How Can Darrell Bevell and Brian Schottenheimer Influence the Jaguars' Offense?
The Jacksonville Jaguars will have a new-look offense as they prepare for a rookie quarterback in 2021; an offense that will likely look extremely familiar to NFC West fans.
The Jaguars and new head coach Urban Meyer will reportedly be adding a pair of former Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinators to their staff in Darrell Bevell, who will serve as offensive coordinator, and Brian Schottenheimer, who will be the team's quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator.
With the Jaguars likely to draft Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence at No. 1 overall, Bevell and Schottenheimer's influence can't be undersold. They will be directly in Lawrence's ear over the course of his rookie season and beyond.
To get an idea for what the two bring to the table and what the Jaguars' offense may look like in the fall, we talked to Corbin Smith of Seahawk Maven to discuss the two. What went right and what went wrong in Seattle? How optimistic is he about their moves to Jacksonville? We discuss this all here.
Q: The Jaguars will reportedly have Pete Carroll's last two OCs as their top two offensive assistants in Darrell Bevell (OC) and Brian Schottenheimer (PGC/QB Coach). What was Seattle's offensive identity under each?
Smith: Bevell was at the helm from 2011 to 2017 and guided several of the most prolific offenses in Seahawks franchise history while operating a variation of the West Coast scheme with an emphasis on play-action and running the football. During his time in Seattle, the team finished in the top 10 in scoring four times, including ranking second in the league in 2015 behind a historic hot streak by Russell Wilson in the second half.
For the most part, Schottenheimer adopted Seattle's prior scheme when he replaced Bevell in 2018 and simply added wrinkles from his Air Coryell background, which led to the best seasons of Wilson's career under center, as the gunslinger threw 106 touchdown passes in 48 regular season games with the two paired together. The Seahawks finished in the top 10 in scoring all three seasons and Wilson finished no worse than fifth in the NFL in passing touchdowns in any of the three years Schotty was at the controls.
Q: Why did the Seahawks move on from Schottenheimer after three pretty successful seasons?
Smith: I don't believe Schottenheimer deserved all of the blame for Seattle's second-half regression, but there had to be a scapegoat with how things unraveled. The problem? His attack became predictable to an extent and he wasn't able to make necessary adjustments when opponents took away the deep ball down the stretch. The running game wasn't much of a factor, which had to eat at Pete Carroll. Even when Schottenheimer schemed receivers open in the short-to-intermediate game, Wilson had his share of struggles executing and unloading the football in a timely manner, and there were times where scheming didn't seem to be effective in that regard.
Due to "philosophical differences," Carroll and Schottenheimer decided to part ways, and I believe the biggest root of those issues revolved around Schottenheimer wanting to continue letting Wilson cook and Carroll desiring a return to a more balanced, run-heavy approach.
Q: How much did Schottenheimer's presence benefit Russell Wilson?
Smith: Wilson admitted to reporters that he wasn't on board with Schottenheimer being dismissed last month and looking at his production, it's easy to see why. Again, he had the most productive three-year stretch of his career and he threw a career-high 40 touchdown passes in 2020 despite a rough final two months. He improved dramatically throwing from the pocket under Schotty's tutelage, he seemed to develop a better grasp for reading defenses, and above all else, most of the technical flaws in his throwing form were shored up over the past three years. He's a very good quarterback instructor dating back to his time working with Drew Brees with the Chargers and honestly, he doesn't get near enough credit for somehow running an offense with Mark Sanchez under center that got to back-to-back AFC title games.
Q: Is there any merit to the idea that both Bevell and Schottenheimer could have been restricted to a degree by Carroll?
Smith: I don't know that "restricted" is the right word, but Carroll does have a habit of meddling into offensive affairs. From sources I've spoken to, Bevell was much more willing to roll with what Carroll wanted to do, but Schottenheimer exhibited resistance at times. Most notably, in the wild card game against the Rams last month, Carroll admitted he was "fighting the call" a bit on a key fourth-down situation and even with a player being looked at injured on the field for two minutes, the Seahawks didn't break the huddle until there were only five seconds left on the play clock. Trying to rush the snap, two linemen jumped early and the Seahawks then had to punt as a result. It was a huge storyline in Seattle for a week before Schottenheimer's dismissal and it was the last straw in a relationship that didn't seem to be working anymore because of Carroll's hands-on approach.
Q: What are your thoughts on the Jaguars surrounding Meyer and Lawrence with so many Seahawks coaches?
Smith: It's a bit ironic that both of Seattle's previous two coordinators will now be working collaboratively together, especially since the Seahawks are on the Jaguars' schedule next year. But as far as fit, I think Meyer brought in two solid coaches who bring slightly different offensive mindsets and have lengthy track records working with quality quarterbacks. I believe they will work well together and though it may not be a perfect duo with all things considered, the organization should feel good about having these two coordinators around to help develop Lawrence. I'm particularly high on the Schottenheimer hire, as I think he got a raw deal to an extent and his work with Brees, Sanchez, and Wilson speaks for itself.
