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The Jacksonville Jaguars are headed towards another rebuild at the conclusion of the 2012 NFL season. For most fans, this is an exciting time but also one that holds reserved excitement because most feel that it's going to be another 2-3 seasons before the Jaguars are competitive again.
Well, why can't the Jaguars be competitive in 2013?
It's not totally impossible for a team to go from horrible to at the very least "competitive" in the next season. It's been done multiple times in the past few seasons including by two teams in 2012. The Washington Redskins and the Indianapolis Colts both went from bad to competing for the playoffs in just a single off season.
While both teams drafted quarterbacks in the first-round, and they make a big difference compared to their 2011 signal callers, but both teams also had massive roster turnover in the offseason.
| Roster numbers include players on IR | Redskins | Colts |
| 2011 Record | 5-11 | 2-14 |
| 2012 Record (Through Week 15) | 8-6 | 9-5 |
| 2011 Roster Retained | 31 | 17 |
| 2012 Roster Additions via Draft/UDFA | 11 | 8 |
| 2012 Roster Additions via Free Agency/Trade | 18 | 33 |
It remains to be seen if this is a one year thing for the Redskins and the Colts, but for now both teams have gone from worst to first and both teams looked destined to be in that rebuilding for 2-3 season mode. The fact of the matter however is, both teams turned over just about half or more of their old, bad rosters. You could even include the St. Louis Rams in this discussion, who went from 2 wins in 2011 to 6 wins in 2012 and added 33 new players in 2012. Another team churning over virtually half their roster.
The Jaguars are likely going to do the same exact thing in 2013.
The team is likely going to bring in a new general manager, who possibly could bring in a new coaching staff, which would mean just about no one on the current roster is safe. There are obviously young players you're not going to part with regardless, but there is likely going to still be massive roster over turn.
Even when you replace bad players with average players, it can make a massive difference in a football team.
I'm not saying the Jaguars will or should be playoff contenders in 2013, but I'm not going to pretend like it's some impossible feat that hasn't been done before.