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Jaguars' Beachum ready to do what he does best, 'that's play left tackle'

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / Reuters

The Jacksonville Jaguars are set for a training camp battle between Luke Joeckel and Kelvin Beachum for the right to protect the blind side of franchise quarterback Blake Bortles.

Joeckel was meant to be the Jaguars' left tackle for the next decade after being drafted second overall in 2013, but following three seasons of subpar performances, the team brought in competition for him during free agency in the form of Beachum.

The former Pittsburgh Steelers seventh-round pick tore his ACL in October, but the Jaguars took a chance on him returning to his impressive form from before the injury. With his recovery progressing well, Beachum has high expectations for his season.

"The knee is great," Beachum said, according to John Oehser of the Jaguars' official website. "It's amazing. The staff here has done a phenomenal job of assessing where we're at, putting a solid plan together and allowing me to do what I do best - and that's execute and do the performance aspect to push myself. I'm feeling good about it. I'm feeling great. I'm ready to do what I do best and that’s play left tackle. … I'm looking to play 19 games this year, and that comes with a first-round bye, so whatever is needed to get that done, that’s what I'm here to do."

The Jaguars have left themselves open to either player winning the starting job. They opted against exercising Joeckel's fifth-year option, meaning he could hit free agency in 2017, and Beachum's four-year contract essentially acts as a rolling year-to-year deal that protects the team financially should he not recover.

Beachum said that starting in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers is his "goal," and after spending the first chapter of his career proving he was capable of being a left tackle, he isn't prepared to see himself as anything else.

"I've been playing left tackle the past three years," Beachum said. "No knock on anyone else who’s in the building, and I respect everybody, but I played left tackle in college. When I got to the league, they said, 'You can’t play left tackle … you have to play other positions.' I played a number of other positions and then they figured out, 'Hey, he’s a darned good left tackle.' They left me there and I've been playing there for a while now."

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