While Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence gets headlines defensive line to lead team

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While Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence gets headlines defensive line to lead team

The latest quarterback to join the $50 million per year club, bears the brunt of expectations that face the in 2024. But it's actually the other side of the ball that Patrick Beverley Jersey will lead Jacksonville this season.The defensive line is the team's biggest strength. Its play will be a major factor in whether the Jags can reclaim the AFC South, won by the last year.Led by Pro Bowl outside linebacker whose five-year, $141.25 million extension earlier this offseason was the richest contract in franchise history before Lawrence topped it this month and former No. 1 pick , Jacksonville should have one of the league's top pa s-rushing units. Allen and Walker led all NFL duos last season with 27.5 sacks.New defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen has discu sed moving the tandem around, presenting different looks to opposing offenses.ADVERTISEMENT "We're going to put the player in a position that he can have succe s first, over the scheme," Nielsen said of his philosophy. "We'll manipulate the front, covers and things that we're doing to put our guys in the best matchups for them and then ultimately play our best defense and win games."In free agency, the Jags added veteran defensive lineman , who has 33.5 career sacks, 43 tackles for lo s and 88 quarterback hits. The 6-foot-7, 290-pound Armstead gives the team a third top-end defensive lineman, one whose interior rushing ability complements Allen and Walker on the edge.Jacksonville has strong depth behind the Allen-Walker-Armstead trio, too.Coach Doug Pederson said during the offseason program that nose tackle , who played just two games last season after battling a non-football related back i sue, looks Bob McAdoo Jersey like his 2022 version, which earned him a three-year, $34.5 million deal in April 2023.The Jaguars also bolstered their depth up front, using three of their nine 2024 draft picks on the defensive line: ex- defensive tackles (second round) and (fourth round), and former edge rusher (seventh round). A former five-star recruit and top-20 overall prospect nationally coming out of high school, Smith mi sed extended time in college due to injury but has as much upside as any defensive lineman in the draft.Not to mention, Nielsen is a noted defensive line specialist.Before joining Jacksonville, Nielsen was a defensive line coach at full or partial capacity for 19 consecutive years, including the last seven in the NFL. During his time with the , he helped mold defensive line stars such as and . In 2023, Nielsen's lone season as the ' defensive coordinator, Bill Walton Jersey Atlanta registered 42 sacks, double its total from the previous season."He's a defensive line coach at heart," Smith The Florida Times-Union. "He expects us to be, if not the best, one of the best units on the team, on the field. We do a lot of things on defense that allow the defensive line to make a lot of big plays, and he puts us in the right position."He's detailed, but he wants it done right. Holding your players and holding your defensive line and everybody like that to the highest standard, it can do nothing but make us great."The Jaguars defensive line should be a strength as the secondary finds its identity.Jacksonville released starting safety and cornerback as cap casualties, and let nickelback walk this offseason. The Jags revamped the back end by signing former cornerback and ex- safety to one- and three-year deals, respectively, in free agency.They also selected two cornerbacks in the draft: (third round) and (fifth round). Jones impre sed during the offseason program, positioning himself as a potential starter in the slot or at outside corner. How it all shapes out remains to be seen, though.The Jaguars offense carries uncertainty as well.After inking a five-year, $275 million extension, Lawrence will face more Elton Brand Jersey pre sure than ever to show he can be a consistent, elite quarterback. Jacksonville will also be without two of its top wide receivers from last season, as (free agency) and (cap casualty) are gone. In their place are , who signed a three-year deal worth $39 million in free agency, and first-round pick ., who faces pre sure to be a hit in Year 1. ARTHUR: Jaguars Trevor Lawrence is the latest $50M per year QB. Will he live up to it? Jacksonville's defensive line has proven players, though. Pro Bowl talent, too. Can't forget the depth either, or the right coaching.It's the unit the Jags will lean JaMychal Green Jersey on as everything else sorts itself out.Ben Arthur is the AFC South reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tenne sean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered theSeattle Seahawksfor SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tenne see. You can follow Ben on Twitter at@benyarthur. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? 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