This is not a guarantee with 2 games left in the 2020 regular season but the Jaguars are in a great position to get themselves an elite quarterback for the next 5 to 10 years. The most anticipated NFL draft prospect has become available and the Jacksonville Jaguars sit with the #1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. In all my years of growing up in Jacksonville and seeing the horrible production on the field, the Jags have never been bad enough for the top draft pick.
If your were to say that the Jaguars would have the top pick in the 2021 NFL Draft after the 2017 Jags got as far as the AFC Championship game with a very young team I would have laughed. Blake Bortles had shown moments of growth in that year and the players looked geared to rebound and make another run at the Super Bowl. The wrench that nobody saw being thrown into the new machine was Tom Coughlin returning to the franchise he help get off the ground. Tom was given the position of President of the Jaguars. Some inside the Jags organization thought he would be the missing tool to get them past the New England Patriots once and for all. Coughlin is one of the few coaches to beat Bill Belichick and Tom Brady in a Super Bowl and the only one to do it twice.
Sadly, Coughlin old school approach clashed with the young stars of the Jags and the house of Jax immediately came crumbling down. Now, fast forward to 2021 after a few big trades, retirements, and departures the Jaguars are back where they started but with experience this time. The missing piece the Jags thought they had was a quarterback. Blake Bortles was a serviceable quarterback, but he wasn’t the guy that could put the final dagger into an opponent and that is what the Jags need. So re-tooling the shed with young talent like how the 2017 team was assembled, but with a generational talent like Trevor Lawrence.
The Jags are in a great position this off-season to draft well with 11 picks and sign some quality veterans on the offensive line with the $100 million in cap space (The largest in the NFL). The Jags are a small market franchise with the potential to grow with the city it is in. Jacksonville, FL is one of the fastest rising cities in America which bolds well for a team who can fill out a stadium when they are winning. These attributes are very important seeing that the Jags are expected to move on from Head Coach Doug Marrone and bring in a new General Manager. The ideal coach would be someone who could develop Trevor Lawrence and get the most out of the offense.
Who would be the best fit for the Jaguars? I have no idea, but whoever it is that takes on the Jaguar job are in a great position to succeed in the long-term.