Jaguars Rookie Review: What Did Anton Harrison Show in 2023?
The Jaguars selected 13 players in the 2023 draft, the most in franchise history. However, most of these picks came between the 5th and 7th rounds. Some rookies showed flashes of promise in 2023, while others rarely saw the field for a variety of reasons.
To break down the class, we take a look at their first pick: first-round offensive tackle Anton Harrison.
Harrison was undoubtedly the Jaguars most impressive rookie last season. Harrison hails from Washington D.C, where he was a 2 sport star at Archbishop Carroll high school. He was recruited to play football and basketball at Maryland, but opted to play football at the University of Oklahoma. Harrison was a First-team All-Big 12 Selection at Oklahoma before being drafted 27th overall by the Jaguars. The former Sooner was the only rookie Jaguar to start all 17 games in 2023.
2023 Performance
Starting all 17 games, Harrison showed enough promise in 2023 that a solid performance in 2024 would cement him as a franchise centerpiece.
He gave up the lowest percentage of pressures out of all rookie lineman according to PFF (6.3%). His improvement was evident throughout the season. Harrison did not allow a single sack in the final 9 games of the year. Although there is room for improvement, Harrison held his own against some of the league's top pass rushers (Joey Bosa, TJ Watt, Von Miller, Jadveon Clowney, Deforest Buckner).
At 6-foot-5 and 315 pounds, Harrison is strong enough to be a patient pass-blocker. Rather than lunging at defenders, he allows them to come to him. He often stabilizes them at the point of contact by rolling his hips and maintaining a strong grip. While he rarely knocks opponents off-balance, Harrison’s technique has proven to be effective.
He faced an abundance of talent in 2023, but the Jaguars rarely had to scheme for Harrison to receive any help. According to PFF, Harrison faced former NFL Defensive Player of the Year TJ Watt on 95.5% of all pass-rushing snaps in Week 8. Although he gave up a sack that game (he allowed 5 in 2023), the Jaguars decision to let Harrison face Watt on his own shows their trust in the 22-year-old rookie.
The former basketball star has flashed his athleticism on sweep, screen and trap plays. On multiple occasions, Harrison has been used as a pulling tackle to block linebackers and defensive backs in the open field. Harrison has a knack for “finding work” if he doesn't have an immediate threat in front of him.
At times, Harrison struggled against shorter, quicker defensive ends who changed directions effectively. When pass-rushers with better leverage would shoot across Harrison’s face, he often lacked the agility to recover properly. Although he excels at being patient and rarely over-committing to a defenders first move, he may benefit from being a bit more aggressive initially.
Harrison also has succumbed to defenders who have advanced hand placement (often veterans). While it may appear that Harrison is initially winning the battle, a quick chop or rip move can be all it takes to get knocked off balance (exhibited by Nick Bosa in Week 10).
Although he did not miss any time throughout the 2023 regular season, Harrison suffered a shoulder injury in training camp that lingered throughout the season. In January, Harrison underwent a minor procedure on that shoulder.
