The Jacksonville Jaguars just wrapped up the third day of this year’s organized teams activities and it looks like everything went off without a hitch. Head coach Urban Meyer has the team running smoothly. While it’s too early to tell how good the Jags are going to be in 2021, players are raving about the new culture and how the energy in the building.
It’s important to keep things in context though. At this point of the offseason, you will hear about everyone being in the best shape of their life. You will also hear about how things feel different when compared to last year. Nevertheless, if the Jaguars end up having a successful season, you can circle back to the OTAs. This is the time of the year when the team is implementing its vision and laying the foundation for the regular season.
Here are three observations about this Jacksonville team after three days of OTAs.
1. The Jacksonville Jaguars are giving their players everything they need.
Jaguars center Brandon Linder — along with Meyer — met with the local media on Day 3 of the OTAs. The veteran touched on several topics. Among them was that players are getting access to better resources on the performance side.
"All the different therapies, activation stuff, equipment, that kind of stuff. We got a couple new facilities going up, and then the food. The food has been better, all these different shakes and whatnot”"
Linder adds that they are getting all those kinds of perks because the team expects them to perform at a high level, “we have more at our hands to help us show our potential on the field, show our value”. Meyer previously talked about giving his players the best of the best. After all, if they are going to push them, they need to give them anything they need to succeed.
The Jacksonville Jaguars feel comfortable about QB Trevor Lawrence.
Trevor Lawrence underwent surgery on his non-throwing shoulder earlier this year. He was in a pitch count as recently as two weeks ago. However, the number of reps he’s been getting has increased. Head coach Urban Meyer says the coaching staff is monitoring every throw and if they need to adjust something, they will. They have been practicing at full speed and Meyer added that the former Tiger isn’t being overused, as they are splitting the reps between four quarterbacks.
Just like any other player making the transition from college to the pros, Lawerence will have a few rough days. Meyer says that the quarterback struggled a bit Thursday after having a sharp practice the day before. The head coach went on to clarify that it wasn’t just the rookie quarterback but rather everyone.
Last season, COVID-19 protocols limited the amount of time players could practice. Most of the teaching happened online. Furthermore, the preseason was scraped off and first-year players had a rough time making the adjustment to the NFL. Lawrence will have a full offseason to get acclimated and should be ready to take the field in the season opener versus the Houston Texans.
At this point, all signs point to Lawrence being the starting quarterback on Day 1. Unless he suffered a setback, it doesn’t make much sense to have him sit and play Gardner Minshew II or C.J. Beathard. The Jaguars are taking the right approach by preparing their franchise quarterback to start.
The Jacksonville Jaguars’ tight end room is a work in progress.
The Jaguars opted not to spend premium resources on their tight end room. Instead, of pursuing a big-name tight end like Jonnu Smith or Hunter Henry in free agency, they added Chris Manhertz. They draft Luke Farrell in the fifth round of this year’s selection meeting and more recently, they signed Tim Tebow, who is making the transition to tight end after entering the NFL as a quarterback.
Urban Meyer praised Manhertz in his most recent sitdown with the local media. He says that the team zeroed in on him early in free agency and believes he is one of the best three blocking tight ends in the league. The former Florida head coach also said that the Canisius product has the potential to be a functional receiver.
Meyer was asked what kind of role Tebow would have on the offense. He says that at this moment, the former quarterback is learning the position and trying to make the team at this moment. Tebow may or may not be part of the Jags’ 53-roster in Week 1 but it doesn’t make much sense for the coaching staff to start design a role for him if he ends up struggling. Hence, Meyer’s taking a cautionary approach.
The tight ends as a whole are doing fine. Meyer said that veteran James O’Shaughnessy and sophomore Ben Ellefson have improved a lot and the unit is trending upward. Surprisingly, the head coach didn’t mention 2020 sixth-round pick Tyler Davis. It’s uncertain how many teams the Jags want to carry this season but the 2020 sixth-round pick could be the odd man out. Based on Meyer’s comments, it looks like this Jacksonville team will role with their current group of tight ends.