NFL Draft: How Do Experts Grade the Jaguars' 2021 Haul?

The 2021 NFL Draft is over. 250+ picks have been made, lives have been changed forever, and the trajectory of all 32 NFL franchises has shifted in a major way.

The Jacksonville Jaguars were particularly active during the draft, selecting nine players and kicking off the entire event with the No. 1 overall pick, Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

After adding nine new Jaguars, what do the experts in the national draft media have to say about Jacksonville's class? We examine below.

Mel Kiper, ESPN: B

ESPN's resident draft expert gave Urban Meyer and Trent Baalke a B for their first draft, mostly dinging the Jaguars for taking a running back in the first-round (even if it is a talented running back like Travis Etienne. Kiper also noted that fifth-round tight end Luke Farrell "was more of a seventh-rounder or priority free agent" in his eyes, and he would have taken Boston College tight end Hunter Long at No. 65. The Jaguars instead drafted Syracuse safety Andre Cisco at that spot, with Hunter Long being taken by the Miami Dolphins later in the third round at No. 81 overall.

"The No. 1 pick has been such a foregone conclusion for so long that we probably didn't talk enough about how good Trevor Lawrence is and can be. This is a 6-foot-6 quarterback with superstar potential who is my fourth-highest graded quarterback in the 43 years I've been doing this," Kiper said.

"He's a special talent, and Meyer and general manager Trent Baalke showed their commitment to him immediately by adding Lawrence's Clemson teammate Travis Etienne (25). Etienne is a really good running back and pass-catcher, but I have to ding them a little bit for taking a first-round tailback."

Nate Davis, USA Today: A+

Nate Davis of USA Today gave the Jaguars an A+ grade for their 2021 draft haul, largely placing his praise on the selection of Lawrence. Yes, Lawrence was the easy and obvious selection, but he is also the top player drafted this weekend. The simple inclusion of him at the top of the class will earn the Jaguars high marks, just as they did with Davis.

"Keeping first-round RB Travis Etienne, another Clemson product, teamed with Lawrence makes perfect sense, while second-round OT Walker Little and third-round S Andre Cisco have significant upside if fully healthy. Second-round CB Tyson Campbell has great physical traits but needs to polish his football skills," Davis wrote.

Pro Football Network: B+

Another passing grade, another example of evaluators showering the Jaguars with some expected critiques for selecting Clemson running back Travis Etienne at No. 25 overall. Taking a running back at No. 25 will never be accepted in the media in general, but especially not for a team fresh off a 1-15 season. Still, count Pro Football Network as overall fans of the Jaguars' haul.

"The Jacksonville Jaguars started their draft off in the best way possible with Trevor Lawrence. However, questionable selections such as Travis Etienne at 25 were not quite so impressive. Their B+ grade shows that overall they had an impressive haul in the 2021 draft," Pro Football Network said.

For The Win: A-

While the Trevor Lawrence class does the vast majority of the heavy lifting for the Jaguars' grade with this specific ranking, For The Win graded the Jaguars' class an A- and the No. 5 best class in the league. With that said, For The Win found a few picks questionable enough to examine them in a different light than the Lawrence pick.

"Lawrence is enough to elevate this class on his own, but I wasn’t really a fan of the rest of this class. Urban Meyer kicking off his NFL career by taking a third-down running back (those are his words) in the first round has to give Jags fans some concerns," For The Win Said. He followed that up by taking Campbell, who struggled in man coverage and did not have a very good 2020 season. Seems like a bad fit for the defense Jacksonville is trying to establish. Of course, none of those missteps will be remembered if/when Lawrence becomes a star."

Mark Maske, Washington Post: B

As Washington Post's Mark Maske notes, the Jaguars should have been expected to walk away with a considerable boost in talent throughout the roster considering the immensely valuable trade assets they entered the week with. Like the others, he called the Etienne pick into question but praised the selection of Lawrence.

"Did Meyer and GM Trent Baalke do enough with their other picks to properly support Lawrence? It’s borderline. It’s easy to question using a first-rounder on RB Travis Etienne, but he’s versatile enough that he just might be able to justify the choice," Maske said.

Danny Kelly, The Ringer: A+

A fan of several of the Jaguars' draft picks, The Ringer's Danny Kelly gave the Jaguars one of the highest grades of the 32 teams. Like the others, he notes the loss of value when selecting Etienne, but he feels as if the Jaguars added enough talent to the roster to offset that lone concern.

"I didn’t love the value Jacksonville got by selecting a running back with the 25th overall pick, but I still thought the Jags came away with an excellent group of players this weekend," Kelly said. "The Lawrence selection carries most of the weight in this grade, but the team added future starters on all three days of the event."

PFF: B+

Even when factoring in Lawrence, I am a bit surprised the Jaguars got a B+ from Pro Football Focus considering the selection of Etienne at No. 25 goes the complete other way of what PFF values. That likely shows you just how high PFF is on Lawrence, who was the company's No. 1 quarterback.

"Little’s NFL projection requires some imagination given that he’s played just 72 total snaps over the course of the last two seasons. A 2019 injury and 2020 opt-out have kept Little from being able to show his development on a football field," PFF said. "This still stands out as a strong bet for the Jaguars given Little’s physical tools and an 81.2 pass-blocking grade as a true sophomore at Stanford in 2018. Little was PFF’s OT4 and a top-30 player overall on the big board."

Conor Orr, Sports Illustrated: C+

SI's Conor Orr gave the Jaguars one of the lower draft grades you will see for the squad this spring, largely noting that the Jaguars' draft contained a few odd picks in his eyes following the clear selection of Lawrence. Taking Etienne at No. 25 isn't a move that will have a lot of fans outside of TIAA Bank Field and some league circles and that is no difference here; the Farrell pick also comes under some fair scrutiny.

"The Jaguars got Trevor Lawrence … and then the draft took a turn for the strange," Orr said. "Trust me, I’m ready to be proven wrong here, but this may be Urban Meyer’s collegiate sensibilities showing. Travis Etienne is a phenomenal playmaker, but is he worth allocating this much equity for, especially as a position-less third-down weapon?"

Matt Lombardo, Fansided: A

Count Fansided's Matt Lombardo as a fan of the Jaguars' overall draft class. Taking Lawrence is the major reason he gave the Jaguars an A, but he appears to be just as high on the rest of their selections.

"Picking first ensured the Jacksonville Jaguars a generational quarterback prospect, Trevor Lawrence, but Urban Meyer and Co. have done an outstanding job laying the foundation around the former Clemson standout," Lombardo said.