Why the Jaguars Should Shy Away From a Paul Richardson and Jay Gruden Reunion
Whenever a team hires a new offensive coordinator to come into town and implement his own philosophies, schemes, and preferable player archetypes, it makes sense to connect dots to former players of theirs. Such is the case with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Jay Gruden.
Gruden was the offensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals for three seasons and the head coach for the Washington Redskins for over five seasons, so there are countless offensive players he has coached throughout the league that he can be connected to. Recently, some of those players have hit the open market and are free to sign with the Jaguars or any other team.
Among those players is wide receiver Paul Richardson, who Washington released yesterday after the veteran had spent two seasons with the team. Richardson was a big-money free agent signing by Gruden and Washington in 2018, but he never gained footing with the team, and he ended up departing shortly after Gruden.
With the Jaguars having a serious need at wide receiver behind DJ Chark and Richardson's history with Gruden, would it make sense for the Jaguars to facilitate a reunion of shorts with the seventh-year wide receiver?
Maybe it would be a logical signing on the surface since the Jaguars are likely going to need to restock their wide receiver room with the potential losses of Keelan Cole (restricted free agent) and Marqise Lee (likely cut). Gruden was also the leader of Washington on the field when the team signed Richardson to a five-year, $40 million contract in 2018 after his contract with the Seattle Seahawks expired.
But when looking deeper into Richardson's tenures with both Wahington and Seattle, it makes little sense to bring Guden and Richardson back together.
Washington was quick to move on from Richardson despite him being one of the team's most lucrative signings only two years ago largely because Richardson couldn't stay on the field. Injuries kept him sidelined throughout his tenure in Seattle as well, leading to major durability questions that will likely follow him in free agency this year.
Due to a variety of injuries, Richardson played in only 17 games for Washington, missing 15 games in the process. Because of his durability issues, Richardson recorded only 48 catches for 507 yards and four touchdowns. In short, he made roughly $833,333 per catch.
In four seasons in Seattle, Richardson, who will be 28 during the 2020 season, missed 17 games over four seasons, a better rate than in Washington but still far from ideal. He had better success on the field in Seattle, catching 95 passes for 1,302 yards and eight touchdowns as one of Seattle's middle-tier pass-catching options.
Richardson flashed talent in each stop, but ultimately has only ever recorded more than 300 receiving yards in one season (703 in 2017) and only caught more than two touchdown passes in one season (six in 2017). He has never been a big-time threat for a passing offense, instead being better relegated to a depth role.
Jacksonville already has enough of these players on their own roster with Lee, Chris Conley, and arguably Dede Westbrook. While Richardson has experience in Gruden's scheme, he wouldn't be a major upgrade for the Jaguars on the field. What the Jaguars need is an experienced wide receiver who can be a reliable possession target — they wouldn't get that in the wiry Richardson (6-foot, 180-pounds).
While the opportunity to bring in as many ex-Gruden players as possible may be enticing, the Jaguars would be wise to ignore the possibility of bringing Richardson in. He still has talent, but between his injuries, lack of production, and skillset, he just isn't a fit.
