The Jacksonville Jaguars are three weeks away from the regular season and seeing national journalist have faith continues to be a rarity. The reason for that seems to be due to the Jags moving on from several veterans this spring to reallocate their salary cap.
However, when looking at how Gardner Minshew II and the passing game have fared in training camp, it appears many should have a glimmer of hope for the Jags to surprise some people. Unfortunately, that’s not the case for NFL Network’s Dan Hanzus as he kept the Jags at the No. 32 spot of his most recent power rankings.
32. Jacksonville Jaguars
Previous rank: No. 32
New coordinator Jay Gruden is running the show on offense in Jacksonville, and it’s fair to say he has some pieces to work with. The addition of talented second-rounder Laviska Shenault Jr. adds more playmaker potential to a solid group of wide receivers that includes DJ Chark, Chris Conley and Dede Westbrook, who all made noise in 2019. Free-agent acquisition Tyler Eifert was one of football’s most productive tight ends before injuries torpedoed his run in Cincinnati. Even Leonard Fournette — bad ankles, bad attitude and all — could stack some numbers in a Gruden offense that loves to feature running backs. The biggest question might be whether Gardner Minshew is an actual solution at quarterback or just a fun guy to have around the building.
The skepticism towards Minshew is understandable, but he may deserve more respect when looking at how he’s fared in training camp. His connection with go-to target D.J. Chark has gotten stronger, while new additions like receivers Laviska Shenault Jr. and Collin Jonson have been impressive, too. Sure, we have to wait to the regular season to see where the Jags truly are at, but they don’t feel like the worst team in football due to the offense.
As for the rest of the AFC South, the Tennessee Titans came in ahead of the rest of the division with the No. 5 spot. The Indianapolis Colts weren’t too far behind, either, coming in at the No. 10 spot. Lastly, the Houston Texans cracked the top half of the power rankings at No. 16.
Of the three, the only team to move from Hanzus’ previous power rankings were the Colts, who fell one spot after previously being ranked ninth.