5 Jaguars who must hit the ground running at 2022 OTAs

After a busy and productive offseason, the Jacksonville Jaguars are now preparing for the 2022 season. Phase I of the offseason program is the books and teams are now getting ready for Organize Team Activities (OTAs). The Jags will hold theirs on the following days: May 23 and 24. May 26, May 31-June 1, June 3, and June 6-9.

While players aren’t allowed to make contact in OTAs, this will be a good time for rookies to get acclimated to the NFL and for veteran players to solidify their spot on the depth chart. For that reason, these five Jaguars must hit the ground running in the upcoming weeks.

No. 1 Jaguars player who must shine at OTAs – Chad Muma, LB.

The Jaguars raised a few eyebrows when they took linebacker Chad Muma at No. 70 in this year’s draft. What made this a tad surprising was that the front office had already chosen Devin Lloyd in the first round and had also inked Foyesade Oluokun in free agency, raising questions about where Muma will line up.

More often than not, you want to see third-round picks, such as Muma, contribute as soon as possible but it will be hard for him with Lloyd most likely starting next to Oluokun in Week 1 of the 2022 season. Maybe defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell can have the three take the field at the same time but it won’t be easy in his 3-4 scheme, which will employ two off-linebackers most of the time.

Instead, Muma will likely see the field in sub-packages but he needs to show on Organized Team Activities that he deserves as much playing time as possible. The Wyoming product was one of the most talented linebacker prospects in the draft and the Jags felt they couldn’t pass on him in the third round. It will be up to the coaching staff to find him a spot to play.