AFC South 2023 GM Power Rankings: Where do Jacksonville Jaguars and Trent Baalke land?

No. 1 AFC South 2023 GM Power Ranking: Trent Baalke, Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars raised eyebrows when they hired Trent Baalke as their general manager in 2021. He was originally hired as the vice president of player personnel a year earlier but was promoted to interim general manager when Dave Caldwell was given the pink slip late in the 2020 season.

At the time the Jags made Baalke the general manager, he didn’t have a glowing reputation around the league and was seen as someone who’s difficult to work with. Leaving aside his personality, his track record of identifying talent during his tenure with the San Francisco 49ers left much to be desired.

Baalke wasn’t a visible figure during the short-lived Urban Meyer era, so it’s hard to assess how much blame he should get for the Jaguars’ 3-14 record in 2021. Regardless of his role, he was an unpopular figure among fans, who wanted him gone and even organized a movement to see him get removed from his position.

In the end, Jaguars owner Shad Khan chose to keep Baalke in spite of the pressure. While Baalke might have hindered the organization’s search for a head coach last offseason, he did a great job of replenishing the roster and was a big reason why the Jaguars made the playoffs and win the AFC South for the first time since 2017.

Last offseason, Baalke was under scrutiny for giving Christian Kirk, Zay Jones, and Evan Engram top-market contracts. They all went to have career years, so it’s fair to say Baalke got the last laugh. Although he won’t have as much cap space as he had last year, he can solidify his place as one of the top general managers in the NFL if he can find a handful of playmakers in the draft.