The Jacksonville Jaguars are close to checking off the last box on their offseason to-do list before they fully turn their attention to free agency. In the upcoming days, they'll be wrapping up their search for a new general manager. Whoever ultimately gets the job will be holding the position for the first time, so maybe the organization should consider adding a savvy executive to their front office to balance things up a bit. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated has an intriguing suggestion.
Breer recently shared his thoughts on the Jacksonville general manager search and stated that the lack of experience may be a bit of a cause for concern, pointing out that the candidates to fill the vacancy would all be first-timers. Thus, it would make sense to add an experienced voice. Former New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas would fit the bill.
"That said, this sure feels like the Jaguars simply pivoting and going the other way after choosing experienced folks the last time around. And doing that without back-stopping all the first-timers, to me, would be a mistake.
Of course, there’s still time to do that—it wouldn’t, for example, be surprising to see Cunningham bring someone like ex-Jets GM Joe Douglas with him to Jacksonville to add some on-the-job experience to the room."
The finalists for the job are interim Ethan Waugh, Chicago Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham, Los Angeles Rams director of scouting strategy James Gladstone, Green Bay Packers vice president of player personnel Jon-Eric Sullivan, and San Francisco 49ers director/scouting and football operations Josh Williams.
Cunningham appears to be the favorite for the job, but Waugh also seems to have lots of in-house support. On the other hand, Gladstone has gotten rave reviews from several people in the Los Angeles Rams organization, but Sullivan and Williams come with intriguing resumes.
The bottom line is that the Jaguars will ultimately end with a general manager with lots of upside, but a bit of help and guidance would most definitely help.
Why adding Joe Douglas to the Jaguars front office makes sense
Joe Douglas was the general manager for the New York Jets from 2019-2023. All things considered, his tenure in the Big Apple was a mix of good and bad. He most definitely hit it out of the ballpark with his 2022 draft class.
That year, the Jets found wide receiver Garrett Wilson, cornerback Sauce Gardner, running back Breece Hall and linebacker Jermaine Johnson II. Unfortunately, Douglas' draft record outside of 2022 left much to be desired. His biggest failure, though, was his inability to fix the offensive line and find a long-term answer at quarterback.
Sure, you could make the case that Jets owner Woody Johnson forced Zach Wilson and Aaron Rodgers onto Douglas, but the truth is that he was on board. So he most definitely deserves blame for his role in New York's underwhelming win-lose record during his stint.
Having said that, Douglas could most definitely provide guidance to the next Jaguars general manager. He could either serve as the assistant general manager or vice president of player personnel.
Granted Douglas' experience may not be as intriguing when you take into account that he failed to build a Super Bowl-caliber roster in New York, but it's experience nonetheless. Moreover, he wouldn't be making any decisions but would instead offer recommendations.
Now, it's worth noting that Albert Breer isn't saying the Jaguars will definitely hire Douglas but rather that he's someone to keep an eye on if they want to add experience to the front office.
Ultimately, it wouldn't hurt the Jaguars to hire Douglas to guide their next general manager to deal with the ups and downs that come with holding a position for the first time.