The Jacksonville Jaguars don't have to worry about the quarterback position after drafting Trevor Lawrence in 2021. The former Clemson Tiger struggled as a rookie for several reasons but the made a huge leap last season.
Heading into Year 3, Lawrence is expected to continue to get better and possibly become a top 5 quarterback in the NFL. The team's brass is aware they need to put him in a position to succeed for that to happen and here are three ways they've helped him this offseason.
3. The Jacksonville Jaguars managed to keep most of their coaching staff intact
Nothing hurts a player more than having to consistently learn a new system and everything else that comes with changing coordinators. Fortunately, the Jaguars have managed to keep most of their coaching staff from last year, so there should be a significant amount of carryover into 2023, which should help Lawrence take yet another step in his development.
Lawrence had to learn head coach Doug Pederson's offense last year and he'll be able to master it in their second season playing together. The fact that offensive coordinator Press Taylor and quarterbacks coach Mike McCoy should help the third-year passer have a stronger hold of the offense.
Although the Indianapolis Colts managed to poach passing game coordinator Jim Bob Cooter from the Jags, they found a solid replacement in Nick Holz, who was the quarterbacks coach at UNLV in 2022 and an assistant for the Las Vegas Raiders before that.
Holz's background as a receivers coach with the Raiders should help not only Lawrence but the rest of the offense as well.
2. The Jacksonville Jaguars managed to keep Evan Engram for at least 1 more year
The Jaguars failed to successfully replace tight end Marcedes Lewis when he left in 2017. Since then, they had a revolving door at the position until they signed Evan Engram last offseason. The former Ole Miss Rebel was coming off a not-so-great five-year tenure with the New York Giants but he put it all together in Jacksonville, posting career numbers, and broking several team records along the way.
Looking back, the tight end made the right decision when he opted to strike a one-year deal instead of a long-term contract, as he managed to boost his stock in 2022.
After the season, Engram made it clear that he wanted to remain in Jacksonville. On the other hand, he rightfully wanted to get a new contract that reflected his status as one of the best tight ends in the NFL. Although it looked like he and the Jags were close to reaching a new deal, they couldn't get it done before the start of free agency, so he got the franchise tag.
The Jaguars would have surely preferred to keep Engram on a multi-year deal but the franchise tag ensures he remains in Jacksonville for at least one more season. This in turn ensures that one of Lawrence's most trusted targets, one that prevents defenses from zeroing in on Christian Kirk or Zay Jones, remains in place.
Whether Engram leaves in 2024, he'll get to catch passes from Lawrence for at least one more year, which could in turn help him increase his value ahead and cash in next offseason.
1. The Jacksonville Jaguars got Calvin Ridley to give the offense a boost
It's easy to criticize the Jaguars for not being as active in free agency as they were last year but the truth is that they simply didn't have the cap space to go into a spending spree this offseason. You could argue that they could have structured a few contracts in a way that would push some of the money to future years but that would have limited their ability to pay some of their own players (e.g. Trevor Lawrence, Josh Allen) in 2024.
In the end, the Jaguars mostly focused on keeping their own players -- Roy Robertson Harris, Andrew Wingard, and JaMycal Hasty among others -- and adding depth to their running back room and their defensive front. However, the Jags did make a splash move that should immensely help Lawrence and other players on offense and that was the addition of Calvin Ridley to their wide receiver corps.
Technically, the Jaguars acquired Ridley last year before the trade deadline but the move will reap rewards until the 2023 season. At the time the front office acquired the Alabama product, he was serving an indefinite suspension for gambling on football games back in 2021. However, he was reinstated last March and is free to join the Jags in any team activities.
Ridley was one of the best receivers in the NFL in 2020, hauling in 90 receptions for 1,374 yards with nine touchdowns. Although his numbers dropped considerably the following year, it's important to point out that he was severely hurt as he recently noted in a letter he wrote for The Players' Tribune.
Besides giving Lawrence a bonafide No. 1 receiver, he will draw coverage away from Evan Engram, Christian Kirk and Zay Jones, which should lead to better matchups. Similarly, Ridley's presence won't make it possible for the defenses to stack the box unless they want to run the risk of getting burnt deep.
Simply, Ridley will make Lawrence and his teammates better, which is why general manager Trent Baalke jumped at the opportunity to trade for him last year.