FanPost

Gabbert Is a Positive in Jaguars' GM Search

By now, most readers of this site have probably heard the speculation that the Jaguars' commitment to Blaine Gabbert deterred at least one candidate for the Jaguars' head coaching position from accepting an offer to coach the team last year. Jeff Lageman dismissed those rumors in an episode of Jaguars This Week this season. Nevertheless, as Shad Khan searches this offseason for a new general manager, fans and media have speculated that Gabbert's presence on the roster would likewise deter a GM candidate from accepting an offer from the Jaguars.

But let's apply logic to the situation. The Jaguars need a franchise quarterback. Let's stipulate that Shad Khan will not insist that the new GM be committed to Gabbert for any period of time. Unlike the Chiefs or Cardinals, who do not have any plausible, long-term quarterback prospects currently on their roster, the Jaguars do. There is still some chance (30%? 50%? 10%?) that Gabbert will become the franchise quarterback the Jaguars foresaw when they drafted him in 2011. So in addition to the chance that the new GM will successfully locate a franchise quarterback in the draft, there's also the no-strings-attached possibility that the new GM will just luck out and Gabbert will prove himself in the next year or two to be a viable franchise quarterback. And if not, the new GM can cut or trade him. That's a positive, not a negative.

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