One surprise Jaguars addition may be impossible to ignore now

At this point in the offseason, adding a high-profile player to the roster would be an unrealistic pipedream. Luckily, the Jacksonville Jaguars made a sneaky addition during the early weeks of the offseason to make sure that the role players acquired during the draft could adjust to the NFL grind as quickly as possible.

If you haven't heard, the Jaguars' coaching staff wants to run the ball to glory and back. To make this dream a reality, the front office snagged Nate Boerkircher in the second round and Emmanuel Pregnon in the third. Everyone besides James Gladstone and Liam Coen was shocked at the Boerkircher pick, but he and Pregnon could turn out to be steals if Coen can move the ball on the ground more consistently.

There were stretches where it seemed like the Jaguars' running game lost its edge once defenses figured out what to look for. It's safe to say that the coaching staff did an excellent job with the players they had, but the team hit its ceiling at the worst time. Luckily, it sounds like one of the newest assistant coaches on the offensive side of the ball has the brainpower needed to take Jacksonville's rushing attack to the next level.

Brian Picucci's tenure with the Jaguars could lead to a rushing renaissance

Brian Picucci and Liam Coen go way back. Apparently, Picucci coached the Jaguars' second-year head coach while the latter was a player at UMass and served with Coen while the two were assistants at Kentucky.

Hardcore Jags fans probably remember that Jax was prevented from even interviewing Picucci for a role on the coaching staff last year due to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers blocking the team's request. I can't remember the last time an NFL franchise was this invested in hiring an assistant who wasn't due to be a play-calling coordinator, but Mia O'Brien's insight while chatting with 104.5 The Zone explains why Coen kept his run game maestro in mind for an entire year.

When asked who Jacksonville's biggest off-season addition was, O'Brien said, "Yeah, I'm going to throw you for a curveball. I'm going to tell you run game coordinator Brian Picucci . . . It's [the] fact that the Jags are leaning into this run game identity that Liam Coen wanted to run last year, and they didn't have the horses. That's why you saw them sign restricted free agent Chris Rodriguez, reuniting him with his former college OC, and Liam Cohen from Kentucky."

Her initial reasoning is good enough, in my opinion, but O'Brien dropped an extra nugget that can't be ignored:

"Picucci really is kind of the secret sauce that no one's talking about in terms of where this Jaguars offense takes the next step."

If O'Brien's assessment is correct, Jags fans could see another record-breaking offense under Liam Coen's watch. Trevor Lawrence had one of the best statistical seasons as a passer while adjusting to his third offensive system in five years. However, Picucci's contributions to the scheme would give Lawrence and the rest of Jacksonville's offense something else to turn to during gotta-have-it drives.

Coen's desirability as a head-coaching prospect came from his ability to unlock Baker Mayfield's potential and fix one of the worst rushing offenses in the NFL at the same time. Picucci was a major piece of the puzzle when it came to the second accomplishment, so the fanbase should be eager to watch how he meshes with Coen, Grant Udinski, and the rest of the Jaguars' offensive staff.

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