Jaguars Fire GM Gene Smith
By Luke Sims
The Jacksonville Jaguars have removed General Manager Gene Smith from his duties with the team following the franchise’s worst record ever. Smith has been the “mastermind” behind the Jaguars since 2009 and has managed to leave the team with very little talent to fill the roster for the coming years. Whether it was picking some players too early (Tyson Alualu, Bryan Anger) or straight up whiffing on some players (Blaine Gabbert, Eben Britton), Smith simply did not perform well enough to justify bringing him back.
The Jaguars are in a rough spot because of Smith.
Owner Shahid Khan cited a need to get better for the fans of the Jaguars. If only for that reason, the Jaguars needed to make this move. Smith may make sound business sense (the team didn’t black out a game yet again this year) but he simply was not delivering the Super Bowl Championship that the fanbase craves and, according to Khan, deserves.
Smith has had only a few good roster moves during his tenure as general manager. Left tackle Eugene Monroe should be a cornerstone for the Jags for many more years, safeties Dwight Lowery and Dawan Landry provide strong stopgaps until premium players are brought in by the Jags, and linebacker Paul Posluszny has been marvelous at middle linebacker.
This long haired rookie was supposed to be the ultimate pick that secured Smith for years to come. Instead he became his downfall. Source: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports
Tying his star to a quarterback was the failing move for Smith. While Gabbert has been a bust thus far, there is always the potential for development with a young, raw quarterback. A young, raw quarterback was not what this franchise needed or craved. When David Garrard was still playing quarterback for the Jaguars it was an alright move, though by no means a perfect transition. Rather than getting a playmaker that instantly made the Jaguars a threat on every down, Smith made the Jaguars a limping offense in that one move.
It’s about time the Jaguars moved past Smith.
No longer is it In Gene We Trust.
– Luke N. Sims
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