When looking at the Jacksonville Jaguars’ roster, most would agree that linebacker is a strength of the team. After a 2019 season where the group exited as a weakness of the roster, the Jags front office came into the offseason looking to strengthen the unit, and in the early stages of camp, it appears they may have succeeded.

They started off things by adding veteran Joe Schobert to man the MIKE linebacker position and move Myles Jack where he’s more comfortable: on the weak-side. That killed two birds with one stone, giving the Jags one of the league’s better linebacker duos on paper.

Afterward, they spent a first-round pick on K’Lavon Chaisson in the draft, who will be a part-time linebacker and will battle to start on the strong-side. They also drafted Jacksonville native, Shaq Quarterman, in the fourth-round and added a leader from Central Florida’s defense, Nate Evans, in undrafted free-agency.

When combining those moves with what they already had, the Jags seemingly compiled a young deep group that can spearhead the team into new heights. This was something the group’s leader, Schobert, spoke on in Tuesday’s meeting with the media, stating that he’s been impressed with how quickly the players behind him are picking up things.

Schobert on the young LB’s:

Shaq [Quarterman], Quincy [Williams], Nate Evans, all those guys are a lot better as [young players] than I would’ve expected in this environment because they had no offseason coming in..”

— 𝐏𝐡𝐢𝐥 𝐒𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐡 🎙 (@PhiltheFilipino) August 11, 2020

That certainly should be music to the ears of fans as the Jags will have to start 2020 off strong. The front half of the schedule is going to be the weakest, and if the Jags don’t take advantage of it, their season will pretty much be a wrap.

Fans will get to see what Schobert and company are made of right out of the gate with the Indianapolis Colts coming into town Week 1. The group should expect a big-time challenge from Philip Rivers through the air and tailbacks Marlon Mack and Johnathan Taylor on the ground. However, if the Jags win, the linebackers will play a significant role in a victory, which would be huge for the team’s momentum out of the gate.

Listen to the latest from Jags Wire’s own James Johnson and Phil Smith on their podcast “Bleav in the Jags.” Subscribe via Apple Podcasts and check out our archived episodes via Bleav Podcasts.

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