Jaguars Offseason Mailbag: Where Else do the Jaguars Need to Improve?
As the 2020 offseason progresses, JaguarReport will take Jacksonville Jaguars-related questions from social media and give our takes on the most pressing questions fans have about their team.
You can send questions to us this offseason via the JaguarReport Twitter or Facebook accounts.
This week, we take questions on the Jaguars' coaching staff, Colin Kaepernick, Yannick Ngakoue and more.
From @sacksonvilletex : What position group is the deepest? Linebackers or WR?
I would likely lean toward wide receiver since the Jaguars have a group who are mostly coming off of good seasons. The team's linebacker unit is solid in terms of talent and depth with Myles Jack, Joe Schobert, Quincy Williams, Shaquille Quarterman, Leon Jacobs, Cassius Marsh and K'Lavon Chaisson, but a few of these players are either rookies or coming off of down seasons in 2019. The group should be much improved in 2020, but there is still an obstacle here and there to be cleared.
Meanwhile, wide receiver has DJ Chark coming off of a Pro Bowl season in which he recorded over 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns, Chris Conley is coming off the best season of his career and Keelan Cole had a huge bounce-back season in which he became one of the team's best role players. Add experienced slot wide receiver Dede Westbrook and exciting rookie wideout Laviska Shenault and it is a group the Jaguars should be excited about.
From Michael J: How strong is Jacksonville's current group of assistants? They are returning quite a few from the last couple of years.
While Jacksonville will need a few position groups and their coaches to take steps forward this season, such as George Warhop and the offensive line, Ron Middleton and the tight ends and Ben McAdoo and the quarterbacks, Jacksonville does have a number of high-quality assistants. Keenan McCardell is arguably one of the best wide receiver coaches in the entire NFL, while Tim Walton helped the Jaguars find consistency in the secondary despite fluctuations with the lineup last season. Include experienced offensive coordinator Jay Gruden and Jacksonville has a few assistant coaches Doug Marrone can lean on.
From @JQ_RD : Do you think they will expand rosters and practice squads in case of multiple players going in quarantine?
NFL Network's Judy Battista and Mike Garafolo reported earlier this week that the league is considering expanding the practice squad limit from 10 players to 16, which would give teams a lot more flexibility throughout 2020. Considering how much effort the NFL has already put into trying to make a season possible, I would imagine they do everything in their power to give teams the options to field a completely healthy roster once the season does actually get underway.
From Samuel T: Who do the Jaguars need to have a bounce-back year?
The two most obvious answers are left tackle Cam Robinson and outside linebacker Myles Jack. Robinson returned from a 2018 ACL injury in Week 3 last season and once again manned Jacksonville's left tackle position, but the results put forth were likely below what the Jaguars were hoping for. He was still noticeably impactful as a run blocker, but his pass blocking and penalty issues left something to be desired more often than not. Entering a contract season and with Will Richardson likely nipping at his heels on the depth chart, the Jaguars need to find out if Robinson is their long-term blind side answer or not.
As for Jack, he had a two-year tenure at middle linebacker that saw more downs than ups and is now being moved to weak side linebacker in hopes of his natural playmaking ability returning to Jacksonville's defense. With him no longer being responsbile for being the brains of the defense, the idea is he will be freer to make game-changing plays, something the Jaguars have missed from him since the 2017 season ended.
From @SakibHadzic1 : Is Yan still done with the Jags?
So far, there has been little to suggest Yannick Ngakoue and the Jaguars have patched things up. Things have been quiet on that front for the better part of two months, so it is likely safe to assume Ngakoue is still standing firm in his stance against the team in hopes of being traded before the start of the season.
Perhaps what should be most concerning for the Jaguars is the fact that Ngakoue has yet to sign his franchise tag tender after he and the Jaguars failed to agree to a multi-year extension.
In short, there is a July 15 deadline the Jaguars will have to adhere to if they want to maximize their chances to get proper compensation for a young and productive defensive end.
At 4:00 p.m. eastern time on July 15, there is a deadline for any club that designated a franchise tag on a player to sign that player to a multiyear contract or extension. After this date, the player may sign only a one-year contract with his prior club for the 2020 season, and such contract cannot be extended until after the club’s last regular season game.
In summary, the Jaguars, or any other team that trades for Ngakoue, has until July 15 to agree to a long-term deal with Ngakoue. This makes the difference between a team trading for a player they can have secured on the roster for several years versus a team trading for a potential one-year rental.
From @regtwin27: What record would it take this season, to retain the whole front office and coaching staff for another year?
I think the Jaguars would need to be at least 8-8 in hopes of retaining the front office and coaching staff. Jacksonville has gone 11-21 in the last two seasons and finished in last place of the AFC South in each year, finishing no better than 6-10 in any season in the process. Getting to .500 would go a long way toward the Jaguars back on track, even if it isn't the winning record many would hope for. Considering the youth of the roster and all of the key players who left this offseason, I think the team would consider 8-8 a reasonable result.