Gene Frenette: Presence of QB Trevor Lawrence forces AFC South rivals to counterpunch in draft

For the first time since the AFC South was formed in 2002, what the Jaguars’ rivals do in the first round of the NFL Draft could significantly impact the division over the next 5 to 10 years, perhaps almost as anything else since quarterback Peyton Manning owned that landscape for almost a decade.

The Houston Texans (No. 2 overall pick), Indianapolis Colts (No. 4) and Tennessee Titans (No. 11) cannot expect to regain the foothold each once had in the AFC South unless they find a long-term answer at quarterback, like the Jaguars have now with Trevor Lawrence.

If the AFC South doesn’t counterpunch the Jaguars this year with the abundance of QB talent available near the top of the draft, it might not get this kind of planet-aligning circumstance in the next couple drafts.

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Despite speculation that Houston could grab top edge-rusher Will Anderson (Alabama) at No. 2 — possibly hoping a viable QB option could be there with their 12th pick or a trade-up scenario to take Florida’s Anthony Richardson or Kentucky’s Will Levis — why take that massive risk at the most important position?

Imagine the uproar among the Texans’ fan base if they pass on the consensus two best quarterbacks in the draft, Bryce Young (Alabama) or C.J. Stroud (Ohio State), and one of them goes on to have a fabulous career in Indianapolis. Houston GM Nick Caserio and first-year coach Demeco Ryans would never live it down, even if Anderson has something close to a J.J. Watt-type career.

The Colts are equally desperate to start fresh with a franchise quarterback for their new coach, Shane Steichen. So if Houston actually takes a pass, don’t be surprised to see Indy trade up to the No. 3 spot to ensure getting the QB it wants if increasing speculation of Young going first to the Carolina Panthers is accurate.

Tennessee is a first-round wild card because the Titans have minimal leverage by staying at No. 11. If three QBs are off the board, and they don’t love taking the remaining one or Hendon Hooker (Tennessee) that high, the Titans might just play one more year with veteran Ryan Tannehill and take their chances.

But with no guarantees of Tennessee drafting in the top-10 next year, new GM Ran Carthon would be foolish not to at least consider taking a QB or trading up for one he highly covets.

If not, the Titans could opt to fill a huge offensive line need with Ohio State tackle Paris Johnson or possibly Northwestern’s Peter Skoronski, providing Carthon thinks he can play outside.

But when it comes to finding the answer at quarterback, the Jaguars’ AFC South rivals can’t afford to keep kicking the QB can down the road by just playing an average or below-average veteran.

It’s time to take a big swing at a rookie and hope he becomes the franchise guy. Otherwise, they’ll be spending the foreseeable future wishing they had somebody as promising as Trevor Lawrence.

Jaguars passing way too soon

A terrible history for the Jaguars keeps repeating itself with big linemen passing away prematurely. It happened again Monday when Chris Smith, a fifth-round draft pick in 2014, died at 31 due to unknown causes.

Smith, a defensive end who played three years in Jacksonville, was trying to resurrect his career with the XFL Seattle Sea Dragons and made five tackles in five games. He was sick last week and didn’t make the Sea Dragons’ trip to St. Louis for a 30-12 win over the Battlehawks.

Four months ago, ex-Jaguars' defensive lineman Uche Nwaneri (2007 fifth-round pick) died of a heart attack at his wife’s home in Indiana at 38. In 2018, guard Vince Manuwai (2003 third-round pick) also passed away at 38 from acute ecstasy intoxication in Hawaii while moving into an apartment.

In 2010, guard Anthony Cesario (1999 third-round pick) was lost at 34 from a heart attack as he hosted a hunting party in Colorado. Beyond the fact these four players were regarded as quality people, the brutal part for their families is losing all of them so young.

Draft numbers to digest

Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett, considered a late-round prospect, will likely be the oldest player taken in the 2023 NFL draft at 25 years, 6 months. The next oldest prospect is Division II Shepherd guard Joey Fisher, a third-day draft possibility who is two weeks younger than Bennett. Another oldie is Hooker at 25 years, 3 months.

On the opposite age spectrum are two top cornerbacks in Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez, a first-rounder who turns 21 on June 28, and Georgia’s Kelee Ringo. He’s projected as an early second round pick and turns 21 the day before Gonzalez.

For teams who believe in drafting big people, here are intriguing players for the top two or three rounds: Georgia TE Darnell Washington (6-foot-6, 264 pounds), Ohio State OT Dawand Jones (6-8, 374), Georgia Tech edge rusher Keion White (6-4, 285) and Baylor DT Siaki Ika (6-2, 335).

Arizona Cardinals drama

The gloves have come off within the Arizona Cardinals organization, where former personnel executive Terry McDonough has accused team owner Michael Bidwell of ordering him and then coach Steve Wilks to use “burner phones” back in 2018 to communicate with Steve Kiem, after the former GM was suspended for extreme DUI.

McDonough, who worked as an executive scout/player personnel director for the Jaguars from 2003-12, also alleged Bidwell’s mistreatment of Cardinals’ employees and bullying by the owner.

He doubled down on that accusation this week in a text to Doug Franz, who hosts a podcast, saying: “Bidwell’s days of owning the Cardinals will soon come to an end, and he has NOBODY to blame but himself and his horrific behavior towards so many people.”

Some will contend this is McDonough’s way of trying to get back at Bidwell for severing ties with him earlier this year. The elephant in the room now is whether the NFL believes his claims merit an investigation.

If that happens, it’d be a terrible blow to McDonough’s professional reputation should the league conclude he’s lying about Bidwell. In turn, the NFL would likely come down hard on Bidwell if it discovers the McDonough allegations are true.

The Cardinals responded to McDonough’s arbitration filing by calling all his claims “wildly false, reckless and an opportunistic ploy for financial gain.” Stay tuned. This year-long soap opera figures to get a lot messier.

Big overhaul for UF hoops

Did you see last week where ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi released his NCAA Tournament projections for next season and has Florida with a No. 8 seed?

Seeing what Gators’ coach Todd Golden has snapped up from the transfer portal, it might not be totally far-fetched. He landed 7-foot-1 Marshall center Micah Handlogten, the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year last season (7.6 ppg, 9.6 rebounds, 60 blocks), who has three years of eligibility to help fill the void left by Colin Castleton.

It’s probably no coincidence Lunardi's UF forecast came out on the same day the Gators signed highly coveted transfer Walter Clayton Jr., a guard from Iona who averaged 16.8 ppg and was MAAC Player of the Year. Nobody can be surprised Riverside High product Alex Fudge, who suffered a concussion midseason and averaged just 5.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, plans to enter the NBA draft (he will likely end up playing overseas) because he faced a reduced role with three of the four UF transfers in the frontcourt.

So the Florida roster overhaul keeps churning, with the Gators still one of four schools in the running for North Texas guard Tylor Perry, the Conference USA Player of the Year.

After last year’s disappointing season, it remains to be seen if Golden has a strong enough nucleus to have a bounce-back year. The acquisition of Handlogten and Clayton gives the Gators a chance to do that, but a No. 8 NCAA seed still feels like a stretch.

Quick-hitting nuggets

Richard Zvosec, the first men’s basketball coach (1992-97) in University of North Florida history, has served as the senior deputy athletic director at UCF the past two years. Zvosec, 62, came over from Arkansas State, where he held a similar internal operations position under current UCF athletic director Terry Mohajir.

When Brooks Koepka was 12-under-par through two rounds of the Masters, the LIV golfer became the 12th player in major championship history to shoot that score or better through 36 holes. Nine of the previous 11 went on to win the tournament. The only time before Koepka that it didn’t happen was, ironically, LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman at the 1990 Open and at the 1996 Masters.

Gfrenette@jacksonville.com: (904) 359-4540 

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Presence of Jaguars' Trevor Lawrence forces AFC South rivals to draft right QB