Last season was the type of year Marcedes Lewis had been waiting for. In his fifth season, the 6 6, 275-pound tight end for the Jaguars had career highs in receptions (58), yards (700) and touchdowns (10) and made the Pro Bowl. But still, there was no playoff appearance for Jacksonville, something Lewis hopes to help the Jags change very soon. Before the Jaguars’ final preseason game, Lewis answered questions from Sporting News readers.
1) Would you rather catch a pass across the middle between the linebackers or stretch the field against the safety? — via Facebook
LEWIS: Stretch the field against the safety—and I think (quarterback) David (Garrard) is better at stretching the field, too.
2) What do you like to do when you have a chance to take a break from playing football? — via Facebook
LEWIS: When I’m not playing, I like to bowl. I like to watch movies. I like to shoot hoops. I also have a foundation— marcedeslewisfoundation.org— and whenever I’m not playing football or bowling or going to the movies, I’m giving back to my community and making the kids happy.
3) Which new player on the team do you expect to have an impact this season? — via bigcatcountry.com
LEWIS: We have a lot of new, different pieces to the puzzle, (so) that’s kind of hard. I’m going to go with Cecil Shorts, our (rookie) receiver. He’s a smooth receiver. He’s a guy who picks up things real fast and has a nose for the football, and I think that’s going to help us stretch the field to where defenses can’t just look at me or look at Maurice (Jones-Drew) and try to book us that way. He’s going to be a big addition to our offense.
4) Since you trained in MMA this summer, do you think you can go one-on-one with UFC champion Anderson Silva? — via bigcatcountry.com
LEWIS: Yeah, I trained MMA this summer. It was great—it was a great experience. It is definitely something that I will continue to do. Given our special situation with the lockout, I was able to go about five, 5½ months. It was great—transforming my body, my mind and my spirit. Would I be able to go one-on-one with Anderson Silva? No. Nobody can go one-on-one with Anderson Silva.
5) Do you drive a Mercedes? — via bigcatcountry.com
LEWIS: I don’t drive a Mercedes. I’m working on that. Hopefully I’ll be able to do something in the future with them. But I don’t drive a Mercedes as of now. I drive a Camaro.
— Ken Bradley
REAL INSIGHT. REAL FANS. REAL CONVERSATIONS. 09/12/2011
