2019 NFL Power Rankings: Who heads into summer at No. 1?
By Ian Cummings
No. 31 – Jacksonville Jaguars
What a swift and unforgiving fall it’s been for the Jacksonville Jaguars, who won ten games and two playoff games in 2017, only to stumble to a 5-11 record in 2018.
The causation of this collapse? Hope. Or, more accurately, false hope. The false hope that Blake Bortles could be the franchise quarterback the team needed. The false hope that the defense could sustain its elite-caliber play. The false hope that the AFC South could give them as much help as it did in 2017. And the false hope that an outdated offensive philosophy could succeed in the modern NFL.
Now, in 2018, the Jaguars have traded false hope for no hope at all. The team spent $88 million on journeyman quarterback Nick Foles, and now they may not be able to pay high-demand defensive stars in the future. Several such stars have already spoken openly about leaving to pursue more money. One of the team’s best linebackers, Telvin Smith, is stepping away from football in 2019, making a fading defense fade with a quickening pace.
On offense, the Jaguars have some limited sparks; their receiving core is intriguing, and Foles, when reunited with John DeFilippo, could have a quick transition. But there’s nothing there to suggest that the offense will be able to carry the weight of an unpredictable defense. DeFilippo was fired from the Vikings last year, throwing into question whether he, or Colts head coach Frank Reich, was more instrumental in the Eagles’ 2017 Super Bowl run.
The Jaguars have the talent to exceed this ranking, but their coaching situation with Doug Marrone casts a shadow over their upside, and there are questions as to whether Nick Foles’ recent, and limited, playoff success will translate to a full sixteen-game slate. The rest of his career provides a greater sample size, and that career displays him as inconsistent, even with his supporting cast in 2017. And in today’s NFL, inconsistent might as well be inert.