Former Jaguars draft bust off to strong start to Panthers training camp

Pass rusher K'Lavon Chaisson was never able to put it all together with the Jacksonville Jaguars. This is why they didn't make an effort to retain him when he became a free agent early in 2024. Still, the Carolina Panthers saw a bargain in the open market and gave him a one-year, prove-it deal because they think he could turn into a steady contributor on defense. Based on the early returns, it looks like the investment paid off.

Chaisson is off to a promising start in training camp, standing out on Day 1 because he brought the heat in team drills.

By Day 2, Chaisson was practicing with the ones.

This is noteworthy because Chaisson was routinely buried on the depth chart during his time in Jacksonville. In fact, he saw his playing time progressively decrease, and the only reason he got more snaps in 2023 was that the coaching staff had no one else to turn to beyond Travon Walker or Josh Hines-Allen.

But despite getting more snaps, Chaisson only logged two sacks. Sure, it was a personal best but that's only because he had logged three career sacks in his first three NFL seasons.

A first-round pick in 2020, Chaisson was expected to be part of a rotation that included Yannick Ngakoue, Calais Campbell, and Hines-Allen. However, then-general manager Dave Caldwell traded Ngakoue and Campbell before the beginning of the regular season, pressing the rookie out of LSU into a featured role.

To nobody's surprise, Chaisson was overwhelmed early in his rookie season. He had the tools to develop into a dynamic pass rusher but his fundamentals and technique needed plenty of work. The fact that he switched to a three-point stance after playing standup linebacker in college didn't help matters. The Texas native got a bit better as 2020 went on. He even finished strong, posting 21 total pressures in the last seven games.

However, Chaisson wasn't able to build off of his strong finish. He switched back to his preferred two-point stance in 2021 and got a clean slate under Urban Meyer. Unfortunately, he didn't make strides and was even the subject of trade talks. In the end, he had as many sacks as he had in his rookie campaign (one).

2022 was much of the same for the Chaisson despite the fact that the arrival of Travon Walker had lit a fire on him. Even though he once again got a fresh start under Doug Pederson, he didn't do much of note.

Ex Jaguars DE K'Lavon Chaisson might've just turned the corner with the Panthers

Not long ago, K'Lavon Chaisson claimed that Carolina had a winner in him, and he's doing his best to back up his assessment. He still has a long way to go but the Panthers should be encouraged by his early performance in training camp. A change of scenery is maybe what he needed to put it all together. Perhaps he grew dissatisfied with how things played out in Jacksonville.

Sure, Chaisson deserves the blame for not reaching his potential in Jacksonville. But the Jaguars' consistent turnover in his stint also hampered his development. Similarly, the weight of expectations might've been too much for him. It's possible that keeping a low profile will allow Swiper to succeed.

In the end, cutting ties was probably the best for both the Jaguars and K'Lavon Chaisson. They brought reinforcements to their pass rush and he's doing well with the Panthers. If he goes on to have a career year, it will prove that Jacksonville wasn't an ideal fit for him.

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