The Jacksonville Jaguars know the way to a free agent’s heart is through his wife. That’s why they have changed up tradition by asking free agents to bring their wives on visits so that both spouses can be recruited by the team.
The Wall Street Journal says this is a new strategy the team has been employing and it’s a credit to both general manager Gene Smith and new team owner Shahid Khan. Smith recognized that college recruits generally bring their parents on visits and that you can get a better feeling for a player based on his parents. Khan figured players need a stable home life in order to be at their best, so that’s why he wants to meet the wives of free agents.
But the team isn’t just evaluating a player’s spouse — they’re recruiting them, too.
The wives of Chad Henne and Laurent Robinson, whose husbands both signed with the Jags, toured the team’s practice facilities and were taken to lunch and the beach by the wife of new head coach Mike Mularkey. The team also arranged massages for the wives at the hotel. Is there any wonder why both players chose Jacksonville?
Now that the Jaguars’ new method has been publicized, I wonder if it will become the standard across the NFL. After all, you know they say it’s a copycat league.
Photo Credit: Jake Roth-US PRESSWIRE
