The Jacksonville Jaguars were one of the pleasant surprises of the 2022 season. The run that they went on at the end of the regular season to steal the AFC South division title away from the Tennessee Titans was very impressive. Their improbable comeback against the Los Angeles Chargers during Super Wild Card Weekend and a strong performance against the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round provides a lot of optimism going forward.
Given the state of the rest of their division, the Jaguars are in a great spot. The Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts are in rebuilds potentially with rookie quarterbacks. The Titans look like they are also heading toward a rebuild given the moves they made this offseason.
Jacksonville is in great shape but shouldn’t rest on its laurels. Having a burgeoning star in Trevor Lawrence at quarterback and on a rookie deal, this is the time to be aggressive in making moves to upgrade the roster.
Offensively, the Jaguars have done a great job. A shrewd trade for Calvin Ridley last season will pay dividends this season, adding him to an offensive playmakers group of Christian Kirk, Zay Jones, Travis Etienne and Evan Engram.
Defensively, it is time for the front office to do the same with 2022 No. 1 pick, Travon Walker and Josh Allen. Both are young building blocks and adding some pieces around them will not only help their development but improve the team’s production.
In need of some pass-rushing help, the Jaguars can place a call to the Texans to see if they would be willing to make a deal centered around defensive end Jerry Hughes. The 13-year veteran could prefer to play for a potential contender instead of playing out the end of his career with the rebuilding Texans.
Coming off of a 9.0 sack season in his first in Houston, Hughes would be a great addition to a team that had only 35 sacks last season. With 10 tackles for loss and 10 quarterback hits, Hughes can still get after the quarterback with success even at 34 years old.
What could a trade between the Jaguars and Texans look like? Jacksonville can offer one of the two fourth-round picks they own in exchange for the veteran pass rusher. That is the same deal that the Chicago Bears made with the Philadelphia Eagles ahead of the trade deadline in exchange for Robert Quinn.
Quinn had an 18.5 sack season in 2021 with the Bears before struggling in 2022. Hughes played at a high level in 2022 and would be a nice boost for the Jaguars’ defensive front as a bookend to Allen.
More must-reads: