The state of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ tight end position group has greatly improved over the last two offseasons. This is noteworthy when you take into account that the team had previously struggled to replenish this position group with high-end talent after they parted ways with Marcedes Lewis.
Ahead of the 2022 season, the Jags have more talent in their tight end room now than they have had in a long time but it’s been a bumpy road, to say the least.
The Jaguars failed to upgrade their tight end room in the mid-2010s.
The Jags have taken a few swings on veteran tight ends over the years but have struck out several times. The Jags tried to bring in Julius Thomas from the Denver Broncos during free agency in 2015. Many fans were high on the move because of the success Thomas had with Peyton Manning. But Thomas never made much of an impact without a star passer like the one he had in Denver.
Thomas was brought in to complement Marcedes Lewis who is seen as one of the best blocking tight ends in the league. But in the end, he only played two years out of the five years deal he signed before he was traded to the Miami Dolphins.
James O’Shaughnessy was claimed off waivers in 2017 and had the longest tenure at the position since Marcedes Lewis. He enjoyed some success catching passes from various quarterbacks since he joined the team but has also been hindered by injuries since 2019. He seemed to have established a rapport with quarterback Gardner Minshew having his best season in 2020 but it was cut short by injury and he only ended up with 28 receptions and just two touchdowns.
After cutting ties with both Lewis and Thomas, the Jags brought in Austin Seferian-Jenkins in 2018. They were fresh off an AFC championship appearance and were seemingly a few pieces away on offense from becoming a super bowl caliber team. Seferian-Jenkins was expected to take the offense to the next level. Alas, an injury took him out early in his first season in Jacksonville and the team declined the second-year option on his contract.
Things weren’t much better for the Jaguars in 2019 and 2020.
In 2019 the front office brought in Geoff Swaim a free agent who had some success in Dallas and drafted Josh Oliver, an athletic pass-catching prospect. Swaim was brought in to back up James O’Shaughnessy and was released a year later. Oliver was somewhat of a draft day surprise as many thought the Jags over-reached at a position of need. He was placed on injured reserve two years in a row and was traded to the Baltimore Ravens in 2021, never making an impact in Duval.
The Jags again took a swing on a well-known tight end in Tyler Eifert in 2020 hoping he could provide some production in the passing game as he did with the Cincinnati Bengals. Like Seferian-Jenkins, Eifert had his second-year option declined by the team after not showing much on the field.
By 2021, the tight end group was seriously depleted of talent with only O’Shaughnessy showing promise at the position. When the Urban Meyer regime took over they made it a point to address the position by signing Chris Manhertz in free agency and drafting Luke Farrell. Manhertz was seen as an important addition to the team, as he is viewed as one of the league’s top blocking tight ends.
The Luke Farrell selection was probably motivated by the fact that he played for Urban Meyer at Ohio State University. He saw some playing time in his rookie season but not enough to earn a meaningful role on offense by any means. He provides depth at the position for a second-year player who has shown some upside.
The Jaguars’ TE room looks promising ahead of the 2022 season.
The Jaguars still felt the position group was lacking early in 2021 even after signing Jacob Hollister. Ultimately, he never made an impact and the team went on to acquire Dan Arnold in a trade with the Carolina Panthers. Arnold had a few critical drops early on but quickly became a favorite target of Trevor Lawrence until an injury knocked him out of the season in week 12.
While Arnold remains on the roster and proved to be a formidable passing option, new head coach Doug Pederson who is known to place a premium on the position and continued to add to the group by signing Evan Engram in free agency.
Engram had his best year in 2017 with quarterback Eli Manning. After Manning’s departure, Engram and the Giant’s offense struggled with inconsistent quarterback play. Engram was a widely sought-after draft prospect as he has good hands and is an incredible athlete capable of consistently creating separation.
All in all, the tight end position group may be one of the most improved position groups on the team. With Manhertz, Engram, and Arnold leading the way it is safe to say that this year’s tight end group is a drastic upgrade from the groups we have seen in recent years.