A quarterback is where it begins and ends for most NFL franchises. Most teams get the quarterback they want and try to build a team around to make him the “franchise” guy. Geno Smith should be that guy for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Jacksonville is coming off its worst season in franchise history, a 2-14 campaign that has brought about many changes to the Jaguars organization. The team has a new general manager in Dave Caldwell and a new head coach with Gus Bradley. There is already a new logo and a new uniform is expected to be unveiled soon.
Everything with the organization is new and there is a fresh feeling among the fans to look toward the future and be proud of it. The only thing that is missing is a fresh player to be that guy to lead the Jaguars into the future.
The Jaguars pick second overall in the 2013 draft so they have many options with what they want to do. They will most likely have the chance to draft any quarterback they want as Kansas City, with the number one pick, will probably go elsewhere having picked up Alex Smith in a trade with San Francisco.
At 6’3” and 208lbs, Geno Smith may be the best quarterback in this draft and the Jaguars should not let him get by. He is a three-year starting quarterback, has played in 31 career games and started 26 straight. Blaine Gabbert and Chad Henne are serviceable starters in the NFL but neither seem to be the type of quarterbacks to build a team around. Smith brings a great amount of skill and excitement that can help Jaguars fans become more excited about their team on Sunday afternoons.
It does not take a lot of backtracking to see what picking a quarterback early in the draft can do for a team. Just look at last year’s 2012 draft when Andrew Luck went to the Indianapolis Colts with the first pick and Robert Griffin III went to Washington with the second pick. Both teams ended up making the playoffs in 2012 in large part due to the play of their new quarterbacks.
That’s not to say that Smith would get the Jaguars to the playoffs but he could be the big piece this team builds around to get back into the postseason. Smith showed improvement every year in his career at West Virginia which shows the ability to adapt and learn as a player. He is also the most accurate quarterback compared to the other big name quarterbacks in the draft this year. On top of that he is very mobile, running the fastest 40-yard dash time out of quarterbacks at the scouting combine.
Smith did benefit from a good receiving corps in college, led by Tavon Austin who should also be picked in the first round. Jacksonville has their own talent at wide receiver with Justin Blackmon, who showed improvement later on in the 2012 season, and Cecil Shorts III, who broke out as a deep threat last season.
There are some criticisms of the West Virginia quarterback though. One thing that many people point out is that a lot of his completions were screen passes which inflate his completion percentage. Also, he did not throw the deep ball very often in college. While these flaws are there and can’t be ignored the positives that are there seem to make it worth the second overall selection in the draft.
Jacksonville also has to wrestle with what happens if they don’t pick Geno Smith. Smith won’t be there in the second round and a couple other quarterbacks may be off the board as well. There might be a quarterback in the draft later on that could turn out like Russell Wilson for Seattle last season, but why should Jacksonville take the risk when Smith could fall in their lap early on?
In order for the Jaguars to continue their fresh start they now must get the quarterback for the future. With Geno Smith there at the second selection Jacksonville has their guy.
