Jaguars are in full rebuild mode, which is the smartest thing they can do

The Jacksonville Jaguars can no longer deny they aren’t in rebuild mode.

With their latest roster moves, the Jacksonville Jaguars have wisely entered a rebuilding phase.

It has been a yard sale of an offseason for the Jaguars. Calais Campbell plays for the Baltimore Ravens. A.J. Bouye is now on the Denver Broncos. If we take it back to last fall, Jalen Ramsey stars for the Los Angeles Rams. But with Yannick Ngakoue being traded to the Minnesota Vikings and Leonard Fournette being released, the Jaguars are now unequivocally the worst team in the NFL.

Embracing the rebuilding process is the best step forward for the Jaguars.

There is still talent on this team, albeit not much. Myles Jack plays in the middle of this defense. D.J. Chark shows promise at wide receiver. Joe Schobert could be the next Paul Posluszny at linebacker. Andrew Norwell is still getting paid. And let’s not forget about the 21st century version of “Snake” Kenny Stabler Gardner Minshew shaking down Duval like it’s 1979 at quarterback.

So even on the perceived worst team in football, there are solid players to be had. However, anything short of a top-two pick will be a triumphant and embarrassing failure for London’s Finest. Minshew Mania was cool and we’d love to see it again, but he’s never going to be Trevor Lawrence or Justin Fields, the two quarterbacks who have a chance to keep this team in Duval.

While owner Shahid Khan might like general manager David Caldwell personally, this has to be his last season wasting one first pick after another as the leading voice in the Jaguars’ war room. He cannot be trusted to pick between two blue-chip prospects like Lawrence or Fields because he’s going to somehow find a way to screw it up. Past performance indicates future success, or failure.

Though Doug Marrone will get the short end of the stick this year, he’s a former offensive lineman tough enough to handle what will surely be a joyless slog of a football season. Again, Khan may like the guy personally, but it’ll be especially hard for Marrone to keep his job after going 2-14 and clinching the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. It’s not fair, but life’s not fair and it never will be.

Khan has to understand one thing and only one thing: This is his last rebuilding project in Jacksonville. For as much as we loved the 2017 Sacksonville defense, it feels more like a dream at this point than it actually even happened. Despite being in Florida, Jacksonville is one of the smaller media markets in the NFL and the Jaguars need a savior to keep them in North Florida.

The best way for them to do this is to draft Lawrence or Fields atop the 2021 NFL Draft. Lawrence could be the next John Elway. Fields could be the next Steve Young. Those are two of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, and that’s the type of player it will take to keep this franchise alive on the Banks of the St. Johns. Can either do what Peyton Manning did for the Indianapolis Colts?

Even though the Jaguars tend to beat themselves more than they win, people do have a ton of respect for Khan as an owner. Having no state income tax is also a big advantage Jacksonville has in its back pocket for negotiating purposes. So armed with the No. 1 pick potentially and a complete reset, you better believe the Jaguars will attract top front office and coaching talent.

Who wouldn’t want to build a team from the ground up with the likes of Lawrence or Fields as the face of your franchise? Being able to hitch your coaching wagon to either Lawrence or Fields might entice some of the best coaches at the college level to take their talents to the NFL. We’re clearly looking at you, Dabo Swinney, Lincoln Riley and Ryan Day. So it’s not that bad to be the Jaguars.

As with the 2019 Miami Dolphins, the Jaguars don’t need to tank. Expect the players on the 2020 Jaguars to play hard and for Marrone and his staff to coach up his player as best as he can. If they end up being the worst team in the league, there’s an opportunity to become relevant again, just like Joe Burrow is doing with the Cincinnati Bengals and Kyler Murray is with the Arizona Cardinals.

The Jaguars will be terrible this season, but this may set them up for a bright future tomorrow.