"I feel like we able to just play a lot more free instead of more laterally," Smith said via News4JAX. "The coaches have told us from the first time they got here, they want to have more go, more getting off the ball, more penetration, whereas last year we were kind of playing more on the line of scrimmage."

After a 5-11 finish in 2011, the Jaguars held the seventh overall pick in the 2012 NFL draft. Originally, they traded up to pick No. 5 to take wide receiver Justin Blackmon. But in his redraft, Jacksonville stayed put at pick No. 7 and took linebacker Luke Kuechly.