Former Jaguars player pulls no punches to discuss how low the 2024 team has sunk

Before the 2024 NFL season began, owner Shad Khan told players and coaches that this was the most talented Jacksonville Jaguars team ever and the expectation was to win. The comments haven't aged well and have come back to haunt them in light of their 0-3 start.

Following the embarrassing 47-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills, Pro Football Talk posted Khan's quote on Twitter. Former Jaguars defensive end Seth Payne caught wind of the tweet and said with all certainty and "without ego" that the 1999 team would "drive this current team deep into the dirt, where they would then drown because of the high water table."

Those are some harsh but Payne isn't wrong. The 2024 Jaguars are one of the worst teams in the league despite the fact that they made several upgrades in the offseason and have no shortage of game-changers, including but not limited to Trevor Lawrence, defensive end Josh Hines-Allen, and wide receiver Christian Kirk.

Payne isn't the only former player who thinks the 1999 Jaguars would crush their 2024 counterpart. Pete Prisco of CBS Sports recently noted that the former would beat the latter by 20 points. Kevin Hardy, one of the most prominent players in team history, chimed in and said that it wouldn't be 20 but 30.

Former Jaguars right tackle Leon Searcy didn't want to be left out of the party and said that teams that don't practice hard will be soft on the field, implying that the current players and coaches aren't putting in the necessary work.

However you look at it, that's embarrassing. It would be one thing if it were players from opposing teams openly mocking the Jaguars, but it's their former players.

Seth Payne is right about his criticism of Shad Khan and the Jaguars

So far, nothing good has come out of Shad Khan's comments. Looking back, he might've been better not making expectations public. There's a strong chance he legitimately believed the that 2024 Jaguars were the best one ever. However, their record is proof that they aren't. In retrospect, the owner should've been more careful with what he said.

After all, the 1999 Jaguars were stacked with talent. Aside from Kevin Hardy and Leon Searcy, they had the wide receiver tandem of Keenan McCardell and Jimmy Smith, running back Fred Taylor, Hall-of-Fame left tackle Tony Boselli, and quarterback Mark Brunell, just to name a few. That team made it all the way to the AFC Championship. Meanwhile, their 2024 counterpart is among the worst teams in the NFL right now.

Perhaps Khan should not waited for the current Jaguars team to prove their worth before putting all his trust in the proverbial basket. After all, they're nothing more than a bunch of underachievers. It may sound harsh but that's the truth, especially when you take into account that they spared no expenses to revamp the roster in the offseason. On top of that, they gave top-market contracts to Trevor Lawrence, Josh-Hines Allen, and cornerback Tyson Campbell because they think they're part of their long-term future.

What do they have to show for it? Not much, which is why former Jaguars aren't mincing words to talk about how bad they are. If things continue the way they are, expect significant changes later in the season or next year.

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