Today we are continuing our 4-EYED TEAM PREVIEW SERIES and we are covering the Jacksonville Jaguars of the AFC South! This morning we’re talking offense and later today we’ll be releasing our IDP outlook, so stay tuned!
The Trevor Lawrence era is beginning in Jacksonville as the former Clemson Tiger was drafted 1st overall by the team in the 2021 NFL Draft. While Lawrence wasn’t a surprise, when the Jaguars were back on the clock in the first they paired up Lawrence with his college teammate, running back, Travis Etienne. In free agency, the Jaguars brought in fantasy-relevant Marvin Jones Jr. and the Jaguars are hopeful these new pieces can help them improve on their 2020 record of 1-15.
So, who are the players from the Jaguars’ offense that can help you win a fantasy championship in 2021?
Find out below in our 2021 Jaguars Offensive 4-EYED Team Preview!
Quarterback
Trevor Lawrence
Lawrence was a three-year player at Clemson University and wasted no time getting started and showing that he was going to be dominant. In his freshman season in 2018, Lawrence threw for 3,280 yards, 30 touchdowns, and four interceptions. He followed that up in 2019 with 3,665 yards passing, 36 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. This second season is really where Lawrence showed that he should be taken seriously as a dual-threat as he ran the ball 103 times for 563 yards and he had an additional nine touchdowns. Lawrence never was able to secure the Heisman trophy, but he did help Clemson win the national championship his freshman year. While rookie quarterbacks don’t usually retain value in re-draft leagues, Lawrence could be a nice streaming option if he can get off to a hot start for the Jaguars under new head coach Urban Meyer.
Running Backs
Travis Etienne
Etienne’s Clemson career numbers are a little insane when you look at them grouped together. In his four years as a Tiger, Etienne ran the ball 686 times for 4,952 yards and 70 rushing touchdowns. He had an additional 1,155 yards and eight touchdowns in the receiving game. I truly can’t figure out which statistic of his is the most impressive, but I think it is going to be his touchdown consistency. His freshman year he had (only) 13 rushing touchdowns and that was the fewest he had in a season at Clemson. Urban Meyer has come out and said that he sees Etienne as just their third-down back, but with the talent he has as well as the flexibility he brings to the offense, he will be on the field more than we think.
James Robinson
The biggest hit when Etienne was drafted came to James Robinson. Robinson was an undrafted free agent signing by the Jaguars last season, and he was one of the lone bright spots of that 1-15 Jaguars team. Robinson finished as the RB7 in half PPR scoring with over 1,000 yards rushing, seven touchdowns, and then 49 receptions for 344 yards, and three touchdowns. The hype for Robinson was short-lived with the addition of Etienne, but he still figures to have some type of role on this team. The Jaguars are a good team to keep an eye on during the preseason to see how Meyer uses these two running backs. Currently, Etienne is being drafted as the RB31 with Robinson being drafted as the RB23. Hopefully, Robinson can be the bell-cow running back with Etienne being the receiving back and they both can retain fantasy value. Only time will tell though so be wary with this backfield.
Wide Receivers (the Jr.s)
DJ Chark Jr.
Chark Jr. finished as the WR49 in fantasy last year as he couldn’t ever really get going with the quarterback rotation that the Jaguars deployed. Chark had the targets, but not the receptions as he only caught 57 percent of the passes which is concerning. Sure, you have to call into question the quality of the targets he was receiving, but you still think that he would’ve come down with more. Even though he is the longest-tenured receiver for the Jaguars out of this trio, he is the one that I think gets left behind this year, because the next two are going to be ready to jump to that next level.
Marvin Jones Jr.
Jones Jr. finished as the WR17 in fantasy last year and he did it on a bad Detroit Lions team. He has shown that fantasy relevance can come to those on bad teams which bodes well for his new home. Finishing as a WR2 last season is a good place for Jones because he does a lot of things well, but nothing great when it comes to other wide receivers in the league. For instance, among the 31 wide receivers that had at least 101 targets last season, Jones ranked 21st in receiving percentage, 12th in yards per reception, and 18th in receiving yards. Being drafted as the WR54, Jones is set up to annihilate this mark and bring immense value to your lineups.
Laviska Shenault Jr.
Shenault Jr. was a second-round pick for the Jaguars in the 2020 NFL draft and had a solid rookie season that has fantasy players excited for a breakout. Even though it was the final two years of the season, Shenault was the WR10 between Weeks 16 and 17 in 2020. His rookie season saw him play in 14 games where he saw 79 targets and had 58 receptions for 600 yards and five touchdowns. The Jaguars also liked to get a little fancy with their playcalling with Shenault because he had 18 rushes for 91 yards, although he didn’t find the endzone. The hype is there for Shenault and he is the second Jaguars receiver I would want to roster behind Jones.
Tight End?
Tim Tebow
This is sort of a joke because I don’t have any faith in Chris Manhertz, James O’Shaughnessy, or Luke Farrell who are all listed ahead of Tebow on the depth chart, so why not. There isn’t really any fantasy relevance here, but wouldn’t it be awesome to watch Twitter burn if Tebow caught a touchdown?
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