JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Five-time Pro Bowl receiver Jarvis Landry accepted a tryout with the Jacksonville Jaguars partly because it was a 40-minute flight from his home and mostly because he needed to find out if he still wants to play football at age 31.
After an hour workout to open a two-day rookie minicamp Friday, Landry wasn’t quite ready to answer the most important part.
“We’ve got another day. We’ve got another day,” he said. “I just want to be as clean as possible, be the best teammate I could possibly be and let everything else play out how it does.”
Landry is trying to prove he’s healthy following a nagging ankle injury that cost him part of the 2022 season. He was out of the league last year but insists he’s full speed and potentially primed for a 10th NFL season.
“Just (wanted to see) if I could really do it, if I still really want to do it and pushing myself to those limits,” Landry said. “Being out of football last year was very tough. It made me grounded, but it also made me humble and grateful to have opportunities, even like this.
“This is a good stepping stone toward the next chapter of what I’m looking for.”
Landry spent four years in Miami and four more in Cleveland. He signed a one-year, $3 million deal with his hometown New Orleans Saints in 2022 but finished with 25 receptions for 272 yards and a touchdown — all career lows. He missed eight games and landed on injured reserve that December.
He couldn’t possibly end his professional career on that note, right?
“That’s a fair question,” he said. “The competitor in me says no. But, again, whatever is in God’s plans and his cards, I just kind of rock with that, you know what I mean?”
Landry has 713 career catches for 7,870 yards and 38 touchdowns. He made five consecutive Pro Bowls beginning in 2015, the first three with the Dolphins and the last two with the Browns. He also led the league with 112 receptions in 2017.
If the Jaguars sign him, he would be the most experienced receiver in a position group that features Christian Kirk, free-agent addition Gabe Davis and first-round draft pick Brian Thomas Jr.
The Jaguars cut veteran Zay Jones last week, creating a potential landing spot for Landry.
“You just want to be able to put eyes on as many players as you can,” coach Doug Pederson said. “He’s obviously played several years in this league and been a talented guy and just see where he’s at.
“He’s been hurt a little bit, so just seeing where he is health-wise and just see where he is at. It’s nothing more than just coming in and trying out-type basis.”
Landry said he “absolutely” could serve as a mentor to Thomas, the 23rd overall pick. Both went to LSU and grew up in Louisiana. The duo was nearly inseparable during drills Friday.
“It is a really good learning experience for a guy like Brian,” Pederson said. “Jarvis is a vet and he kind of knows what it’s like. So I think it’ll be good to kind of see how Jarvis handles himself as a professional and … at least make an impression on Brian this weekend.”
Landry also would like to avoid any “old man” references. He’s a decade older than Thomas and has at least seven years on the other six receivers in attendance at rookie camp.
“For me, it’s just blocking all that out and just having fun,” he said. “A lot of these guys I ran into are like, ‘Man, I watched your highlights before every game in high school.’ I’m like, ‘Damn.’”
But it’s all talk since Landry doesn’t look — he pointed to one gray hair in his beard — or feel old.
“I wouldn’t be here if I did,” he quipped.
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