Calculating the Costs of the Jacksonville Jaguars Offseason

What do you do with a team like the Jacksonville Jaguars? The butt end of so many jokes, the team has faced a mountain of adversity since their miraculous journey to AFC Championship back in 2017, and they have struggled to overcome mediocrity on so many levels. From the outrageous spending on mediocre quarterbacks and other Free Agent Busts; like Andrew Norwell, Blake Bortles, and Nick Foles (whose contracts totaled over 106.5 million dollars in guaranteed money); to the poor handling of star players, such as Jalen Ramsey or Yannick Ngakoue; demanding trades due to contract and management disputes; it’s been a tough two seasons that have followed our vaunted playoff run.

With the removal of Tom Coughlin and a season resulting in another Top Ten pick in the NFL Draft, it looked almost certain that the Front Office and Coaching Staff would be overhauled, ushering in a new culture, both administratively and within the locker room. Apparently, the success of players like, rookie QB Gardner Minshew, or Pro Bowl WR DJ Chark in the 2019 season, was enough for GM Dave Caldwell and HC Doug Marrone to maintain their positions and move forward towards the 2020 season, with the assumption that both are already operating on a hot seat.

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The preservation of the Front Office, coupled with several cap shedding trades of veteran players, like AJ Bouye or Calais Cambell, prior to the draft for mid round picks, has led to the speculation that the Jaguars have positioned themselves for failure. It is suspected that they are aiming to purposefully tank and capitalize on a generational talent at QB at the top of next year’s draft, with the Jaguars already in control of two first round picks in the 2021 NFL Draft and, Quarterbacks like Trevor Lawrence from Clemson and Justin Fields from Ohio State eligible to enter next year. With the Jaguars losing a multitude of veteran talent and failing to majorly address the offense with positions of need like Offensive Line and Running Back through the draft, the Jaguars have only aided this narrative. The failure to add pieces around 2^nd year QB Gardner Minshew, as well as failing to trade Yannick Ngakoue before the end of the 2020 Draft, are certainly fair critiques and adds to the dim narrative and future outlook of the 2021 Jacksonville Jaguars.

While it is certainly possible that the Jaguars might implode, struggle to win, and make fools of themselves as they tend to do, the Jaguars usually have some sort of surprise during the season, and they most definitely have displayed the potential to perform significantly better than most national media outlets are predicting them to be, especially if developing players continue to improve. The Jaguars always play their best football with a chip on their shoulder, and so many of the players are coming in with the motivation to prove the doubters wrong this season.

With trade rumors surfacing throughout the draft and speculation in regards to starting RB and former 4^th overall pick, Leonard Fournette’s future with the team after his fifth year option was declined by the team, but expect him to run angrily as he plays through a contract year, coming off another 1,000+ yard rushing season, and one his best in terms of receiving production. He has the tools to be one of the best backs in the league can hopefully get back into the thick of that conversation with an improved and consistent season playing behind a healthier and slightly better O-line as well as with a QB in his second year. Also look for new OC Jay Gruden to take advantage of the bruising back and center the offensive game plan around the strengths of the offensive skill players.

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Speaking of offensive skill players, the emergence of DJ Chark should only continue with his reputations trending towards the conversation of elite WRs in the NFL, as he and Gardner Minshew’s relationship continues to develop. His budding relationship with the rest of the Wide Receiver group, which boasts Chris Conley, Dede Westbrook, and Keelan Cole will develop as well. Rookie WRs Leviska Shenault Jr. and Collin Johnson should add some needed speed and height to an already underrated group of wideouts. Finally, Gardner Minshew should build on the mania of a season he unexpectedly put together as a sixth round pick and rookie in relief for an injured Nick Foles, leading the Jaguars to a 6-6 record as the starter, and putting up statistics similar, or better to the other top rookie QBs at a much more efficient rate. Minshew has the personality, character, and mentality to be the QB that the Jacksonville Jaguars has needed for so long, but the Jaguars also can’t get ahead of themselves and commit if Minshew falters. The Jaguars should look to add a veteran presence through free agency before the start of the season, with names like Cam Newton still available.

Losing a leader like Calais Cambell can never help a defense, nor can the loss of veterans like Marcell Dareus, AJ Bouye, and likely Yannick Ngakoue (although it is possible he will remain on the team), but the Jaguars defense still boasts players, such as 2^nd year DE Josh Allen who racked up 10.5 sacks in his rookie year, or S Ronnie Harrison, who caught 2 interceptions and 9 Passes Defended before falling to injury in the middle of the season, who can lead the slew of new Jaguars defensive rookies. The Jaguars also hope to see improvement out of high round picks, like DE Dawuane Smoot, DT Taven Bryan, and LB Quincy Williams, as well as a return to quality in MLB Myles Jack, as he’s aided by the newly dded free agent MLB Joe Schoebert. The additions of CB CJ Henderson and DE K’lavon Chaisson should bolster the defense, with both having the potential for stardom with hard work and solid play. Other mid round draft picks will provide solid depth at every level of the defense as well.

Overall, there is reason for concern and optimism, which sounds about right for a Jacksonville Jaguars fan, especially at this point in the league year. With the release of teams’ schedules released yesterday, we inch closer to the start of an unprecedented season. Hopefully the Jaguars turn heads for the right reason this year, but only time will tell.