Jaguars Take Advantage of Deep Draft#

We will be fielding inquiries on the most important issues concerning the Jacksonville Jaguars during the offseason. Each week, you can submit your questions here or by tweeting them to the Jaguar Report’s Twitter account. We’re taking questions this week about the 2024 NFL Draft, the offensive line of the Jaguars, and other topics.

Q: Do you see the Jags moving up to get some of the elite OL talent available in the draft? Or do you think there will be players available when the Jags pick?

A: In my opinion, the Jaguars shouldn’t advance in this class to acquire an offensive lineman. The position group in this class that appears to be the deepest and most top-heavy is the offensive line. For instance, The Athletic’s Dane Brugler lists eight offensive linemen in his top-20, the majority of whom are in the 10–20 range. If the Jaguars choose to stay at No. 17 and wait for a starting-caliber offensive lineman to fall to them, that is possible given that quarterbacks are being pushed up and that not every team in their draft range needs an offensive lineman.

Q: Will the Jags offseason roster surgery be done with the precision of a scalpel or of a chainsaw?

A: Would you mind using a pizza cutter? That appears to be in the middle. I don’t think this is a perfect offseason for the Jaguars because they have too many holes to fill and not enough money to be as aggressive as they arguably should be. Having said that, they still have a lot of options for strengthening the roster going forward, including using the draft and free agency. Pressing the appropriate buttons still works.

Q: You go back to cut down day and have to keep one player that the team cut/put on the practice squad and replace him with one player who finished the season on the 53 man or practice squad. Who are you swapping?

A: I would have dropped Cole Van Lanen or JaMycal Hasty and brought Gerrit Prince in their stead. Prince could have been a good backup for Evan Engram and ranked as the third-best tight end on the team in 2023 and possibly even into 2024.

Q: Who will be the first major contract cut announced by the team

A: This question makes me sad because I think it’s terrible when a player gets cut by a team. Having said that, Rayshawn Jenkins or Foley Fatukasi will get my vote. It makes the most sense to terminate Jenkins’ contract, and Fatukasi doesn’t seem like a good fit going forward.

Q: Do we know the exact specifications around the Ridley contract draft pick implications? Every time I bring up that I am expecting to not have a 2nd rounder I get told that as long as we wait until after the new league year (or use the franchise tag) that it will only be a 3rd rounder. Is that correct?

A: This is how it works, as far as I understand it: the Jaguars will owe the Atlanta Falcons a second-round pick if they sign Calvin Ridley to a contract extension before the new league year kicks off on March 13 at 4 p.m. It is a new contract for a free agent if they sign him after the league season starts rather than an extension. And in that scenario, all the Jaguars would have to do is forfeit the third-round pick that the Falcons are already certain to receive. That’s my understanding of the deal’s foundation, and the Jaguars’ perspective may differ.

Q: What would the Jags need to do in the offseason at a bare minimum to get them back on the trajectory we thought they were on?

A portion of it is, I believe, clearly getting better internally. Reducing the amount of turnovers and errors made by the offence, holding onto important players like Josh Allen and Calvin Ridley, and watching Ridley advance in his second season in the system. Such things.
However, I do believe that the Jaguars need to add at least four impact players through the draft and free agency. They need at least one more influential player on each side of the ball, but that doesn’t mean they need three starters who put up absurd numbers. If necessary, that could be a player at the Arden Key level. And since there haven’t been many players to base a team around over the past two years, at least two of those players ought to be rookies.

Q: What first-wave free agents do you see the Jags signing?

A: These are my predictions for the players on PFF’s Top-150 list: Adoree’ Jackson, Sheldon Rankins, Ezra Cleveland, and Calvin Ridley. The Jaguars should prioritise re-signing the first two, in my opinion, and Sheldon Rankins would be a valuable addition to strengthen the team’s interior pass-rush by reuniting with Ryan Nielsen, his former coach. Adoree’ Jackson could give the Jaguars depth at both outside and inside corner positions in addition to providing a free agent alternative for Jamal Agnew.

Q: Can I have a signed Trevor Lawrence Jersey please I’m a big fan of him

A: Is this Cole Fartley?

 

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