Gladstone: New Jaguars Free Agent Owns ‘Insanely Rare’ Trait

Picture a switch-hitting Shohei Ohtani who can throw fastballs either left- or right-handed. Now, make him 6-foot-4 and 305 pounds. That’s baseball’s offensive-line equivalent of Patrick Mekari, who joined the Jaguars as a free agent this week.

“That was insanely rare,” new Jacksonville general manager James Gladstone said Thursday, referring to Mekari’s ability to start at all five offensive-line positions. “I don’t know that that’s something that typically comes up on the market at a cost point that’s affordable enough to pursue.”

That cost point was a three-year deal worth $37.5 million with a maximum value of $39 million. And it goes to a player who helped Baltimore earn five playoff berths in his six NFL seasons. He’s now ready to team up with fellow free agent Robert Hainsey help Jacksonville get there wherever the Jaguars slot him.

“I'm comfortable anywhere,” said Mekari, whose last name is pronounced muh-care-ee. “I believe they brought me in here to play guard but I just want to want to win and contribute.

“I take pride in understanding the game and understanding the technique, but when I go out there, I'm just a football player and I'm an offensive lineman, whether that's center, guard or tackle.”

In 2019 when MVP Lamar Jackson and the Ravens needed a center in Week 13 to replace injured starter Matt Skura, Mekari stepped forward. It was a bold move for an undrafted rookie, who hadn’t started at center since his days at Westlake High School in Thousand Oaks, Calif. The first offensive player to touch the ball in each of Baltimore’s final six games, he helped the Ravens earn the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs.

In 2020, he started Ravens games at right guard and center, then started most of the 2021 season at right tackle. From 2022-23, he split time between right and left tackle, filling in for an injured Ronnie Stanley on the blindside. Last year in front of Derrick Henry, Mekari started all 17 games – three at right tackle and 14 at left guard.

He’s even started as a sixth offensive lineman in Ravens’ jumbo formations. And don’t ever expect him to take anything for granted.

“Patrick is somebody who wasn’t offered the opportunity or the backdrop of being a draft pick coming out,” Gladstone said. “He’s earned everything he's gotten, and he earned this opportunity.

“Obviously, there’s always attrition on the offensive line throughout the course of the season … He’ll allow us a lot of flexibility on the offensive side of the ball to feel like we’re never in a bind because we can move him around if necessary. But at the same time, he’s going to be slotted in as a starter on the interior of our offensive line at this point.”

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