4 Takeaways on the Jaguars Waiving RB Ryquell Armstead
The Jacksonville Jaguars made a notable roster move on Monday afternoon, waiving third-year running back and former fifth-round pick Ryquell Armstead.
Once seen as a potential candidate to be Jacksonville's No. 1 running back, Armstead's time as a Jaguar has drawn to a close following a rookie year filled with flashes and a 2020 season that was taken away from him.
What does Armstead's release mean moving forward and what do we make of the move? We offer a few thoughts below.
Few players were hit with tougher breaks in 2020 than Armstead
The entire world dealt with negative consequences and fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, including countless players throughout the NFL. But few players had their entire seasons taken away as a result of the pandemic like Armstead. Yes, many opted out, but Armstead didn't. He was set on playing the 2020 season. But ultimately Armstead landed on the Reserve/COVID-19 twice before Week 1. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in October that Armstead would miss his entire sophomore season due to complications from COVID-19.
Armstead had a genuine chance to take over for Leonard Fournette following his release before Week 1, but he was never able to take the field and earn his spot in the Jaguars' offense in 2020 and beyond. The entire NFL went through struggles in 2020, but Armstead more or less had his entire Jaguars' tenure ended before it even began due to the coronavirus. That is a terribly tough break that is to no fault of Armstead's. Hopefully he can get a second chance, because his first one was unfairly taken away from him.
Armstead was always the most likely running back to be on the bubble due to regime change, skillset
It was always tough to imagine Armstead would make Jacksonville's roster in 2020, even before the Jaguars signed Carlos Hyde in free agency and drafted Travis Etienne with the No. 25 overall pick. When looking at factors such as skillset, fit in offense, and the new regime change, Armstead was always on the outside looking in.
Armstead was a valuable receiving threat as a rookie, but he isn't a speed back like Devine Ozigbo or Nathan Cottrell and he doesn't have the special teams ability of Dare Ogunbowale. The Jaguars' are placing a clear emphasis on speed and explosiveness and special teams value, areas that Armstead just comes up short in compared to the other backs on the roster. Plus, the entire coaching staff and front office staff who drafted him and developed him in 2019 are now gone, so the Jaguars didn't have to factor in his status as a former draft pick.
Open roster spot could potentially be filled by Tim Tebow -- or another tight end
With the release of Armstead, the Jaguars now have 89 players on their roster and no corresponding move has yet been made (all draft picks and undrafted rookies count toward the roster total in this scenario). That means the Jaguars can add one more player to hit their 90-man roster limit. The obvious candidate to fill that role is Tim Tebow, the former Florida Gators and Denver Broncos quarterback. Tebow has tried out for the Jaguars as a tight end, which is inarguably the weakest position on the roster both in terms of depth and sheer talent.
“I’ve leaned on my staff for that, and I imagine a decision is going to be soon. We wanted to have them, because I have a new tight end coach as well, watch a guy like Luke [Farrell] and just get a feel for it because they’re the ones who put him through a tryout a couple times and see if he can help us win," Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer said on Saturday. "We have not had that — I imagine Sunday, we’ll come in — all our focus is on the guys right now, and then we’ll have a chat Sunday.”
If the Jaguars were to go a non-Tebow route, which would be a bit surprising at this point, they could always bring in another tight end to fill that roster spot. The Jaguars have only five tight ends on the roster currently, which seems a bit low for a 90-man roster in mid-May. Either way, my guess is this spot goes to a tight end.
Release of Armstead is the latest hit for a 2019 draft class that has quickly fallen apart
In the weeks following the 2019 season, the Jacksonville Jaguars were lauded as a team that had an excellent draft. Josh Allen and Jawaan Taylor were two of the best rookies at their positions, while Quincy Williams got plenty of playing time, Gardner Minshew won six games as a starter, and Armstead flashed serious potential as a No. 2 running back. But fast forward two years and the class has fallen on tough times.
The third player drafted by the Jaguars in 2019, Josh Oliver, played just four games as a Jaguar and was traded in March for a conditional 2022 seventh-round pick. Armstead, the fifth player picked, has been released and so has Dontavius Russell, the Jaguars' final pick in the seven-player draft class. Meanwhile, Quincy Williams and Gardner Minshew have to fight to remain on the roster, while Jawaan Taylor has been a disappointment through two seasons. If it wasn't for Josh Allen, this class could look even worse.
