The Jacksonville Jaguars made a strong effort to address as many needs as possible and raise the team's floor in the offseason. But despite all the upgrades they made, they have yet to earn much praise. In fact, Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report believes the Jags' roster is close to being one of the worst in the league.
Knox made a list of the worst five rosters in the NFL and considered including Jacksonville. He ultimately didn't because he thinks it improved enough in the offseason to "provide promise ahead of OTAs." Here's the skinny.
"Unsurprisingly, the Jaguars churned over their roster in the early offseason, trading wideout Christian Kirk and parting with the likes of Evan Engram, Andre Cisco and Ronald Darby.
New general manager James Gladstone has made some calculated moves to improve Jacksonville's roster. He added linemen Robert Hainsey and Patrick Mekari, along with wideout Dyami Brown, cornerback Jourdan Lewis and safety Eric Murray. At the top of the draft, he made an aggressive trade for corner/receiver Travis Hunter, who, conceivably, could start at two positions for the Jags."
As Knox noted, the Jaguars cut ties with several prominent players who no longer fit their plans: Wide receiver Christian Kirk, tight end Evan Engram, cornerback Ronald Darby, and return specialist Devin Duvernay. Not long after the NFL Draft, 2024 free-agent acquisition Gabe Davis also got the boot.
To replace their losses, the Jaguars plugged key roster holes in free agency and later revamped several position groups in the NFL Draft. And while it's true that the Jaguars are coming off an underwhelming season, it's fair to say that they look in much better shape than they did at the end of 2024.
And in case you were wondering, the five clubs with the worst rosters, according to Knox, are the Carolina Panthers, the New York Giants, the Cleveland Browns, the New Orleans Saints, and the Tennessee Titans. Like Jacksonville, the New England Patriots just missed the cut.
The Jaguars are in position to exceed expectations in 2025
As encouraging as it is to find out that the Jacksonville Jaguars avoided being lumped into the "worst roster" category, it isn't necessarily enticing to see them just barely miss the cut. Then again, it's understandable why they almost got the distinction, and why they have trouble moving up in NFL power rankings.
For starters, Jacksonville is coming off a 4-13 season. On top of that, it has a general manager and a head coach with no prior NFL experience at their respective positions. If the Jags want to praise and recognition, they'll need to start winning games. The good news is that they're in position to do just that next season.
Trevor Lawrence should be back on track to be at full strength for training camp after suffering a shoulder injury last year. Under Liam Coen's tutelage, he should experience an uptick in production. It will also help that his supporting cast is arguably the best he's had in his career.
If that wasn't enough, the Jags added reinforcements to all three levels of defense. When you take into account that they were near the cellar of the league when it came to points and yards allowed, they have nowhere to go but up.
The bottom line is that the Jacksonville Jaguars are flying under the radar, and that could turn out to be a good thing. Because not many people expect them to be good, they could take teams and the NFL by surprise.