Why the Jaguars Conducting Due Diligence at QB Means Nothing More
Every year around this time the same thing seems to occur. The presumptive number one pick in the NFL Draft becomes anything but. Reports start popping up regularly citing the team holding the top pick could be looking in a different direction.
This year is no different. Even with what is considered a once-in-a-generation prospect and a lock for the number one pick in Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence, social media quarterback rankings and a recent report from Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk have fueled outside speculation.
According to Florio, the Jaguars have conducted two of the maximum five zoom interviews allotted for any prospect with BYU quarterback Zach Wilson. Furthermore, new Jaguars QB coach Brian Schottenheimer spent time last week talking with former BYU QB and Wilson’s trainer John Beck about the Cougar standout.
In today’s world of over-analyzing nearly everything, this report seemed to cast a shadow of doubt over the top pick, and that is simply not the case whatsoever. Schottenheimer was hired to do a job and he’s doing it. It’s called due diligence.
NBC Sports’ Peter King sat down with Florio and discussed Wilson and the Jaguars' interviews with him and shed some light on the doubt.
“The Jacksonville Jaguars have already had two Zoom sessions with Zach Wilson,” King said. “Now, I don’t want that to be, you know, I don’t want you to say, ‘Whoa what does that mean?’ Because they’ve also had two with Justin Fields.
“And they’ve had, I’m sure, at least that many with Trevor Lawrence. I still think Mike, it’s highly, highly doubtful that they don’t pick Trevor Lawrence.”
Some may see it as a waste of time to interview other prospects if they are just going to take Lawrence with the top pick, and it’s a valid point. Why look at a great Mustang when you know you have a Ferrari coming?
The answer is simple. Why not? These coaches look at everything equally. They aren’t listening and reading what those outside of the game are saying. They have a process of evaluating players and the only way to do that well is grading, interviewing, and doing the due diligence on every top prospect.
The Indianapolis Colts simply didn’t sit back in their offices for four months in 2012 not doing any work while waiting for draft day to show up so they could just hand the card up with Andrew Luck’s name on it.
The Colts actually sent more scouts to Robert Griffin III’s pro day at Baylor than Luck’s pro day at Stanford according to NFL.com. It never meant they weren’t sold on Luck or they weren’t going to pass on him.
All the interviews the Jaguars have done with Wilson and Fields indicate is they aren’t satisfied with just sitting back and listening to what everyone has said for three years about Lawrence.
It doesn’t mean they aren’t sold on him. In all likelihood, they have interviewed Lawrence just as much, if not more times than they have any other prospect. We saw what head coach Urban Meyer did at Lawrence’s pro day not only as it happened, but also in putting it together.
Every conversation, piece of film and phone call is a chance to learn about a player and get better at their evaluation process. And if what Meyer has said up to his point is any indication this staff is not going to leave any stone unturned. They are committed to being as close to perfect as possible.
"I mean, that's -- we can't miss on this. I mean, you've heard, what I just said to you, I've said it to our staff 500 times already. We cannot miss," Meyer told NFL Network after Lawrence's Pro Day.
