2023 NFL Draft: 3 Potential Scenarios for the Jaguars’ First 3 Picks

All offseason long, the Jacksonville Jaguars have emphasized the importance of the NFL Draft.

We will know just how well the Jaguars executed their plans in just a few weeks.

With the Jaguars holding nine picks in this year's draft, which kicks off on April 27, some clear roster holes have to be addressed. Chief among those are pass-rusher, cornerback and offensive tackle.

Anything can happen during the draft, so to assume the Jaguars will automatically take a guaranteed combination of one tackle, one corner and one edge defender with their first three picks would be foolish. It would be irresponsible for any team to draft with that kind of needs-based mindset.

But even with this in mind, it is still worth examining the potential hauls the Jaguars could draft to fill their three biggest needs ahead of the draft. To do this, we ran three different mock drafts on Pro Football Network's mock draft simulator.

Which scenario would present the best value? What do the results say about how the Jaguars should prioritize their most valuable picks? These are the questions we aim to find.

Scenario 1

No. 24: EDGE Nolan Smith, Georgia

No. 56: CB D.J. Turner, Michigan

No. 88: OL Tyler Steen, Alabama

This scenario sees the Jaguars push cornerback and offensive line to Day 2, instead focusing on their pass-rush with the No. 24 overall pick. Nolan Smith posted a 22.2% pass-run win-rate in 2022 according to Pro Football Focus, while also recording a 4.39 40-yard dash, a 41-inch vertical jump, and a 10-foot-8 broad jump. He never posted high sack numbers, but he is a great athlete who can play the run and be moved around the defense as a rookie. He has the traits to be a better player in the pros than in college.

Turner ran a 4.26 40-yard dash and recorded a 38.5-inch vertical jump, showing the physical traits that could entice a team in the top-50. He is undersized at 176 pounds, but he has all of the athleticism one could want in a developmental corner.

Steen worked out for Jaguars offensive line coach Phil Rauscher at his pro day and could be a guard conversion due to 32.75-inch arms, but he could also be a swing tackle option after playing both right and left tackle at Alabama and testing well in the agility drills.

Scenario 2

No. 24: DB Brian Branch, Alabama

No. 56: EDGE Keion White, Georgia Tech

No. 88: OL Warren McClendon, Georgia

The Jaguars opt to address the secondary instead of the pass-rush in the first in this scenario, taking a nickel corner as opposed to an outside one to develop behind Darious Williams. The best pure slot cornerback in the draft, Brian Branch could be Trent Baalke's version of Jimmie Ward, who he selected in the first-round of the 2014 NFL Draft with the San Francisco 49ers. Baalke set a precedent then for taking nickel defenders in the first-round, and Branch compares well to Ward from a metrics standpoint. Branch spent 74% of his snaps in 2022 in the slot and is one of the best tacklers, blitzers and pure cover guys in the class.

White tied for No. 8 among edge defenders in sack rate (2.9%), though his 13% pressure rate just No. 11, according to Sports Info Solutions. Still, White has a ton of length and athleticism and is a force in the run game, giving himself a high floor with the ceiling to develop as an inside/outside pass-rusher.

Warren McClendon has 38 starts at right tackle under his belt, proving to be a key cog in Georgia's offense during their dominant three-year stretch. McClendon could be an instant backup to Walker Little in 2023 and then slide into the starting role if Little ever moves to left tackle on a full-time basis.

Scenario 3

No. 24: OT Darnell Wright, Tennessee

No. 56: EDGE Derick Hall, Auburn

No. 88: CB Darius Rush, South Carolina

In this scenario, the Jaguars opt to replace Jawaan Taylor in the first-round and then use their second-round pick to add to the edge rush. Darnell Wright is a former top-10 recruit who has years of experience at both left and right tackle, posting just a 0.7% blown block percentage in 2022 (No. 2 among tackles in 2023 class) per Sports Info Solutions.

Hall is an incomplete pass-rusher given his current traits, but he has the length, explosiveness and speed to develop into a quality edge rusher. He can out-athlete tackles for now while he adds to his pass-rush toolbox, though there are questions about how impactful he can be against the run.

Rush doesn't get the same hype as teammate Cam Smith but it makes sense if some teams may prefer him and his physical traits. Rush ran a 4.36 at 6-foot-2, 198 pounds and has 95th percentile length, along with years of starting experience in the SEC. A tough and instinctual player, Rush could add depth and savvy to the Jaguars' defense from the jump.