Urban Meyer Will Need a Good GM Partner in Jacksonville

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Thursday morning introduced information that the sight of City Meyer on an NFL sideline is now one we should get used to. Because the nation blinked the sleep out of its eyes, stories rolled in that Meyer and the Jacksonville Jaguars are finalizing a dealt that may make him the following head coach of the group.

Meyer will be the latest college coach to make the leap to the pros, and positively essentially the most notable one to take action in current historical past. A coach with this sort of resume hasn’t tried his hand within the NFL since Nick Saban’s failed experiment with the Miami Dolphins. It is a huge threat for Meyer so far as his legacy goes, however he will certainly be well-compensated and Jacksonville is nearly as good of a Sq. One to start out at as any as holders of the No. 1 general choose on this yr’s draft.

In pursuing Meyer, the Jaguars have opted to go down the trail of hiring a coach after which collaborating with him on who to rent as common supervisor. It’s not a giant stretch to say that the GM rent will likely be equally as necessary as the top coach rent, even with a giant model identify like Meyer.

The franchise will not have any arguments about who to take with that prime choose, clearly. Trevor Lawrence is essentially the most coveted QB prospect to return round in a decade and will likely be in a Jaguars uniform come September 2021 (unless they get weird and offer up the top spot for Deshaun Watson). However Jacksonville has many different choices to make that may set the inspiration for Meyer’s tenure as head coach and largely decide how Lawrence’s early profession will go.

The Jags have some fairly good items to work with already. James Robinson was a revelation as an undrafted rookie working again this yr, D.J. Chark and Lavishka Shenault are good playmakers for Lawrence to throw to, and Cam Robinson was rock-solid as a blindside protector in 2020. On the opposite aspect of the ball, Josh Allen appears like a cornerstone edgerusher to construct round.

That is nonetheless, nevertheless, a group that went 1-15 final yr. That is why an ideal personnel man will likely be wanted to assist Meyer usher in a brand new period of Jags soccer. Whomever will probably be may have the assets to overtake this group. Together with their very own draft picks, they personal the Rams’ first and fourth-round picks, the Vikings’ second-round choose, and the Browns’ fifth-round choose. The group’s firesale of its 2017 AFC Championship look is paying off this yr. On prime of all of that, Jacksonville is predicted to have $75 million in cap area this offseason.

They are going to want each little bit of assist to offer Lawrence a preventing probability in his first season as starter and Meyer in his first season as head coach. A extra rounded-out offensive line, a pass-rushing associate for Allen, and any assist in any respect within the secondary will likely be prime priorities. This offseason presents their greatest probability to do all that. And they are going to be sunk for years in the event that they blow it. The Jags can outbid anyone this offseason, but when these signings do not pan out, that cap area is gone. Buying and selling abilities like Jalen Ramsey and Yannick Ngakoue will likely be for naught if they do not hit on the picks they obtained in return.

Hiring Meyer was the first step. Jacksonville has a well-known and profitable coach to tutor their franchise quarterback. Step two is equally as necessary. Hiring a superb personnel man to capitalize on the alternatives the 2021 offseason will current is crucial. As a result of in the event that they fumble it, the Meyer-Lawrence experiment might not final very lengthy in any respect.