Jacksonville Jaguars: Could these 3 backups be stars elsewhere?

3. Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew.

When the Jaguars used a sixth-round selection in 2019’s draft on Gardner Minshew, they didn’t probably imagine that he would become the starting quarterback. After all, they had just signed Nick Foles, who was coming off a Super Bowl run with the Philadelphia Eagles. However, Foles struggled right out of the gate and was promptly benched in favor of the Washington State product.

Minshew finished the 2019 season with 3,271 yards with 21 touchdowns and six interceptions. He was given a chance to keep the starting job for good in 2020 but wasn’t able to recreate the success he had in his rookie campaign. He suffered a thumb injury that sidelined him for a few weeks and wasn’t particularly efficient when he was on the field.

Although Minshew wasn’t the sole reason why the Jags lost 15 consecutive games, he showed he wasn’t the long-term solution at the position either. That’s why the organization drafted quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the top pick in this year’s selection meeting. The former Cougar wants a chance to compete for a starting job and won’t happen in Jacksonville. He would need to be traded to another team to have a legitimate chance.

Minshew is too valuable to be dealt but he might benefit from a change of scenery. He needs to work on his decision making but he could thrive with the right team. The demand for quarterbacks in the NFL always outweighs the supply and Minshew could surely help a squad in need of a signal-caller.