Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio got a lot of attention last year for saying David Garrard wasn’t an elite quarterback. Del Rio and owner Wayne Weaver talked about the improvements Garrard needed to make, including hints about his work ethic.
Garrard had his best season in three years, but that hasn’t changed Del Rio’s assessment. Del Rio repeated his take on Garrard according to the Florida Times-Union, but stressed it wasn’t a slight. Del Rio believes there are only a few elite quarterbacks in the league.
Ultimately, Del Rio is right. Garrard is good enough, but he needs a special defense or offensive teammates to lift him. There certainly isn’t elite talent around him in Jacksonville. That’s one reason why we expect the Jaguars to finally draft a quarterback to develop this year.
It may not a first-round pick, but any pick would be a start: The Jaguars haven’t drafted a quarterback since taking Byron Leftwich in 2003.