Jacksonville Jaguars: Marvin Jones’ signing garners rave reviews

After focusing on adding depth on the first day of the legal tampering period, the Jacksonville Jaguars made a couple of key additions in cornerback Shaquill Griffin and wide receiver Marvin Jones on Day 2. As important as the former’s signing is, the latter has gotten superb grades.

The Jags and Jones agreed to a two-year $14.5 million contract, per Adam Schefter of ESPN. Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report gave the signing an A grade. He says that even though the former Detroit Lions wide receiver is not as young or as accomplished as former teammate and free agent Kenny Golladay, getting him at $7.25 million per year was a bargain.

On the other hand, Brad Spielberger and Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus graded Jones signing as very good. They point out the California standout was pretty consistent over his five-year stint in Detroit, posting PFF grades between 71.9 and 76.3. Also, they highlight the fact he was effective as the Lions’ number-one wide receiver in 2020 and ‘should have a very efficient year’ as part of a wide receiver corps that includes DJ Chark and Laviska Shenault.

The Jacksonville Jaguars waited to make their move.

The Jaguars weren’t very active on the first day of the free-agency legal tampering period and for a moment, it seemed like Phillip Dorsett and Jamal Agnew were going to be their only wide receiver additions. However, it all changed when they signed Jones, and looking back, it was the right move.

Golladay would have been more expensive, and at the time of writing, he hadn’t signed with a team yet. Also, the Jaguars’ options at wide receiver in the open market were rather limited with Chris Godwin and Allen Robinson getting slapped with the franchise tag.

The Jaguars could’ve also targeted Curtis Samuel, who was a favorite to land in Jacksonville due to his connection to head coach Urban Meyer, or maybe JuJu Smith-Schuster, who made headlines last season for all the wrong reasons. However, Jones is the better receiver and the Jaguars deserve a good grade for signing him.