Derek Parish once consumed 7 pounds of steak. Now he has to consume Jaguars offensive playbook

For anyone doubting the chances for Derek Parish to make the Jaguars roster, know this about his resolve: he once ate 7 pounds of steak in one sitting, an assault on his gastrointestinal system that was the result of a contest between University of Houston offensive and defensive linemen.

"It wasn't bad," when he was asked how it felt to have the equivalent of 28 times the weight of a McDonald's Quarter Pounder under his belt. "There was a donut stand on the way home and I had a couple of those. It was good. We had a workout the next morning."

Parish won the contest by six ounces. And Joey Chestnut, eat your heart out.

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Parish attempting a difficult switch

Parish, listed at 6 feet 2 and 245 pounds, would be a longshot to make the 53-man roster regardless of what position he played — or used to play — since he was the last of 13 players the team drafted in the seventh round.

But he's attempting to switch from a 5-technique defensive end with the Cougars to fullback for the Jaguars, a possible new wrinkle for coach Doug Pederson's offense.

Parish played running back until his sophomore year at Pearland (Texas) High School and was used as a blocking block on occasion at Houston. He had 16 sacks and 32.5 tackles for losses in 48 games, covering five college seasons and played like a man possessed in the Cougars' first five games of the 2022 season, with 8.5 tackles for losses, five sacks, two quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.

But a biceps injury ended his season and he found out that his relatively short stature and 29-inch reach were turning NFL teams off from drafting him as an edge rusher.

He started hearing chatter from scouts about whether he'd consider playing fullback, the Jaguars among them. When he was selected as the 240th player overall (only 19 games were picked after him) it became a matter of doing what was necessary to get on the field.

If that meant not only changing positions but going from one side of the ball to the other, so be it. In addition, the Jaguars may ask him to play tight end in some formations.

Learning a new language

Parish has the raw physical ability. He made Bruce Feldman's "Freak List," and has power-cleaned 426 pounds, back-squatted 674 pounds, bench-pressed 425 pounds three times and runs a 4.58 40-yard dash.

But Parish is in a position where he has to change the natural inclination of a defensive player to go all-out to the more assignment-based job of a running back.

He said comparing it to learning a new language was a fair assessment.

"You learn it and understand it more each and every day," he said. "It's a process but it's an inclining one."

Pederson was candid in his assessment of Parish's performance in the first week of training camp.

"He’s learning a new position and just like any new young player, it’s challenging," he said. "It’s a lot of information to know and to process. But he’s doing well, for the first couple of days, he’s doing good. It’s different from playing defensive line. He's got to hear all these words in a huddle and figure things out, know where to line up and all that. He’s doing good and learning every day.”

Following the draft, Pederson said that Parish could help as a blocker from the fullback or the tight end position in short-yardage situations, which he admitted was an area the Jaguars "weren't very good" in 2022. Parish could fill the blocking tight end spot left vacant when Chris Manhertz left in free agency for the Denver Broncos.

"We talk about versatility ... it's a position that can line up in the backfield, it can line up as a tight end," he said about Parish's potential. "It could be a third tight end ... special teams. It's a position that you can do multiple things with. And it's something that having a guy on the roster that can play those positions just opens up your offense just a little bit more. It's just another tool, another piece to the puzzle that we'll experiment with this offseason and particularly in training camp."

Parish may have an edge in pass blocking

Parish said of the three phases of an NFL running back's job — running with the football, catching passes and pass-blocking — the receiving part has been the most complex.

"It's about concepts, why certain concepts are in certain coverages," he said. "The run game is physical and technique. I'm learning more every day about the pass concepts and the playbook."

Parish may have an advantage over other Jaguars running backs trying to make the team in pass blocking, simply because he used to be the guy trying to brush aside running backs to get to the quarterback.

"Pass blocking is knowing how I set them what they're going to give me," he said. "I can limit their moves and what they plan to do on me."

Like most free agents and third-day draft picks, Parish can't wait for the pads to come on Tuesday.

"That's when it comes down to who's going to be the most physical," he said.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Derek Parish makes progress in switching from defensive line to fullback