Jacksonville Jaguars sign Bjoern Werner

The Jacksonville Jaguars added a ton of pass rushers this offseason, but they apparently wanted to throw in one more – a former first round pick of the Indianapolis Colts.

With the draft and free agency done and over with, we have a pretty good idea of what the Jacksonville Jaguars roster is going to look like heading into the 2016 season. The offense is effectively the same, with most of the key contributors coming back to play similar roles.

The same can’t be said for the defense, which should have a number of new starters at every level. General manager David Caldwell made several high profile moves in the draft and free agency to address holes on the defense and that should pay dividends in September and beyond.

With the big names already signed, all the roster moves now are really for depth. That’s exactly what the Jaguars are looking for with their latest move to sign former Indianapolis Colts first round pick Bjoern Werner.

Werner was the 24th overall pick by in 2013, but  his career has been an abject disappointment since coming into the league. Werner started only 16 games in three years and was subsequently released after last year. In 38 career games, Werner has 77 tackles, 6.5 sacks, five pass defenses, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble.

Werner was supposed to be the heir apparent to the aging duo of Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney in Indianapolis, but he never developed. Werner was effectively benched in 2015, as his snap count went down dramatically and was a healthy scratch in a handful of games.

The Jaguars have a ton of young pass rushers at their disposal, so this signing is likely to bring in a veteran presence and someone who has some versatility as a linebacker as well. He most likely won’t make a big impact, and in the end I wouldn’t be surprised if Werner doesn’t make the roster.