Ryan Clark: ‘Don’t Be Surprised if Calvin Ridley Has the A.J. Brown, Stefon Diggs Effect’

There is a clear trend in the NFL when it comes to No. 1, alpha male wide receivers.

If you can find one, do anything you can to get him on your team because it could unlock the potential of an entire passing game.

We have seen it countless times in recent years. Most notable though have been the impacts that Stefon Diggs and A.J. Brown have had in Buffalo and Philadelphia, helping transform each passing game into elite units.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are hoping that is what they will get from Calvin Ridley after an exciting offseason and an electric start to training camp. And for former Pro Bowl defensive back and current ESPN analyst Ryan Clark, it would be far from a surprise for that to end up a reality.

"Don’t be surprised if Calvin Ridley has the AJ Brown, Stefon Diggs effect on Trevor Lawrence. Ridley is underrated in my opinion," Clark posted on Twitter. "Gonna be fireworks in Duval."

Don’t be surprised if Calvin Ridley has the AJ Brown, Stefon Diggs effect on Trevor Lawrence. Ridley is underrated in my opinion.

Gonna be fireworks in Duval.
— Ryan Clark (@Realrclark25) July 28, 2023

The Jaguars traded for Calvin Ridley at last year's trade deadline, sending over a 2023 fifth-round pick and a conditional 2024 draft pick that could become a second-round pick if Ridley signs a contract extension.

Ridley, the No. 26 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, caught 217 passes for 3,061 yards and 26 touchdowns in his first three seasons. He played in five games in 2021 before stepping away from the team, catching 31 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns.

Since coming to Jacksonville, Ridley has won hearts and minds with his dedication to his craft and to joining the Jaguars' culture. Add in the talent he has shown on the practice field already and it isn't a stretch to think that Ridley could become the next big-name receiver to take an offense to new heights.

"At the end of the year, you always watch the top guys, how they get open, what they do. So, I was very familiar with his tape. We played against Atlanta a couple of times, so I had seen him play and had my perception of what I thought he was," Jaguars offensive coordinator Press Taylor said on Thursday. "Then, you start to watch it, and you really try to hone in on ‘this is what he’s done really well. Here are some things that maybe we do that you don’t see on his tape, but you think his skillset translates to that would be fun to try. Now, we’re at the time where you’re getting to dig into these things.

"What I didn’t know was him as a person. He’s very serious about his craft. In walkthrough, he’s grabbing Chad Hall the whole time. They’re sitting over there, going through the install. Obviously, he’s at a different point in his learning of our system than say Zay [Jones] or Christian [Kirk] are. So, he is hungry and it’s just a lot of fun. It kind of adds a little spice to the room of just this guy that wants to prove to everybody what he’s gone through, where he is, and what type of a player he is in this league. It’s another element we’ve added.”