One of the many reasons the Jacksonville Jaguars failed to become a perennial contender after reaching the AFC Championship in 2017 was that then-general manager Dave Caldwell dismantled a talented roster in the following years.
By 2020, the roster was devoid of talent, and Caldwell's draft haul that year perfectly encapsulates just how dreadful he was at evaluating talent. Following the release of special teams ace Daniel Thomas, the only player remaining from that class is defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton.
Granted, even the best general managers have their fair share of misses, but Caldwell dropped the ball so badly in 2020 despite the fact that he had two first-round picks and three in the top 50. One of them, K'Lavon Chaisson, has managed to put it all together and is in a position to build consistency with the New England Patriots in 2025.
On the other hand, the other two players the Jags drafted in the top 50 — K'Lavon Chaisson and C.J. Henderson, in 2020, just got released. One of them was dubbed the biggest loser on cutdown day.
Former Jaguars WR Laviska Shenault was dubbed the biggest loser of cutdown day
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report drew up a list of the biggest winners and losers for each team on roster cutdown day and selected Laviska Shenault for the Buffalo Bills, pointing out that the veteran receiver may have trouble finding a new team after failing to stand out as a returner. Below's the skinny.
"Shenault's return ability—he had a kick return touchdown for the Seattle Seahawks last season—gave him a legitimate opportunity to make the roster," Knox wrote. "After being released by his fifth NFL team, though, he'll find an uphill climb back to an offensive role."
The Bills were the fifth NFL team Shenault has suited up for since the Jags made him the 42nd overall selection in 2022. He signed with the Bills earlier this year after spending time with the Seattle Seahawks and the Los Angeles Chargers last season.
Shenault should get another chance sooner rather than later, but it's been baffling to see him suffer such a fallout after showing promise early in his NFL career.
Laviska Shenault seemed like an asending star for the Jaguars in 2021
One thing that popped off about Laviska Shenault as a rookie was his ability to break tackles and make plays. He finished the 2020 season with 58 catches for 600 yards with five touchdowns. Those may not be impressive numbers, but they look much better once you take into account that the former Colorado Buffalo was catching passes from the likes of Jake Luton, Mike Glennon, and Gardner Minshew that year.
Expected to make strides with Trevor Lawrence behind center in 2021, Shenault got off to a promising start to his sophomore campaign. But then, he disappeared. Then, a new regime arrived in the following year, and he wasn't able to turn things around.
In the end, the Jags no longer had use for Shenault and traded him to the Carolina Panthers before the start of the 2022 season. And after two uneventful years, he was given the boot.
Looking back, it's kind of shocking to think that, even for a brief moment, Laviska Shenault looked like a promising player for the Jaguars, but that's just how steep his fall from grace has been.
Here are other Jaguars stories you may also like: