3 severe overreactions from the Jacksonville Jaguars 2024 offseason

Seen as a dark-horse Super Bowl contender in 2023, the Jacksonville Jaguars ultimately crumbled under the weight of expectations. Although they went 8-3 to start the season, they lost five of their last six games and missed the playoffs.

Since the end of 2023, the team's brass got to work, making several moves to avoid another collapse. While it hasn't been perfect, it's fair to say the Jags are in much better shape than they were a year ago. That's why these three talking points are baffling.

The Jaguars will miss Calvin Ridley

The Jaguars traded for wide receiver Calvin Ridley in 2022. While he was serving a suspension at the time, the expectation was that once he joined the team, he would take an already proficient offense from good to great.

Despite spending more than a year away from football, Ridley became a key contributor for the Jags in 2023, hauling in 76 receptions for a team-best 1,016 yards with eight touchdowns. After the season, he made it clear he wanted to return to Jacksonville and the interest was reciprocated. However, the front office didn't want to give him a long-term deal before the start of free agency because they would've had to give the Atlanta Falcons a second-round pick as part of the trade.

In the end, the Jaguars let Ridley hit the open market with the expectation that they were going to re-sign him. Early on, it looked like they were going to pull it off, but the Tennessee Titans swooped in and signed him to a four-year deal worth $92 million.

Losing Ridley most definitely stung but the Jaguars offense won't suffer a steep dropoff even though he was one of their best weapons last year. In fact, you could make the case that they're better off without him. As productive as he was in 2023, the Alabama product was also responsible for a handful of costly drops.

Furthermore, the Jags inked defensive tackle Arik Armstead with the money they would've used to re-sign Ridley. Had they brought the Alabama product back, they might not have been able to bolster the interior defensive line.

But Jacksonville still needed to fill the void left by Ridley so they drafted Brian Thomas Jr. 23rd overall. The LSU Tiger has to work on the nuances of the position but he's got the tools to develop into a deep threat.

Leaving Thomas aside, Trevor Lawrence will have no shortage of weapons. The team's brass signed Gabe Davis in free agency. He'll join an arsenal that includes Christian Kirk, and tight end Evan Engram.

Without Ridley, Jacksonville ranked 10th in both points scored and total yards in 2022, and they can certainly overcome his departure. They can be as good or even better with Thomas in the fold.

Cornerback is a need for the Jaguars

The Jaguars addressed most of their needs in the offseason but you could argue that their cornerback room could still use some work. They released Darious Williams in a cap-saving move and locked up Ronald Darby to take his place.

All things considered, Darby was a solid addition. He's been dependable throughout most of his career and has allowed just one receiving touchdown the past two years. The other side of the coin is that he's missed 13 games in that span and has never played a full season.

Later in the draft, all cornerback prospects were still on the board when the Jaguars were on the clock at No. 17. They chose to move down six spots and select Brian Thomas Jr. with the 23rd overall selection.

Even in the second round, there were still a few intriguing prospects available but the team's brass once again neglected the position, taking defensive tackle Maason Smith with the 42nd overall pick. It wasn't until the third round that they added a cornerback, Jarrian Jones at No. 96.

Following the lack of splash moves at the position, cornerback has routinely been brought up as Jacksonville's biggest remaining need. However, the unit is in better shape than it appears. For one, Tyson Campbell is a full-go after dealing with injuries through most of 2023. The new coaching staff is impressed with his athletic skills and knack for picking up things quickly.

Furthermore, Jones has been a standout during offseason activities. If he makes strides early in training camp, he could earn a featured role early in the regular season. If that wasn't enough, the Jags have adequate depth behind Campbell, Darby, and Jones.

Montaric Brown, Gregory Junior, and Christian Braswell will be competing in training camp for the top backup job. All three have shown steady progress, with Braswell arguably having the biggest ceiling of the three.

If the Jaguars experienced injuries in training camp, they could then go ahead or trade for a proven veteran. But for the time being, their cornerback group should be good enough to get the job done in 2024.

The Jaguars overpaid for Trevor Lawrence

A player is worth what a team is willing to pay him and the Jaguars believed Trevor Lawrence deserved a five-year, $275 million extension. Before they struck the deal, some analysts believed that his play didn't justify such a massive contract. Others thought that Jacksonville was better off waiting and seeing how he performed coming off a somewhat underwhelming season. However, they had already made up their mind.

In their eyes, Lawrence is their guy. He's the long-term answer behind center, so the Jaguars went ahead and gave him an extension despite the fact that he still had two years left on his deal. Even if you don't think he deserved that contract, Jacksonville was right for getting ahead of the curve. The extension won't kick in until 2026. By then, quarterback salaries will have gone up, so they saved themselves plenty of money by getting a deal done early.

It's also worth noting that Lawrence hasn't yet reached his ceiling, so the Jaguars chose to give him an extension before he did. If he had a breakout season in 2024, his price would've increased considerably,

By paying their quarterback right now, Jacksonville will have cap flexibility next year. They'll still need to account for his salary but they'll have ample room for maneuvering and locking up other players.

The bottom line is giving Trevor Lawrence an extension was a smart move with hardly any meaningful drawbacks, even if you think he wasn't deserving of it.

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