Jaguars Mailbag: How Can Jacksonville Take Advantage of Deep OL Draft Pool?
Throughout the offseason, we will be taking questions on the biggest questions facing the Jacksonville Jaguars.
You can submit your questions every week by tweeting them to the Jaguar Report Twitter handle or by submitting them here.
This week we take questions on the Jaguars' offensive line, the 2024 NFL Draft, and more.
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: I don't think the Jaguars should move up for an offensive lineman in this class. Offensive line looks like the deepest and most top-heavy position group in this class. Dane Brugler of The Athletic, for example, has eight offensive linemen in his top-20, with most of those coming in the 10-20 range. Add in quarterbacks being pushed up and not every team in the Jaguars' range needing an offensive lineman, and the Jaguars should be able to stay at No. 17 and have a starting-caliber lineman fall to them if that is the route they want to go.
Q: Will the Jags offseason roster surgery be done with the precision of a scalpel or of a chainsaw?
A: How about with a pizza cutter? That seems in between. The Jaguars have too many holes to fill and not enough resources to be as aggressive as they arguably should be, so I don't think this is a completely clean offseason. With that said, there are still plenty of avenues for them to take to improve the roster moving forward via free-agency and the draft. The correct buttons can still be pressed.
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 cut either JaMycal Hasty or Cole Van Lanen and replaced them with Gerrit Prince. Prince would have been the third best tight end on the roster in 2023 and arguably entering 2024 and would have been a quality backup for Evan Engram.
Q: Who will be the first major contract cut announced by the team
A: I think it is unfortunate anytime a player is let go by a team so this question bums me out a bit. With that said, I will go with Foley Fatukasi or Rayshawn Jenkins. Jenkins' contract makes the most sense to walk away from, while Fatukasi just doesn't seem like a fit moving 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: To my understanding, here is how it works: if the Jaguars sign Calvin Ridley to a contract extension before the new league year begins on March 13 at 4 p.m., they will owe the Atlanta Falcons a second-round pick because it would be a contract extension. If they sign him after the league year begins, it isn't an extension -- it is a new deal for a free-agent. And in that case, the Jaguars would have to just give up the third-round pick that is already guaranteed to go to the Falcons. I could be incorrect, but I believe that is the basis of the deal and how the Jaguars are viewing it as well.
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: I think part of it is obviously improving internally. Less turnovers and mistake-prone play from the offense, keeping key pieces like Calvin Ridley and Josh Allen, having Ridley take a step in his second year in the system. Those types of things.
I do think the Jaguars need to add at least four impact contributors in free-agency and the draft, however. That doesn't mean three starters who put up crazy numbers, but they need at least one more impactful player on each side of the ball. That can be an Arden Key-level player if need be. And at least two of those players should be rookies after the last two years have produced minimal players to build the future around.
Q: What first-wave free agents do you see the Jags signing?
A: Out of the players on PFF's Top-150 list, here are my predictions: Calvin Ridley, Ezra Cleveland, Sheldon Rankins, and Adoree' Jackson. I think the first two will be priority re-signings for the Jaguars, while Sheldon Rankins would be a key addition to reunite with his former coach in Ryan Nielsen to improve the Jaguars' interior pass-rush. Adoree' Jackson could provide depth to both inside and outside corner spots while also giving the Jaguars a replacement for free-agent Jamal Agnew.
Q: Can I have a signed Trevor Lawrence Jersey please I’m a big fan of him
A: Is this Cole Fartley?
