3 Thoughts on Brian Schottenheimer Moving Into Play-Calling Role For Jaguars' Offense

The Jacksonville Jaguars' offense will look slightly different against the New York Jets in Week 16 -- a direct result of a changing organization that has been reshuffled in the wake of Urban Meyer's firing.

Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said Monday that he will hand over play-calling duties to passing game coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, a change that will last three games as the 2-12 Jaguars attempt to close out a disappointing campaign.

"I think it helps us in a lot of ways. No. 1, it helps me take more on of the head coach role that I’m being asked to do, with that added responsibility. But also, we have another really accomplished play caller in our midst," Bevell said.

"We’ll be able to let Brian take an opportunity at it and put his own personality into the offense as well. We’ll be obviously in constant communication, we game plan together a lot anyways. So, I’m really confident and happy that I’m going to be able to turn that to him.”

What does the move to Schottenheimer mean for the Jaguars' offense moving forward and could it actually result in tangible change? We break it all down below.

Expect for the offense to slightly cater more toward Trevor Lawrence's preferences

Every single time Brian Schottenheimer has been mentioned by a fellow Jaguars coach or player this season -- whether Urban Meyer, Lawrence, or Bevell -- it has been made clear that Schottenheimer has built a close working relationship with Lawrence. Schottenheimer has been Lawrence's defacto quarterbacks coach all season long and in many ways has spent more time with the quarterback than anybody, especially considering the fact that he has been on the sideline with Lawrence for every game this year, as compared to Bevell's one game on the sidelines.

Being able to have that kind of connection with Lawrence is imperative for a position coach, but it could also translate to how Schottenheimer calls plays. While Bevell's main justification and rationale for handing over play-calling duties was so he could function in more of a head coach role, it is fair to wonder if Schottenheimer having Lawrence's ear all season means his offense could cater a bit more to the No. 1 overall pick, who has thrown just one touchdown in the last seven games. The playbook won't change, but Schottenheimer knows Lawrence's preferences like the back of his hand and should be expected to mix this into his play-calling a bit more than Bevell.

The timing of the change may be seen as odd but is largely due to when Urban Meyer's firing took place

While many Jaguars fans wondered exactly why Bevell was giving up play-calling duties just one day after calling plays against the Houston Texans, this is something Bevell hinted last week that he would do -- on his very first day as interim head coach, no less. Bevell opting to give Schottenheimer control of the offense isn't something that was a direct result of the Jaguars' lowly 16-point output against a bad Houston Texans defense, but instead is something that was made necessary by Bevell's increased roles and responsibilities as head coach.

Were it not for the mid-week firing of Urban Meyer, I am of the firm belief the Jaguars would have had Schottenheimer call plays against Houston. Meyer got fired on Thursday morning after the Jaguars and their offensive staff already began game-planning for the Texans, and making a second mid-week change would have thrown just another wrench into an already odd week for the Jaguars.

If the Jaguars had fired Meyer last Monday morning right after their shutout loss to the Titans, I think Bevell would have given up play-calling duties right there and then. The fact that Meyer's oddly-timed firing continues to have implications on the Jaguars speaks volumes about just how many ramifications followed. Bevell giving up play-calling last week would have been much more ideal, but the Jaguars let Meyer stay in the building for three days and even hold a practice after the Titans loss, setting the change and offense back.

Schottenheimer is tasked with improving Trevor Lawrence's production -- is there any evidence that says he will fare better Darrell Bevell?

Whenever there is a new play-caller for an offense, there is always the assumption that a simple change of the man calling plays will lead to a bump for the offense. Is there any real chance this happens for the Jaguars after making the switch from Bevell to Schottenheimer? That is certainly the hope for the Jaguars, especially when it comes to the production of Lawrence. Lawrence and the Jaguars' passing game has been completely hamstrung over the last two months, and now it will be up to Schottenheimer adding his own twists to the offense to help them get out of one of the worst ruts the NFL has seen from a scoring standpoint.

"We think a lot in the same ways. But again, a different personality, it’s going to look different, so he has his own firm beliefs on how he wants this thing to be run as well. I’m going to go for that, and I think that can help us," Bevell said on Monday.

But is there any real evidence that Schottenheimer can find more success than Bevell did? His experience and relationship with Lawrence should help him as the new play-caller, but the Jaguars' offensive issues mostly have to do with a lack of talent at the skill positions. That won't change with a new play-caller. Schottenheimer may be able to add his own wrinkles to make things easier for Lawrence in specific situations, but he will still have to try to make things work with the same struggling offensive depth chart Bevell had. The hope is that he can help Lawrence simply throw more touchdowns, but the reality is this is likely going to be a tall task.