JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Since joining the Jaguars, his performance on the field has been everything the team expected when they signed him as a free agent in March.
There is no doubt that A.J. Bouye is an outstanding athlete, but his success has grown since he learned the importance of preparing his mind for each game.
“When I first got to Houston, I wasn’t doing it as much, but J-Jo (Jonathan Joseph) and Ed Reed was telling me how much he watched film," Bouye said. "I just started to learn and not only was I watching film of my opponent, but I started to pick up on studying myself, because I was started to realize how they were attacking me as a player.”
Bouye’s film study has helped him enjoy a breakout year. Just nine games into his first year with the Jaguars, Bouye has already matched his career high with three interceptions. Only two players in the NFL have more this year. He has also matched the total number of picks he had in his last two seasons with the Texans combined.
Bouye’s professional approach has not gone unnoticed by his coaches and teammates—he is one of the key reasons why the Jaguars defense has gone from mediocre to dominant in just one year.
“You just happen to have some of the best guys playing their positions collectively, and we’re just good friends on and off the field,” said safety Taushaun Gipson. “When you collectively gel that athleticism and that game plan ability, let alone that we look at each other like brothers and hold each other accountable like brothers. That makes for a recipe of success.”
His preparation isn’t just impacting his own play on game day, but it’s helping his teammates be better as they prepare for Sunday.
“I think he’s a student of the game,” said head coach Doug Marrone. “The one thing that I notice a lot is when we have the scout team running routes of the combinations, if it’s not exactly right he’ll say, ‘What were you supposed to do right here?’ What that shows me as a coach is someone that is really studying the film, looking at the route combinations and really seeing the whole picture of other things that are going on around him outside of what maybe his individual responsibility is.”