In the wake of a week (and really, an entire tenure) of controversy from head coach Urban Meyer, Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan decided to pull the plug on the experiment with the college legend before the end of his first season. The Jags will close out the year with Darrell Bevell as interim coach before looking to make a full-time hire this offseason.
Jacksonville likely won’t be the only opening, but with a generational talent at quarterback heading into the second year of his rookie deal, there will be a lot about this job that is attractive. Former NFL executive and current ESPN analyst Mike Tannenbaum echoed that sentiment on “Get Up,” stating that the Jags’ opening could be the league’s most attractive this offseason.
“Jacksonville is a historically great opening because of Trevor Lawrence’s contract,” he said. “The day I get that job, I’m getting (star Packers receiver) Davante Adams on the phone, saying ‘congratulations, you’re a Jacksonville Jaguar.’ I am not getting off the phone.”
(Quick correction. Tannenbaum said DJ Chark would be returning, but he’s a free agent in 2022.)
Tannenbaum went further, though. He compared the current situation in Jacksonville to the one that coach Steve Kerr inherited when he took over the NBA’s Golden State Warriors. Kerr has since won three NBA Championships and set a regular-season record with 73 wins.
“This reminds me of when Steve Kerr went to the Warriors and he had the foundation there, they made a couple of tweaks, and the rest is history,” Tannenbaum said. “This is a team that should be in the playoffs next year.”
Tannenbaum’s take drew criticism from his other Get Up co-hosts. Former NFL center Jeff Saturday laughed him off.
“This dude just compared Jacksonville to the Golden State Warriors,” he said. “Man’s high!”
“They’re the worst team in the NFL, Mike,” Mike Greenberg told him.
But Tannenbaum doubled down.
“Trevor Lawrence is a generational talent, and if you surround him with ‘B’ or better players, they could be in the playoffs next year,” he said.
Tannenbaum went on to add that with the lack of state taxes, weather, and other factors, he thinks Jacksonville should be one of if not the top destination in the NFL for free agents. That certainly hasn’t been the case historically, but the team will hope having a potential franchise quarterback in place will help in that regard.
Comparing the Jaguars to the most dominant team in the NBA over the last decade may have been a bit of a reach, but Tannenbaum certainly makes valid points when it comes to the general attractiveness of the opening. The team will hope he’s right and that it can woo a top option to take over Lawrence’s development.