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Jaguars believe in Luke Fortner, recognize need for competition. Who could they target?
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- Jaguars believe in Luke Fortner, recognize need for competition. Who could they target?
For an offensive lineman, people knowing your name isn't a good thing.
For the Jacksonville Jaguars and their fans, they know the name Luke Fortner very well. During his second season in Jacksonville, Fortner was viewed negatively by a large majority of fans on social media and over the airwaves as the team struggled in short-yardage situations.
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Standing at 6-foot-6, 307 pounds, in front of another football giant, 6-foot-5 quarterback Trevor Lawrence , many assumed Jacksonville and Fortner would have no issue moving the football a couple of yards in those scenarios. The Jaguars also, in back-to-back drafts, selected running backs Snoop Conner and Tank Bigsby , both players with plenty of size and power.
Still, nada.
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Jacksonville Jaguars center Luke Fortner (79) laughs while talking with guard Cooper Hodges (75) during training camp Monday, Aug. 7, 2023 at Miller Electric Center at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. This was the 11th day of training camp.
According to ESPN, the Jaguars were the worst team in football last year on third-and-short by yards per carry with just 1.7 on average on any given third-and-two or fewer plays during the season.
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Fortner is literally at the center of the play on any given down so, naturally, he gets most of the blame. That stands out when looking at various analytics websites, too.
According to Pro Football Focus, Fortner was graded out as the worst center in terms of run blocking with a grade of 44.3. He posted largely pedestrian numbers through much of the season but stood up well in pass blocking, for the most part.
Fortner allowed 28 total pressures, according to PFF, down from 35 allowed last year.
Though numbers give plenty of information, generally, about how a player performs, it is very important to add context before concluding one way or another.
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Jaguars' offensive line issues went well beyond Fortner
Jaguars offensive line coach Phil Rauscher shows players details of a formation during Monday's training camp practice at the Miller Electric Indoor Center.
In 2023, the Jaguars' offensive line wasn't without a state of flux.
Jaguars starting left tackle Cam Robinson was suspended for four games to start the year and he was also injured for four games later in the season, missing eight total throughout the year.
Robinson's backup, the team's sixth-man offensive lineman Walker Little , manned Robinson's left tackle position while he was away, operating inside at left guard when the two were healthy.
Availability between Robinson and Little fluctuated throughout the year while the team was forced to work through seven different lineups, changing the lineup a total of 10 different times throughout the season.
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Simply put, there was no consistency with the left tackle and left guard positions in Jacksonville, directly to the left of Fortner.
"I truly believe in Luke as a guy that has what it takes to play the position and play it well. He's showing signs of doing that. This was not necessarily one player's issues," Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke said when asked about Fortner at his end-of-season press conference in January.
"This was a systematic issue," said Baalke. "So when you look at across the board, the things I talked about going back to the basics, going back to three-point stances, coming off the ball, forming an identity. All of those things, we've got to do better."
Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson voiced his support for Fortner at his end-of-season presser in early January, too, noting that Fortner handles everything the team throws at him "extremely well."
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"He's had to go against some pretty good tackles, interior linemen as well and he's held up pretty well," said Pederson.
Who could the Jaguars sign or draft to compete with Fortner, other offensive linemen?
Nov 18, 2023; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Oregon Ducks offensive lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson (58) against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
While both Pederson and Baalke supported Fortner when asked about the second-year center, Baalke did not rule out bringing in competition for his position and others, too.
"We also got to look to how we make this a more competitive situation. Guys get nervous when the guy behind them is pushing them every day for the starting role. Iron sharpens iron," Baalke said.
"So, you got to make these rooms as competitive as you can, whether it's through the draft or through free agency, we've got to attack that to make these rooms as competitive as they can be so the guy that's starting is always feeling the pressure of the guy behind him."
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The Jaguars will have a couple of avenues to do just that.
In free agency, perhaps Jacksonville will take a look at Miami Dolphins interior lineman Conner Williams, or how about Las Vegas ' Andre James ? Or perhaps Dallas Cowboys ' Tyler Biadasz , who just finished the final year of his rookie contract?
There will be several interior offensive linemen available on the open market. The Jaguars have one, too, guard Ezra Cleveland who the team traded for last year. Cleveland is a player Jacksonville covets and could make him a priority as the new league year approaches.
While the draft is less likely to ensure adequate competition, Jacksonville could go in several directions. Perhaps they draft a player like Jackson Powers-Johnson out of Oregon in the first round or come back and get Zach Frazier out of West Virginia a little later.
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One player who's a dark horse candidate that could get some attention late in the draft is Florida's Kingsley Eguakun, who had an up-and-down career before entering this year's draft. Eguakun is one of two players from the Jacksonville area who will compete in this month's upcoming NFL Scouting Combine.
Regardless of which route the team takes, Baalke has made it clear that the plan is to add competition. With the team needing much more out of its offensive line, it stands to reason that that unit would be one of the first they'll address.
Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82 .
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars want to add competition. Who might Luke Fortner compete with?
