.
He owns three Super Bowl rings and won two as a head coach. He produced a 170-150 coaching record in the NFL and was 21-13 while at Boston College.
Now another one of his big "wins" may finally be getting its due in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Coughlin selected Southern California offensive tackle Tony Boselli with the Jaguars' first-ever draft pick. The second overall selection in the 1995 NFL Draft is still considered the greatest player in team history.
If everything goes well this weekend, Boselli's name would be immortalized with the greatest players to ever play the game.
Boselli is one of 15 finalists for the Hall of Fame and the vote that will grant him access to the Canton, Ohio shrine will take place on Saturday.
On Tuesday, Coughlin spoke with members of the local media regarding Boselli's stellar career. The former Jaguars and Giants head coach was asked if Boselli was the greatest player he had ever coached.
"No question, he certainly is. Without a doubt, because he could do so many different things. He is such a great athlete on top anything else that he does. I remember seeing him as a pro athlete. Six-foot-seven, he goes out on the golf course and shoots 85 or 86 or something like that. He just had that kind of ability. The real thing was the competiveness in him. He would go out on the field and the look in his eye and the way he could dominate people at times. No matter what you say. No matter what run you pick. All the All-Pro’s, the All-Pro teams, all of the things – the much deserved honors that he has received. No doubt in my mind.”
Boselli was scouted by Coughlin during the 1995 off-season. Coughlin was blown away by the prospect who would later become an All-Pro and the leader of his franchise.
"Everybody knows the story about me going out to Southern Cal and working him out, but it’s worth saying again because we’re sitting here in a position where you got the second pick in the draft in ’95 and there’s a lot of outstanding football players out there and yet this is the cornerstone of your franchise, you have to make that decision and you look at tape and you look at tape and you look at tape on a lot of different players and then you say, ‘You know I need to go and look this guy in the eye and I need to work him out an I need to get that feeling.’ So I go out there and in comes this guy, 6’7’’, 320 pounds, there were probably five offensive line coaches there and we go out on the field I’ve never seen anybody with feet like this in my life."
Boselli would go on to face the best pass rushers in the league over the next seven seasons. Coughlin noted that he made the other Jaguars players better when he was on the field.
“When you go on the field with somebody of that caliber – and I use the example normally when I’m talking about a quarterback, a great quarterback – but when you go on the field with somebody that good as Boselli and he plays at that level, you’re on that field with him, especially you talk about your interior offensive linemen. You’re looking at this guy thinking, man, I got to play my ever-loving off because if I don’t he’s going to make me look really bad and that’s the way it is.”
Boselli would retire in 2003 after being selected by the Houston Texans in the 2002 expansion draft. He never played a snap for the AFC South rivals.
Injuries ended his career early, but Coughlin will always remember Boselli's confidence and ability.
"He knew what he could do from an ability standpoint. When he studied people he got an edge by his intellect and by what he could see and do and how he played. All of those things together. When he went out that door to play. I was trying to get behind him.”
Coughlin is now hoping Boselli finally makes it into the Hall of Fame. Boselli's former boss said his career speaks for itself.
“Look at the numbers. When you look at his numbers there isn’t any question. Now you have other guys that played more, but they still, he gave up fewer sacks. All the things you would ask a left tackle to do [he did it] better than a bunch of those guys who are in the Hall. God bless, but if some of those injuries had not occurred. He would have played 10-12 years himself or more. I am certainly aware of that, but I think you have to look at the skill. You have to look at the ability and the skill and say, ‘This guy was rare, very rare.’”
Follow Mike Kaye on Twitter at @Mike_E_Kaye.
