What Dante Fowler's Injury Means for the Jacksonville Jaguars

In what can be considered one of the most frustrating and heartbreaking moments of the Jacksonville Jaguars' history, 2015 first-round draft pick Dante Fowler Jr. tore his ACL in his first practice of the offseason.

In a no-pads rookie minicamp, the last thing you expect, as well as the worst thing you could expect, is a devastating injury. And somehow, an unlucky and unfortunate slip for Fowler would mean the end of his rookie season before it could even begin.

Fowler's injury means a lot of things, but the most important effect of it is the morale blow to the fans and to the team. There is no way to spin this positively; Fowler basically gains nothing from this year and now has a concern in the future.

However, his injury does not mean that the Jaguars are screwed as a whole. As unfortunate as this is, it's important to move forward and not let the things that they can't change distract them from the end goal of improving this season.

John Raoux/Associated Press

The momentum and positivity that the team and the fans were exuding were seemingly sapped in the span of an afternoon. Or were they? Fowler's injury is absolutely a hard hit to take, but is it really as bad as it seems?

It's not. First and foremost, the "Leo" defensive end spot had impressive depth with the addition of Fowler, and losing him doesn't mean we're a man down per se. In fact, the Jaguars may get better production out of the starter from last year, Chris Clemons.

The hype and selection of a Leo seemed to cause people to forget exactly how awesome Clemons was this past season. He had eight sacks and four forced fumbles and instantly fit into head coach Gus Bradley's scheme, just like he did during his time with the Seattle Seahawks.

Clemons is getting older, and at 33 years old, there's no denying that his best seasons are behind him. But his pure technical ability and experience at a position he is most comfortable at gives him the situation he needs to perform for the Jaguars.

It's a bit unreasonable to expect Clemons to have as good of a season as he had this past year, but it wouldn't be surprising if he did. He's in great shape for his age, still has the drive and tenacity to play in the NFL and his age rarely shows in games.

This is not a pledge of faith in Clemons or a declaration of doubt in Fowler, but it's not crazy to think that Clemons will do better than Fowler would as a starter. Rookie seasons are extremely tough, and there's no guarantee on how Fowler will make the transition.

As mentioned, Clemons has everything to succeed just a little bit longer in the NFL, and he should be able to perform at a level around where Fowler was expected to perform.

Plus, with promising backups Chris Smith and Ryan Davis pulling more than their expected weight last season (3.0 and 6.5 sacks, respectively), the Jaguars have skill and depth at the Leo position. All of this makes it apparent that the loss of Fowler is a sting, but not a lethal blow.

Mark E. Tenally/Associated Press

There's no denying how harsh it is to lose your first-round draft pick for the season, especially in this manner. However, the Jaguars have gotten unlucky before, and the current regime in place has made too much progress to let this stop them.

It's not going to be any easier without Fowler, and the concern for his future is now constantly going to be in the minds of the team and the fans. ACL tears are something that even the best athletes have trouble coming back from.

The medicine of the current day and the process to rehab is making it less of a problem than ever before, and, like Aaron Colvin showing signs of his college brilliance last season after rebounding from an ACL tear in the Senior Bowl, Fowler won't necessarily be a less talented player than he was before.

The only thing to do at this point is to focus on all the good things that are still going on with this team. There is still a lot of promise, and while a vital player of the future is injured, the rest of the team will push on and get better.

The situation is negative any way you look at it, but it's not an omen of the franchise or a "typical" Jaguars event. There is no curse or destiny, and realizing that is important.

This team has fans realizing there is a lot of positivity, promise and talent in this team, and I'd say the direct interest in the franchise as a whole is higher than ever before. 

So before you write off this season as over or another part of the Jaguars' fate, consider how far this team has come. Look to this next season with optimism and get excited to scream "Duval" and watch Clemons sack every QB in the AFC South, cause it'll probably happen.

Here's to Fowler's speedy recovery and rebound season in 2016. I can't wait.

All stats were provided by ESPN.com unless otherwise stated.

Evan Reier is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report covering the Jacksonville Jaguars. Follow Evan on Twitter at @evanreier.