‘Shad Khan is A+’ – Tony Boselli delivers verdict as ‘frustrated’ Jacksonville Jaguars reboot takes effect

Tony Boselli isn’t scared of anyone.

That includes Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan.

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Boselli was recently hired by Khan as the Jaguars’ new Executive Vice President of Football Operations, and sat down with Will Gavin of talkSPORT on Radio Row for an exclusive interview on all things Khan, Liam Coen, Trevor Lawrence and his vision for the franchise.

A franchise he knows extremely well, having been the Jaguars’ first ever draft selection in 1995 and the only member of the franchise in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

He is regarded as one of the best left tackles in NFL history.

Boselli knows exactly what football means to Duval County and the Jacksonville community, and he’s hoping to help turn the Jaguars around.

Boselli wants a winner in Jacksonville.

He’s making it his mission and he’s not afraid of hurting anyone’s feelings along the way.

“The one thing I think I’ve been consistent since I’ve been a part of this organization, I’ve had different roles, my role when I was a TV analyst is to communicate to our fans what I thought was happening,” Boselli said.

“And the one thing that I pride myself in and I will not do, it’s never about the individual. It’s about, what are we doing to try to win football games?

“The role I am in now is to be part of that and to have those conversations.

“One of the things that I think builds a strong team is that you have healthy conversations, conflict, because you want to challenge each other.

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“Listen, I’m going to be wrong. We all have our perspectives, but when you get in there, the key is once you make a decision, it’s our decision.

“It’s not his decision or that decision because when it goes well, everyone’s like, ‘Yeah, Yeah, I did it.’

“Then when it goes wrong, everyone’s like, ‘Oh, it’s that guy’s fault.’

“We’re not going to do that and one of the things about Shad that I just respect immensely is, if you look at, and I’ve said this a couple times, if you look at the job description of an owner, Shad Khan is A+.

“The owner’s job is to invest, give the resources, give the tools, invest in the organization.

“Shad also invests in the community. Now we just got to get the last bit right. We’ve had some success. We’ve had some high points, but not enough.

“So how do we get to sustained winning? I’m in that role. It’s very simple.

“I was an offensive lineman, what was my job? It was to protect the quarterback and open holes for the running back. It was to move the ball down the field, try to help other people score. That is what I’m doing now.

“I’m not picking players. That’s our GM’s job. I’m not coaching players. That’s our head coach and our coaching staff’s jobs.

“My job is to support both of them and our owner to make sure we have all the resources and the rest of the building is doing what they’re supposed to do to support those individuals.

“I think the people are going to be excited. Proof is in the pudding.

“My responsibility is to prove it to Shad Khan, he’s trusting me. Ex-player, played the game.

“Yeah, I’ve been in business and all that stuff, but he’s trusting me with a big role. My job is to go prove to him and do my job at a level that justifies him hiring me.

“We all have a responsibility. We all have to get to the point where we’re putting, what do you call it, points on the board or stacking up wins, whatever analogy you want to do.

“The one thing that is clear to me in this whole process, and I’ve always known this, and listen, I’ve been as frustrated as anybody.

“We’ve had conversations. I’m a competitive dude.

“You just want to win. And the biggest frustration a lot of times is like, I just feel like you can’t do anything about it.”

Now Boselli can.

He has the power to turn the downtrodden Jags back around.

Boselli’s story as a player has been told, written and immortalized with a bronze bust in Canton, now it’s time for his chapter as a football executive to unfold.

And the people of Duval County are hoping it resembles his playing career.