The Jacksonville Jaguars got a great deal of production out of their 2019 draft class, and there are several players from the unit who could be big-time contributors in 2020.
Of course, first-round pick Josh Allen is set to be a starter with Yannick Ngakoue looking to possibly hold out. Meanwhile, on offense, tackle Jawaan Taylor and Gardner Minshew II will be second-year starters, too. Third-round pick and tight end Josh Oliver will be returning from injured reserve and will have a chip on his shoulder, although he likely won’t start.
Typically, most would want the quarterback (in this case Minshew) to be the obvious answer, but it isn’t that easy because Allen had a great rookie campaign. He was able to break the Jags’ rookie sack record with 10.5 sacks and go to the Pro Bowl. The astonishing part of that was the fact that he only started in four games and is still learning the game. As previously mentioned, his chances to start now look good and with more snaps could come more production.
Minshew, on the other hand, started in 12 games. Like Allen, he has the potential to start in all 16 games if healthy, which means he’ll surpass his 2019 stats where he completed 60.6% of his passes (285-of-470) for 3,271 passing yards, 21 touchdowns, and six picks. Like Allen, those figures put him in the Jags’ book for the rookie record in passing yards and touchdown passes.
Of the aforementioned names, Taylor may be the dark horse to have the best season, but for that to happen, it would probably mean Minshew didn’t fare well in 2020. Taylor struggled with penalties early in the season but got the issue cleaned up during the last quarter and showed great promise. He’ll be looking to continue that progress in 2020, and practicing against Allen frequently this offseason could help him to take that step.
Who do you think will have the best second year of the aforementioned names? Let us know in the poll below.
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