Jaguars C Mitch Morse showcasing his vast experience in the classroom

The Jacksonville Jaguars signed Mitch Morse in free agency to bring stability at center. While he's been having to learn a new system, his vast experience on his previous stops has come in handy.

Offensive coordinator Press Taylor told the local media on the second week of OTAs that Morse's experience has been notable in the meeting room, pointing out that he won't hesitate to ask questions to be on the same page as everyone.

"Mitch, there's definitely that veteran presence. This is a guy that's very confident in who he is, what he's done," Taylor said. "You see that show up from the way he handles himself in the huddle. It's also in the meeting room. That's one of the things, that he's not afraid to speak up and ask a question where some young guys that are new to a system, they're probably going to wait till the meeting ends, go grab a coach on the side, you say this, what do you mean by that?

"Mitch will stop the meeting, make sure he's on the same page of what the coach is expecting because sometimes you go quickly through these things because there's a lot of familiar faces in the room, guys have heard this. Or guys know, he's talking about 2022 Week 3, this happened, blah, blah. We gloss over some things where Mitch goes, Hey, what do you mean by this whole clip all watch together. Make sure we're all speaking the same language. That's the biggest thing.

Taylor goes on to say that each offense has its own language but it hasn't been hard for Morse to understand it and get up to speed.

Morse was a second-round pick in 2015. He signed a two-year deal with the Jaguars in free agency. He spent his first four seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs and joined the Buffalo Bills in 2019. Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson was the Chiefs offensive coordinator in his rookie season. Morse has said that his familiarity with Pederson is what drew him to Jacksonville.

Having said that, the former Mizzou Tiger says that he's starting over with the Jags, "We both changed quite a bit, It was a clean slate," Morse said, via Hans Carlyon of 1010 XL. "The familiarity came with the man rather than the schematics."

The Jaguars wanted a quick fix at center and got it in Mitch Morse

Even though Mitch Morse says that he's starting from scratch, Press Taylor's comments show how his experience in the meeting room has served him well. It should also help him on the football field. That's probably why the Jacksonville Jaguars went with him instead of drafting a young center who would have probably needed time to get acclimated.

Morse is expected to compete with incumbent Luke Fortner for the starting job but it's hard to see him begin the season on the sidelines. Simply put, Morse is a more experienced and complete player than Fortner. Whereas Fortner gave up four sacks and 28 total pressures last year, his veteran counterpart surrendered just one sack and 26 pressures. On top of that, Morse is a much better run blocker, posting a Pro Football Focus grade of 62.0 in 2023.

As a matter of fact, Fortner will also be a beneficiary of Morse's arrival. Taking a step back will help him hone his skills without being under pressure to deliver. If he does improve, he could then try to reclaim his job next year.

In the end, the Jaguars locked up Mitch Morse because they needed to fortify their interior offensive line. But his presence in the classroom will also be beneficial for other players.

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