The Jaguars new regime has continued to be aggressive by trading for wide receiver Jakobi Meyers from the Raiders on Tuesday, sending a fourth and sixth-round pick to acquire the veteran wideout. Meyers, who requested a trade in the offseason, heads to 5-3 Jacksonville after just facing them this past weekend.
The trade comes as two-way player Travis Hunter and tight end Brenton Strange are on injured reserve, Brian Thomas Jr. is dealing with an ankle sprain and Dyami Brown left Sunday’s game early to be examined for a concussion, but injuries were not the only reason the Jaguars made the move.
As Jaguars general manager James Gladstone said after the move, “You think about where we’re at in terms of volume of drops, what’s Jakobi’s superpower? It’s not dropping the football,” via The Florida Times-Union.
The Jaguars lead the NFL in dropped passes this year, and by a wide margin. Jacksonville receivers have dropped 30 passes so far this season, while no other team has dropped more than 21. Thomas, the team’s star receiver, has dropped nine passes this year as he endures a sophomore slump.
In Meyers, the Jaguars not only add depth to their banged-up receiving group, but a reliable and experienced target for quarterback Trevor Lawrence. Meyers has only dropped one pass this season, and has not dropped more than two passes in any of the last three seasons. He had his first 1,000-yard receiving season last year, and currently has 33 receptions for 352 yards through eight games this year.
“(Meyers is one of those) guys that, above-the-neck, has a high capacity and can function across multiple positions without blinking,” Gladstone said, per the Times-Union. “He’s always been just somebody who I felt like was a good football player.”
Jaguars head coach Liam Coen said of Meyers, “Tough, strong hands. Has been physical as a separator in iso situations. I’ve only heard great things about the pro. ... Definitely excited to have him.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jaguars GM Gave One Blunt Reason They Traded for Jakobi Meyers.