REPORT: JAGUARS TO HIRE WR COACH SANJAY LAL

The Jaguars have reportedly added a new WR coach to the staff. 

BY JORDAN DE LUGO

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The Seattle connection is real in Duval. According to Tom Pelissero, the Jaguars are set to hire Sanjay Lal to be their first WR coach of the Urban Meyer era.

Lal spent 2020 in Seattle as an assistant head coach, making him the third reported assistant on Urban Meyer's staff that has coached for the Seahawks under Pete Carroll. Lal is set to join Darrell Bevell (offensive coordinator) and Brian Schneider (special teams coordinator) as former Seattle assistants on the Jaguars' staff.  The connection is likely a concerted effort by Meyer, who undoubtedly looks at Pete Carroll as a successful example of how to transition from college to the pro game.

Lal has extensive experience as a wide receiver coach in the NFL, dating all the way back to 2009 when he was promoted from offensive quality control coach to wide receiver coach in Oakland. Lal served as the Raiders' WR coach until 2011, then coached the Jets' receivers from 2012-2014, the Bill's wideouts from 2015-2016, the Colts' in 2017, and then Cowboys' in 2018-2019. Lal was not retained by new Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy in 2020, and found his way to Seattle. 

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Now, he'll get back to coaching up the receivers in Jacksonville. He's replacing a living legend in Keenan McCardell, who had coached the Jaguars' WRs since 2017, and starred for the Jaguars as a player for six seasons. 

But Lal will bring his own philosophy to the receiver room, and he'll have some talented youngsters to work with. DJ Chark made the Pro Bowl in 2019 and appears to be on the verge of becoming an elite outside receiver. Laviska Shenault impressed during his rookie year and should develop further in year two. The Jaguars also have Collin Johnson, who made strides throughout his rookie season and has rare size at the position. Urban Meyer and Trent Baalke will likely add some more talent to the room in free agency and the draft and could potentially bring back Keelan Cole. 

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