Outside of the magic run in 2017, the Jacksonville Jaguars didn't get the spotlight often because they struggled to win games on a consistent basis. Looking back, there are many reasons behind their lack of success, but there's no doubt that former general manager Dave Caldwell deserves plenty of blame.
Although Caldwell had a few hits throughout his stint in Jacksonville, he had plenty of misses, too many to overcome. By 2020, the organization had seen enough and kicked him to the curb. It didn't take him long to get on his feet, though.
Caldwell landed with the Philadelphia Eagles as a personnel executive in 2021. And with enough time to rehabilitate his stock, he'll be joining a prominent program in the collegiate ranks.
Florida is hiring former Jaguars exec David Caldwell as their next general manager
Pete Nakos of ON3 Sports reports that the Gators are hiring David Caldwell as their next general manager. Other outlets confirmed the news.
Caldwell will join newly hired head coach Jon Sumrall in an effort to steer the ship in the right direction. The Gators had previously fired Billy Napier after a slow start to the 2025 season and an unremarkable 22-24 record in four seasons.
It's worth noting that the Caldwell hire makes sense because he attended Florida. Couple that with his experience at the NFL level, and the move looks like a no-brainer. That said, there's something the Gators might not have taken into consideration.
Related: 5 biggest draft bust of the Dave Caldwell era
Dave Caldwell's track record with the Jaguars was dreadful
Experience in itself isn't inherently a good thing. What's the point of holding a job for 10 years if you don't have much success? That's Dave Caldwell's case with the Jags. He became the general manager in 2013 and proceeded to make several baffling decisions.
Sure, he drafted cornerback Jalen Ramsey and defensive end Yannick Ngakoue but ended up trading them instead of paying them. Similarly, he drafted Leonard Fournette fourth overall in 2017, instead of adding a quarterback, only to release him just before the 2020 season.
Caldwell's most head-scratching move, though, was probably giving Blake Bortles a new deal in 2018 only to cut ties with him the following year. To make up for his blunder, he made an even bigger mistake when he signed quarterback Nick Foles in 2019 to a top-market contract.
Couple that with the fact that Caldwell routinely traded the team's best players for draft picks, and it's easy to see why the Jacksonville roster was devoid of talent by 2020.
Simply, Caldwell failed at his job, and it's hard to see him putting it all together with the Gators. In fact, if his tenure resembles his time with the Jaguars, Florida is in for a rough ride.