Jaguars Hire Mike Mularkey To Work With Blaine Gabbert

Once the list of candidates that the Jaguars were going after started to get whittled down, it became clear that they were looking to bring in an offensive coach to help their woeful performance on that side of the ball this season. They ended up hiring Mike Mularkey, and according to National Football Post, it is partly because of his ability to mold Matt Ryan into a successful quarterback, and the hopes that he can do the same with Blaine Gabbert.

With the Jaguars finishing last in the league in passing offense, the team targeted offensive coordinators from other teams in its coaching search. Mularkey helped to quickly develop Matt Ryan in Atlanta and now will be charged with improving Blaine Gabbert, who was thrown to the wolves as a rookie and often looked to be overwhelmed, especially in terms of pocket presence and reads.

If Mularkey could have the same kind of impact with Gabbert that he had with Ryan, then his hiring would be a boon for the franchise. Considering he also has Maurice Jones-Drew to work with, there is no reason to believe that he can't establish a successful offense over time with the Jaguars.

For more on the Jacksonville Jaguars head coaching search, visit SB Nation's Jaguars blog Big Cat Country.