There's Always Next Year: Jacksonville Jaguars

No matter how optimistic you are about Blake Bortles and Jacksonville's young receivers, there's still room for them to grow. The Jaguars can almost see the light at the end of the rebuilding tunnel: they're in a bad division; they've got cash to play with.

Of course, that's been the case for past two seasons, as well. The difference I see now is that Allen Robinson has broken through in a big way. Allen Hurns is showing himself to be a reliable, tough second receiver. Julius Thomas actually mixed in a few healthy games despite his weight problems. The Jaguars have the beginnings of a good skill-position core. Will that be enough to attract any marquee free agents hitting the market?

Coach and quarterback confidence rating: 4/10

I have my misgivings about Bortles' accuracy and his ability to win consistently from the pocket, but he did improve in meaningful ways this season. That should give Jaguars fans some hope that he can continue to grow into 2016.

Gus Bradley, on the other hand—aye, that's not an easy sell. Only the Saints had a worse pass defense in football in 2015. I know that the Jaguars didn't have a star edge rusher, and Dante Fowler may change that next season, but it's getting harder to believe in the Jaguars head coach. The best DVOA ranking the Jags have as a pass defense under Bradley is 17th. Defensive coordinator Bob Babich fell on the sword for Bradley's poor year. Are we sure he's the real culprit?

A kinder interpretation of Bradley's 12-36 career record is that he's been stuck with rebuilding teams. He may indeed be a better coach than his record would suggest, but the rest of this team could have competed for a division crown in 2016 had they fielded a pass defense, and that's on Gus. If the Jaguars get off to another poor start next season, you could see Bradley become the latest NFL coach to go to London and never return.

Key Offseason Decision: Who will this team take with the fifth overall pick?

One of the nice things about having Jacksonville's roster is that talent trumps need. They could use help on every level of the defense. A third star receiver could make it even tougher to defend their passing attack. The offensive line has been a disaster since the trade of Eugene Monroe.

Gifted another top 10 pick, Jacksonville needs to hit. Left tackle Luke Joeckel has been brutal and injured so far. Fowler didn't play last season after tearing his ACL. Bortles improved but not to the point where I'd consider him a sure-fire franchise quarterback yet. The Jaguars need players who are good enough to give them an identity—any identity.

Conventional wisdom would pair a bad pass defense with a high pick in the secondary. I do think cornerback and the Jaguars align well in the early part of the first round. Jalen Ramsey (Florida State), Vernon Hargreaves (Florida), and Mackenzie Alexander (Clemson) are all regarded as first-round talents.

Major Free Agents: QB Chad Henne, TE Marcedes Lewis, P Bryan Anger, DE Andre Branch

If the Jaguars have a player worthy of re-signing, the front office has probably done so already. Henne should find work somewhere, and I know Bradley thinks highly of his work. Lewis can still be a stopgap tight end.

The rest? Ehh. You can find potential in bits and pieces, but nobody the Jaguars will miss.

Cap Situation: $43,140,539, fourth in the NFL

The Jaguars have been in on players like DeMarco Murray but haven't hit a true home run in free agency yet. They'll have another chance this year. Moreover, their cap situation is flexible. Every bargain contract Jacksonville signs is an opportunity for them to get a lot of guaranteed money out of the way early in the deal. They can easily squeeze another $20 million into their cap space should circumstances allow it.

The question for the Jaguars is: Are they attractive enough to bring in the kind of guys they want now? After franchise tags go flying, there are typically only five or six truly game-changing free agents in a given NFL offseason. Because of the way the cap works, these guys can go anywhere to get paid. Other than overpaying mediocre players and giving them "vacations" (hi Aaron Ross!), old rebuilding Jags teams wouldn't get a sniff at players like Randall Cobb.

Has the perception of Bortles and Bradley changed enough league-wide to make a difference? How will it measure up against Derek Carr and the Raiders? That could shape a lot about how 2016 looks in Jacksonville.