When it comes to the Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback room, most of the attention has - understandably - gone towards Travis Hunter. Hunter notoriously wanted to continue playing on both offense and defense, and so far, has wowed fans during training camp.
Yet Hunter is just one piece of the puzzle. The Jaguars desperately needed to rebuild their cornerback unit, as well as... well, everything else. Jacksonville went through massive changes in the offseason, and that included finding a new general manager and head coach. The Jags managed to snag James Gladstone, who found massive success as the scouting director for the Los Angeles Rams. And it turns out, Gladstone wasn't the only star the Jags would poach from the Rams.
Earlier this year, the Jaguars signed Jourdan Lewis, with a three-year contract worth $30 million, of which $20 million is guaranteed. He had come off a career season with the Dallas Cowboys, and Lewis wasted no time making himself right at home in Jax. But a new update from ESPN's Dan Graziano rubs a little more salt to the wound for the Rams, who lost Gladstone... and, apparently, lost their shot at Lewis as well. Apparently, Gladstone and the Rams had been trying for years to land him, and failed at every turn. In a training camp update, Graziano explained,
"The cornerback group looks like a potential strength, with or without Hunter. The addition of former Cowboy Jourdan Lewis in free agency was a big one for former Rams exec Gladstone, who said L.A. tried to get him several times over the years because Sean McVay always said he was especially tough to game-plan against. The Jags believe Lewis is already having an impact as a leader in that room."
This is obviously a huge blow to the Rams, especially as Lewis has seemingly been doing a fantastic job so far in training camp, particularly in the mock game the team held last week, where he landed a diving interception. Lewis primarily played nickel with the Cowboys, and is proving he's just as capable on the outside with the Jaguars. He's also already becoming a leader in the locker room, proving that Gladstone's efforts to land Lewis were well worth it.
Somewhere, Sean McVay is seething.