Jaguars land at No. 7 in 3 prominent NFL Power Rankings ahead of 2023 season opener

The Jacksonville Jaguars have built together a well-rounded roster and have an ascending talent in Trevor Lawrence playing quarterback. For that reason, it's not surprising to see them crack the top 10 in nearly every NFL power ranking heading into the 2023 season opener. That said, you won't see them land at No. 5 or higher and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk offers an interesting explanation.

"If this collection of players and coaches was named anything other than "Jaguars," they'd be getting a lot more hype," Florio said in his own ranking. He's kind of right. The Jags play in one of the smallest markets in the nation and they've had only two winning seasons (2017, 2022) over the last 10 years. That will make it difficult for fans outside Jacksonville to be engaged.

Make no mistake, Jaguars fans are very passionate and will root for the team win or lose. However, fans outside Duval will have a hard time paying attention if the wins aren't there. The good news is that Jacksonville underwent a turnaround last year and seemed to be poised to pick up where they left off.

Although the Jaguars got off to a 2-6 start, they won seven of their last nine games to finish the season. They then proceeded to knock the Los Angeles Chargers out of the playoffs before falling to the Kansas City Chiefs in the divisional round. Now, they're a more experienced team, one that was learning how to win in Doug Pederson's first year as the head coach.

Where do the Jaguars rank in NFL Power Rankings heading into Week 1 of the 2023 season?

Now in Year 2 of the Doug Pederson era, the Jaguars are set to turn heads in 2023. With Trevor Lawrence behind center and lots of talent at key positions, they should position themselves as one of the top teams in the NFL by the end of the season. For the time being, here's where the Jags rank heading into Week 1:

CBS Sports, No. 6: This was the highest the Jags were ranked. Pete Prisco notes that Jacksonville has an explosive offense (figuratively) and a favorable schedule.

The 33rd Team, Bleacher Report and Pro Football Talk, No. 7: Ryan Raynolds of the 33rd Team believes Jacskonville has enough blue-chip talent to make noise in 2023. However, he thinks the secondary could be a liability, which is odd when you think how stacked the Jaguars are at both cornerback and safety heading into the opener.

That said, all those sites that ranked the Jaguars at No. 7 bring up Trevor Lawrence as the reason they will win games next season. Take the B/R staff for example:

"The engine that makes the Jaguars go is third-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who made huge strides in 2022 after a disastrous rookie season."

The lowest anyone ranked the Jags was Eric Edholm of NFL Media at No. 9. Edholm believes they'll have a favorable matchup against rookie Anthony Richardson. On the other hand, he thinks their depth at offensive tackle could be their Achilles Heel.

The Kansas City Chiefs, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Buffalo Bills, the Cincinnati Bengals and the San Francisco 49ers routinely popped up in the top 5 in most rankings. All things considered, leaving the Jaguars out seems fair despite the fact that they're coming off a successful year.

The Chiefs won Super Bowl 57 and Philly was the front-runner. Meanwhile, the Bengals, the Niners, and the Bills have been some of the top clubs in the league the last few years. Simply, they've stayed at the top longer than the Jags, so their place in the upper echelon is warranted.

That said, the Jaguars have enough firepower to narrow down the gap and they'll have a prime opportunity against the Indianapolis Colts in the opener.

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