The Jacksonville Jaguars didn't give the roster a makeover in the offseason to ensure they have a shot at winning the AFC South title and making the playoffs in 2023. Instead, they focused on keeping last year's core together on adding depth to nearly every position group.
Having said that, the Jags did make a few additions that should increase their chances of making a deep playoff run. The biggest one was Calvin Ridley, who will take the field after last playing in 2021. Ridley will join a receiver corps composed of Christian Kirk and Zay Jones. With Trevor Lawrence throwing passes to them, the Jags' offense should improve considerably.
Also, the Jaguars will be even better if a few players that underperformed last season get back on track. In particular, the Jags would like to see these four bounce back.
No. 4 Jaguars player who can bounce back in 2023: Tim Jones, WR
The Jags put wide receiver Tim Jones on notice when they drafted Parker Washington in Round 6 and later signed Elijah Cook, Jarai Jenkins, and Oliver Martin. This makes sense when you take into account that the Jaguars' brass wants to see competition even at the bottom of the depth chart.
All of the Jaguars' rookie wideouts -- with the exception of probably Parker -- will have a steep hill to climb to make the team. Conversely, Jones will have to fend them off to keep his roster spot, and there's no guarantee he will.
The former Southern Mississippi Golden Eagle made the 53-man roster last year an impressive display in the offseason. However, he was underwhelming when the regular season began. Although he was a good blocker, he didn't add much to the table in the passing game, which is why he could be on the fringe in the upcoming months.
Jones will need to once again make an impression in training camp if he doesn't want to lose his job to any of the newcomers. Specifically, Washington could end up taking his roster spot away. It's true that Jones mainly lines outside and Washington is projected to line up in the slot but there's a finite number of roster spots and Jacksonville will ultimately keep whoever can contribute the most.
No. 3 Jaguars player who can bounce back in 2023: K'Lavon Chaisson, OLB
Some players keep getting chances even if they don't perform because they were drafted in the first round. Either teams want to make sure they get a return on the heavy investment they made or coaches want to show they can fix players that have previously underperformed. When it comes to outside linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson, the Jacksonville Jaguars have shown patience.
Chaisson, the 20th overall pick in the 2020 draft, had a quiet rookie season but that might have had to do with him changing position and the overall state of disarray the Jags were going through at the time. The LSU Tiger was expected to make a leap after switching to outside linebacker in 2021 but he once again failed to impress. In fact, Jacksonville was reportedly close to trading him to the Minnesota Vikings before ultimately deciding to keep him.
Just like any other player, Chaisson got a clean slate under head coach Doug Pederson but not nobody's surprise, he didn't do much of note. In three seasons, "Swiper" has only registered three sacks and it's hard to see him breaking out in 2023. Maybe that's why the Jags opted not to exercise the fifth-year option on his rookie deal.
It's possible that the Jags have kept Chaisson around because they still believe he can be the player they expected him to be when they drafted him. However, they can't wait forever and unless he has a breakout season, he might not return in 2024.
No. 2 Jaguars player who can bounce back in 2023: Devin Lloyd, LB
You knew the Jaguars liked linebacker Devin Lloyd when they traded back into the first round to take him 27th overall last year. At the time, linebacker was a need for Jacksonville, and Lloyd brought much-needed athleticism to the position. Although he suffered a hamstring injury that forced him to sit out a good portion of training camp, he still made his way into the starting lineup in the opener.
It looked like the Jags' decision to go with Lloyd paid off, as he registered two interceptions and six passes defensed in the first three games of the 2022 season. However, he progressively regressed and was eventually phased out in favor of fellow rookie Chad Muma in the second half of the regular season.
Looking back, the coaching staff might have mishandled Lloyd's development. Maybe he would have benefitted from starting the season behind Muma but that doesn't justify his poor performance. The silver lining is that Lloyd is fully healthy and will have a full offseason to hone his skills.
All things considered, Lloyd wasn't necessarily bad in 2022 but he wasn't great either, which is why he will need to fend off Muma in training camp. Although Lloyd has the talent to win the starting spot next to veteran Foyesade Oluokun, Muma won't give up without a fight. As a matter of fact, this is going to be one of the team's most exciting training camp battles and as of this writing, it looks like it could go either way.
No. 1 Jaguars player who can bounce back in 2023: Ben Bartch, LG
The Jaguars' 2020 draft class was pretty bad but they at least found offensive lineman Ben Bartch in the fourth round. The former St. John Johnny started a few games in his rookie campaign and lined up at right tackle once A.J. Cann was shut down in the 2021 season.
Bartch was the starting left guard in the 2022 opener and showed he'd come a long way since his rookie year. Unfortunately, he dislocated his knee in Week 5 and missed the rest of the season. Before this year's draft, head coach Doug Pederson told the media that Bartch's rehab is going well but might not be available for the start of camp.
If Bartch has to miss time, Jacksonville can go with veteran Tyler Shatley but there would be a steep dropoff, which could prompt the coaching staff to either rush Bartch back or him pushing through injuries and run the risk of getting hurt again.
To make matters worse, Bartch is entering a contract year, so he'll be incentivized to toughen up and try to have a breakout year. While there's a chance he doesn't miss time and shows out in 2023, the Jaguars' brass should err on the side of caution and shut him down until he's a full-go.
Let's say Bartch has to miss the first two games of the season but goes on to start the next 15, the wait would have paid off. Conversely, it doesn't make sense to rush him and have him in the opener only to lose him after a handful of games. Either way, Bartch needs to bounce back and deliver if he wants to earn a contract extension.