JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Everybody knows it. But none of the new Jaguars wide receivers wanted to talk about it directly.
It, of course, is the Jaguars’ soon-to-be addition of quarterback Trevor Lawrence, whom the Jaguars will almost certainly select with the first pick of the NFL Draft on April 29. When the three receivers--Marvin Jones, Jamal Agnew, and Phillip Dorsett signed with the Jaguars in the early days of free agency this month, they all knew what was to come.
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When I asked Marvin Jones about coming to play for a rookie quarterback, he danced around the topic, while grinning about it. “I feel good about it, but at the same time, we’ll see. We’ll see when it happens and then we can double back and talk about that,” Jones said.
The change for Jones, and to a lesser extent, Agnew, there will be an adjustment going from playing in the same system with Matthew Stafford to playing with a rookie quarterback.
“It can be different, but I think it’s going to be great just because this is my favorite offense that I’ve been in during my career,” Jones said. “The quarterback who comes in here, I’m going to be a tool that he can use, that he can lean on, and the same goes for everybody. I’m definitely excited for the future and excited for what’s going to happen. I’m just excited about this whole opportunity.”
Jones admitted, however, that he’s kept a close eye on the player most likely to be the top pick in the draft, including during the 2019 National Championship game between LSU and Lawrence’s Clemson Tigers.
“We went to the National Championship last year and I’ve watched a little bit of tape. So yeah, [I’m] definitely excited.”
Dorsett is also clearly aware of the likelihood that he will be catching passes from a rookie quarterback in his first year in Jacksonville. As a speed receiver, he’ll be pleased to find out about Lawrence’s arm strength first hand.
“I mean, you look into it, but I guess [it doesn’t] play a big role in it. Because obviously, I don’t make those decisions,” Dorsett said. “But at the end of the day, if you’re a guy who studies the league and studies everything that goes on, like I am, you look at it and you get intrigued. I can’t speak on it that much, but I’ll leave it at that.”
As for Agnew, who has been primarily a returner, but who figures to play some wide receiver in the same system he learned in Detroit under new Jaguars’ offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell.
“I definitely do think I have a good grasp on this offense,” Agnew said. “I had great leaders back in Detroit like Marvin [Jones Jr.], also like Danny Amendola, we had Kenny Golladay, but they kind of showed me the ropes. They taught me the ins and outs of Darrell Bevell’s offense and, like I said, it was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be. So, now I’m very comfortable for some of the younger guys to lean on me.”