Jacksonville Jaguars among highest graded AFC teams ahead of 2023 offseason

There’s no doubt the 2022 season was a success for the Jacksonville Jaguars when you take into account that it was the first time in four years that they managed to win more than six games. Similarly, they made the playoffs and won the AFC South title for just the second time since 2008, but how do the Jags stack up against other teams in the conference? Pretty well, if you ask Barry Wilner of The 33rd Team.

Wilner graded every AFC team’s performance in 2022 and Jacksonville got an A, noting that they went from worst to first in their division and had one of the biggest turnarounds in the league last year.

"The NFL likes to brag about turnarounds that teams make each season. It can use the 2022 Jaguars as the measuring stick. Going from worst in the entire league to a division winner – and then to a massive rally to take a wild-card matchup with the Chargers – is impressive enough. Changing the culture from rancid under Urban Meyer to productive and encouraging under Doug Pederson ups the grade."

The consensus expected the Jags to win five or six games last season. Even though the team’s brass made several important additions in free agency, it was uncertain how much of an impact they were going to have. Similarly, Trevor Lawrence was projected to make a leap but nobody know huge it would be.

In the end, the Jaguars ended up getting significant production from their 2022 free-agent class and Trevor Lawrence played a huge role in the team’s massive turnaround. Looking at how things played out, an A seems well-earned. In fact, Wilner only gave such a grade to three teams. The other two were the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Jacksonville Jaguars still have room for improvement in the offseason

In spite of the Jaguars’ success last offseason, there’s still room for improvement and the team’s brass will need to address a few issues if they want to return to the playoffs and get over the hump next season.

Fixing the cap is surely at the top of the Jaguars’ to-do list. The question isn’t whether they will do it but how they’ll do it. Tight end Evan Engram, right tackle Jawaan Taylor and defensive end Arden Key are slated to become free agents and the front office won’t have enough cap space to bring all of them back.

Similarly, the team’s brass will need to restructure a few contracts and move on from a few players that filled important roles last year. Once the Jaguars decide which players they’ll keep they’ll need to decide how they’ll replace the players they release. Will they do it in free agency or the draft?

All things considered, the Jacksonville Jaguars are in good shape to make the playoffs and win the AFC South for the second year in a row. Many of their core players from 2022 will be back and there will be a high degree of carryover in the coaching staff. Now, the Jaguars need to put in the work to make it happen.