5 Jaguars players that need a monster offseason in 2022

No. 5 Jaguars player who needs monster offseason – K’Lavon Chaisson, OLB.

Back in 2020, edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson had some big shoes to fill. That year, the Jaguars’ traded Calais Campbell to the Baltimore Ravens and Yannick Ngakoue to the Minnesota Vikings. Putting aside that the team’s brass got minimal compensation for the two, they put extra pressure on Chaisson’s shoulders to perform.

Besides having to play with his hand on the ground after rushing the passer from a two-point stance in college, Chaisson was somewhat rough entering the NFL and he had to work on his technique. It took ‘Swiper’ a while to get acclimated to the pros but he finished the 2020 season strong, posting 21 total pressures in the last seven games. The former LSU Tiger was expected to get better last year and a switch to strong linebacker was supposed to aid him. However, he had an uneventful campaign.

Chaisson did make eight starts in 2021 — five more than the season before — and logged 31 total tackles, three tackles for a loss, and one sack. But he didn’t make any impact plays and failed to show significant growth as a sophomore. The talent is there and new Jaguars linebackers coach Billy Shuey will try to help him to untap his potential but he needs to show the coaching staff he can become a key contributor, something that he has failed to do the last two years. It’s too early to give up on him but he has to at some point show he can be relied on.