Trent Baalke will be reminded of one of his biggest blunders when Jaguars face Titans

Throughout his stint with the Jacksonville Jaguars, general manager Trent Baalke has made several puzzling mistakes. He'll be reminded of one of the biggest ones he made when the Jags play the Tennessee Titans in Week 14.

Following a breakout season with the San Francisco 49ers, defensive end Arden Key signed a one-year deal with Jacksonville in 2022. He went on to have yet another productive year in Duval, appearing in 17 games with three starts and registering 4.5 sacks and 27 total tackles. You would think that would been enough to give him the former LSU Tiger a juicy contract extension, but the team's brass instead made him a low-ball offer that prompted him to bolt for the Tennessee Titans.

Key ended up signing a three-year deal worth $21 million with the division foes while calling the Jaguars' offer disrespectful. Looking back, Baalke should regret letting him join the Titans. After all, the Atlanta, Georgia native has gone on to become a key cog on their defensive front. He posted 6.0 sacks last year, and he's already tied his career best of 6.5 this season despite the fact that he missed the first four games while serving a suspension.

Heading into the game, head coach Doug Pederson talked about the kind of player Key has been for the Titans, pointing out that their defensive front is one of the toughest ones Jacksonville will have had to face this season.

"Arden is a very athletic and speed rusher and plays with a lot of energy," Pederson told the local media Wednesday. "His front is going to be one of the better ones we've seen."

Pederson isn't wrong. Apart from Key, Tennessee has defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, rookie T'Vondre Sweat, and edge rusher Harold Landry III. The Jaguars offensive line will have their hands full trying to hold ground and protect quarterback Mac Jones.

Going back to Key, it's great to see him thrive after an unremarkable start to his NFL career. During his three seasons with the Las Vegas Raiders, he registered a measly three combined sacks and looked like a bust when they released him in 2021. Then again, he's proven that all he needed was a bit of time to put it all together.

The Jacksonville Jaguars could use Arden Key right now

The Jacksonville Jaguars have a pair of talented pass rushers in Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen but imagine how dominant their rotation would be if they hadn't let Arden Key cross division lines in 2023.

Back when Key was in Jacksonville, Walker was just hitting his stride, so his impact wasn't felt nearly as much. Granted, he might've exaggerated his role in the turnaround the team enjoyed in 2022, but there's no doubt the Jaguars could use him right now. What makes his departure look even worse is that the team's brass gave Arik Armstead a three-year deal worth $43.5 million in free agency to round out their rotation in the edge.

The Jaguars might've just realized how bad of an idea was to bring in Armstead to play on the edge, as they had him line up inside — where he's at his best — in the loss to the Houston Texans in Week 13.

Imagine how much havoc the Jaguars would create in the trenches if they had kept Key and signed Armstead to play on the interior. Heck, just think about how dominant their pass rush would be with Key behind Walker and Hines-Allen. Now, they'll need to think of ways to slow him down when they face the Titans in Week 14.

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