The NFL’s 2021 trade deadline has passed, and like many teams, the Jacksonville Jaguars elected not to make any moves. With that being the case, the 1-6 Jags will look to get what they can out of their current roster with 10 games remaining.
If the team was going to make a move it appeared that it would be at receiver, a position that Urban Meyer spoke on last week. However, the team came away from Tuesday’s deadline without buying or selling this week.
“I think last March we had the conversation,” he said. “Well (the number one thing that I remember (Bengals QB) Joe Burrow and (Passing Game Coordinator Brian) Schottenheimer and (Offensive Coordinator Darrell) Bevell, we just had the conversation [that] you have to get a good run game and right now we’re starting to play a little bit. James (Robinson) is really playing well and our offensive line’s playing well. That’s why we got (Chris) Manhertz, that’s why we got Luke (Farrell), Carlos (Hyde). And the other thing, our offensive line, to this point, has kept them upright. The thing we don’t have is when DJ (Chark Jr.) went down, do we have that home run hitter on the outside? I think Laviska (Shenault Jr.)’s playing very well. Marvin (Jones Jr.)’s playing really well. We’re just one speed guy short. It might be (Jamal) Agnew, maybe it’s Tyron [Johnson], maybe it’s something else.”
It’s unclear if the Jags got into serious negotiations with a team for a receiver or any other players, but Meyer did say the phone was “buzzing” last week. Then again, it may be possible that a deal that made sense for the front office simply never presented itself.
Overall, when looking at the offseason and regular season as a whole, the Jags were more active in shipping players away. They parted ways with notables like cornerbacks CJ Henderson, Sidney Jones IV, and Josiah Scott, as well as quarterback Gardner Minshew II. In return, they received a lot of late-round compensation, a third-round pick (from the Henderson deal), cornerback Jameson Houston (no longer on the team), and tight end Dan Arnold (also from the Henderson deal).
Without any upgrades being made these last few weeks, the Jags (regardless of who is running the show) are on track to have a lot of needs in 2022, especially if they don’t get more out of the rookie and free-agent classes from this offseason. Only the future will tell what happens past this point, but the best-case scenario is for the current roster to show improvement and go into next offseason with fewer questions than expected.