Jaguars Have the Team Most Likely to Trade for Brandon Aiyuk As Deal was Completed
The Jaguars’ GM, Trent Baalke, is absolutely horrible at drafting wide receivers — he’s the one who spent a first-round pick on A.J. Jenkins once upon a time.
If any team trades for Brandon Aiyuk during the draft, the Jaguars are the team most likely to do it, and here’s why.
Most people expect the Steelers to be the team that pursues Aiyuk the hardest because reporters have confirmed Pittsburgh’s interest in him. But people seem to forget that the Jaguars also were reported to have interest in trading for Aiyuk. And the Jaguars have much more motivation to get a deal done than the Steelers do.
First, the Jaguars need to replace Calvin Ridley, who signed with the Tennessee Titans this offseason. Ridley caught 76 passes for 1.016 yards and 8 touchdowns for Jacksonville last season — that’s a lot of production to replace. And their next best receiver is Evan Engram, who’s mediocre. So they’re desperate for a talented pass catcher.
In addition, they have a supremely talented quarterback in Trevor Lawrence who can maximize Aiyuk’s skill set in ways most quarterbacks can’t. Those two would be an electric duo.
Finally, the Jaguars are under tremendous pressure to make the playoffs. They finished 9-8 each of the past two seasons and they need to take a leap forward or else the coach and/or the general manager could get fired. So they can’t necessarily rely on a rookie wide receiver to replace Ridley, because if he takes a few seasons to develop, they could get fired before he hits his prime.
And there’s one more thing. The Jaguars’ GM, Trent Baalke, is absolutely horrible at drafting wide receivers — he’s the one who spent a first-round pick on A.J. Jenkins once upon a time. He knows he can’t trust himself to scout that position. That’s why he needs a proven All Pro such as Aiyuk. If he’s willing to trade pick no. 17 to the 49ers, I imagine Aiyuk will be a Jaguar in the next few days.
