Jaguars Could Kick Off Historic Run on Defensive Tackles in 2025 Draft

The Jacksonville Jaguars according to most mock drafts will take Michigan's Mason Graham at No. 5, first on a long list at the draft's best position.

Dec 16, 2018; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Marcell Dareus (99) during the second quarter at TIAA Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

Marcell Dareus finished his career in Jacksonville. And if most mock drafts are correct, Mason Graham will begin his career with the Jaguars.

By 9:30 p.m. ET on April 24, Dareus and Graham could have something else in common. Over the prior 14 drafts (2011-24), teams have drafted only two defensive tackles in the top five selections. Dareus went to Buffalo third overall in 2011 and Quinnen Williams to the Jets third overall in 2019.

Graham sits at the top of a historic class of defensive tackles. And Steve Muench of ESPN’s Scouts Inc. said Monday that the 2025 class compares to 2016 as one of the best ever at the position.

In ranking the defensive tackle the best position in the entire 2025 draft, Muench noted that just last year, eight DTs went in the first 50 selections for the first time since 2016.

“And that could actually happen again this year,” Muench wrote Monday. “There are seven defensive tackles currently in Scouts Inc.'s top 50, and Texas' Alfred Collins is sitting at 55th overall. In fact, this class could be even deeper, as 11 defensive tackles went in the top 100 last year, and there are 13 in Scouts Inc.'s top 100 this time around.”

No. 1 on that list of 13 is Graham. And that’s impressive considering he weighed in at just 296 pounds at the scouting combine. Draft expert Daniel Jeremiah said last month that Graham’s size is deceiving. Jeremiah saw him in pregame before Michigan’s showdown with Oregon last fall, and had his doubts.

“Then I proceeded to watch the game,” Jeremiah said, “and I was like, ‘Nope, nope. He's just really, really good.”

What makes Graham really good is elite leverage, balance and instincts, Jeremiah explained. He’s never on the ground and routinely beats blockers underneath, capitalizing on his wrestling background.

“I just wrote down when I was looking at my notes, I had ‘block destruction’ written down so many different times. He's just a real aggressive player who’s got instincts and can dominate the game against the run, and I think has more to offer as a pass rusher.”

Pass rushers are in abundance at the position this year. In 2024, only two defensive tackles went in the first round. This year, Graham could lead a group of four that could be off the board in Round 1, Muench said. That group includes Graham’s Michigan teammate Kenneth Grant, Mississippi’s Walter Nolen and Oregon’s Derrick Harmon.

So, who knows? The Jaguars might even take two defensive tackles. After all, they have 10 selections overall.

And the group of defensive tackles with first-round grades this year compares best to 2016, when teams took four of them on the first night. Still, this year could differentiate itself and possibly prove itself better than 2010, when Ndamukong Suh and Gerald McCoy were top-five choices.

“It is worth noting, though, that the 2016 class didn't have a top-10 pick, let alone a top-five pick.

“If this class exceeds expectations, it enters the conversation with that 2010 group for maybe the best defensive tackle class ever.”

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