An under-the-radar move made by the Jacksonville Jaguars this offseason was acquiring quarterback Mac Jones from the New England Patriots. A first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft out of Alabama, he never lived up to expectations with the Patriots.
With the Jaguars, he will be taking over as the No. 2 behind Trevor Lawrence. It was a good move by Jacksonville, as we saw how important quarterback depth was during the 2023 season.
A ridiculous number of starting quarterbacks went down with injuries. The teams who were able to stay afloat were the ones who had solid contingency plans in place.
The Cleveland Browns started five different quarterbacks yet still made the postseason. The New York Jets started four but crumbled without Aaron Rodgers.
Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report believes that Jones could be on the move again for that same reason. A team that suffers a loss at quarterback could make a call to the Jaguars about their backup.
Jones was excellent during the preseason, completing 38-of-52 passes for 421 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. That performance, albeit against backups, should put Jones on the radar of teams seeking a quarterback upgrade during the season.
“…Obviously the level of competition drops in the exhibition games, but head coach Doug Pederson praised him for buying into the way they do things in Jacksonville and picking up the offense.
Those qualities, combined with his first-round pedigree, could be enough to force a team with a major quarterback injury to call the Jags and ask what their price would be for Jones,” Ballentine wrote.
A 2024 sixth-round pick was traded to the Patriots by Jacksonville to acquire Jones. If a team comes offering more than that, the Jaguars could very well pull the trigger.
Having an insurance plan such as Jones behind Lawrence would be nice, but the Clemson product has proved to be durable throughout his NFL career. He has missed only one contest, which could lessen the need for a top-notch backup.
The Alabama product isn’t going to supplant Lawrence as the Jacksonville Jaguars’ starter, so flipping him for some value and replacing the sixth-round pick they traded away would be a win.
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