Mitch Morse vs. Luke Fortner: What Kind of Upgrade Could the Jaguars' Signing Be?

Going into the offseason, many Jacksonville Jaguars fans were clamoring for an offensive line overhaul. 

The line had massively underperformed and even declined after what was already a mediocre 2022 for the unit. The line was mostly functional in pass-blocking, however, the Jaguars’ rushing attack suffered greatly as the line just couldn’t open anything up for Travis Etienne Jr.

In fact, according to FTN Fantasy, the Jaguars were stuffed for no gain or less on 24% of runs, worst in the NFL. To add insult to injury, just 30% of the team's runs went for five or more yards, 31st in the league, according to Fantasy Points. It was time for change and that came in the form of the Jaguars’ newly signed center, Mitch Morse.

Fortner had struggled mightily in his second season. The former Kentucky Wildcat had performed fair enough as a pass-blocker, however, his struggles in the run game had boiled over onto the offense as a whole.

According to Sports Info Solutions, Luke Fortner’s Blown Run-Block rate of 4.9% ranked 29th among 32 qualifying centers. Conversely, Morse’s rate came in at almost half of that of Fortner at 2.8%, 20th among the 32 centers.

Pro Football Focus aligns with this sentiment as Fortner’s run-blocking grade of 40.4 landed him 39th among 40 centers. Morse, while much better than Fortner, only graded out at 62.0, 26th among the same 40 players. That said, Morse also graded out as the 6th best pass-protector at his position.

While many assume that Morse will start right away, there is still a competition to be had. Morse is excited for the opportunity to compete against Fortner.

“Yeah, I'm just trying to be a good teammate in this offensive line room. Luke [Fortner] and I have chatted, and I'm just looking forward to competing and growing with him. I think that's what football is all about. It's about no matter where you are in your career, growing, being a better professional, and learning how to take your game to the next level,” said Morse.

He continued, “So, no matter what happens, how that works out for me I'm trying to be a resource for him, he's going to be a resource for me, and we'll see how it plays out. Hopefully first and foremost make a good relationship in the offensive line room. The last thing you want to do is polarize anything."

The Jacksonville offensive front faced adversity every step of the way last season. Suspension, injuries, and mid-season acquisitions made it difficult for the group to ever gel together. It was more or less a new starting five every single game.

Through it all, Luke Fortner was the unifying symbol. Fortner’s 1,164 offensive snaps were the most by any Jaguars’ player on offense or defense. He saw the field on an impressive 99.83% of offensive plays, a testament to his ability to stay healthy.

As Jacksonville exits free agency and nears the draft, it’s evident the Jaguars’ front office and coaching staff feel confident little personnel change is needed on the Jags’ front line. The team likely brings back four of the five starts, with Morse being the lone newcomer. The Jaguars are hoping stability and consistency across the line will bode well for 2024.

Morse spoke about fitting in with the unit, “You try to immerse yourself fully within the group. The last thing you want on any team or in any facet of life you've been around is someone coming in and talking like they've been there for years or having some "rah-rah" deal. Immediately it's for the birds, you're not into it. For me, I'm just trying to have a relationship with all of these guys."

For Morse, relationships within the locker room are important, “Inherently there are 14-15 dudes in there right now in OTAs and such. You can just try to have a certain relationship that aligns with their personality and sometimes it just takes time. I'm looking forward to taking that time, getting to know these guys and hopefully all of them anyway I can.”

Morse comes to Jacksonville with the added benefit of having played for Jaguars’ head coach Doug Pederson before, early on in his career with the Kansas City Chiefs. There’s some familiarity there as well as with fellow free agent signing Gabe Davis, who Morse seems to have a great relationship with.

The Jaguars are betting on themselves a bit this offseason in regards to the offensive line. Morse, however, has the opportunity to infinitely improve a struggling rushing attack if he can provide a solid base at center for the offense. From there, the other four can build upon him and create a much-improved unit from this past season.

The Jaguars now have lots of capital spent and experience across the line from Cam Robinson, Brandon Scherff and now Morse. If they can stay healthy, this unit has no excuses to underperform going forward. In case injuries do take place, the team has solid depth behind the starting five, highlighted by Walker Little and Luke Fortner.