2021 NFL Draft: New TDN Mock Gives Support to Jaguars Franchise QB

While we continue to march through the 2020 season, we will take looks at mock drafts from throughout the football industry to reflect on what outside projections for the Jacksonville Jaguars look like.

The Jaguars currently hold the No. 2 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, along with the Los Angeles Rams first-round pick as a result of the Jalen Ramsey trade. As of this writing, the Jaguars have 11 picks in the upcoming draft.

It is wintertime in the NFL. Presents are being wrapped, coaches and executives are having their seats warmed like chestnuts, and there is another mock draft available to dissect for Jacksonville Jaguars' purposes.

We have gone through several mock drafts throughout the last month to reflect on how people are projecting players to the Jaguars -- and if the picks make sense -- and that continues here as we look at a mock draft from Trevor Sikkema and The Draft Network.

Luckily, this next mock comes at a perfect time for Jaguars purposes. The Jaguars have doubled down on starting Mike Glennon over Gardner Minshew and Minshew expressed his frustration over not playing to ESPN's Michael DiRocco earlier this week. It has become clear the Jaguars don't see Minshew as the franchise quarterback moving forward, so full attention can be diverted to this year's crops of quarterbacks.

The mock also comes after performances from the two quarterbacks considered by most to be the No. 2 and No. 3 passers in the class. Who is ranked where is highly debated, but Ohio State's Justin Fields and BYU's Zach Wilson both played big games last Saturday. Fields impressed as Ohio State rolled, but Wilson looked human in BYU's first loss of the season at the hands of Coastal Carolina.

All of this equals a perfect scenario for speculating the Jaguars' next franchise quarterback and, perhaps just as importantly, how they will build around that quarterback.

Sikkema does just that, painting an interesting potential future for the Jaguars' offense as a result. Who does he pick for the Jaguars, and do the picks make sense? We examine below.

No. 2: Ohio State QB Justin Fields

Sikkema went with Fields over Wilson here and, honestly, it is hard to blame him. Wilson has had an absolutely stellar season and should be in the Heisman conversation, but he didn't have the kind of game against the best defense he will play all year that many likely wanted to see from him.

Wilson still played fine overall and was admittedly plagued by both drops and some ... interesting coaching decisions, but it still wasn't the showcase many likely hoped they would see.

Fields, meanwhile, put on a stellar show against Michigan State. These evaluations will of course not be based on one game from each quarterback, but it was good to see Fields bounce back after a three-interception performance against Indiana in his most previous game.

Things have gone so smoothly for Fields since he has come to Ohio State. He is 18-1 as a starter and has a TD/INT ratio of 56/6 as the Buckeyes' starting quarterback. But his game against Michigan State was maybe the first chance for NFL teams and scouts to see how he would respond following a bad game because there is a good argument to make that his game against the Hoosiers was his first true "bad" game as a starting NCAA quarterback.

In his bounceback game, Fields went on to record four touchdowns and 303 yards from scrimmage (199 passing, 103 rushing) in a 52-12 win that was never close. Fields was diligent in how he attacked Michigan State, taking the safe throws until the vertical threats opened up. He also showed his dual-threat ability by recording 8.0 yards per carry and scoring two red-zone touchdowns with his legs.

This one week doesn't jump Fields in front of Wilson, obviously. The talent of each will be debated for the next five months. But Fields had little questions about his talent or resume entering last week aside from how he would respond following a poor performance. If last Saturday is any indication, Fields should do just fine when he is forced to have a short memory at the NFL level.

Which of the two fits the Jaguars the most today, though? It is hard to say considering the Jaguars still don't have their next general manager or head coach, but Fields is the safer pick. He has a better injury history, has done more on a bigger stage, and simply looks like a high-ceiling quarterback whose floor is relatively high as well.

In short, this pick gets the stamp of approval. Wilson is a fantastic prospect and we wouldn't bat an eye at any team taking him at No. 2, but Fields should be the Jaguars' pick as of now.

No. 26: Texas OT Samuel Cosmi

Much like several other mocks we have covered here, the Jaguars get an offensive tackle with their pick from the Rams. Sikkema slots them Texas left tackle Samuel Cosmi, which is a bit of a changeup from Teven Jenkins and Christian Darrisaw.

Cosmi has plenty of experience and decided to give Texas another season of his talent in 2020 as opposed to opting out. As a redshirt sophomore he started all 13 games and was named second-team All-Big 12 Conference, so he has played at a high level throughout his career. He has spent time at left and right tackle and while he declared for the 2021 NFL Draft at the end of November.

"After back-to-back years of strong play in 2018 and 2019 that ended in PFF grades of 79.7 and 83.9, respectively, Texas left tackle Samuel Cosmi has taken his play to elite status in 2020," PFF said about Cosmi earlier this month.

"His consistency stands out the most, with him recording a single game PFF grade above 70.0 in each of his seven starts. That has combined to form a 90.3 season grade, ranking ninth among all FBS tackles."

Consistency is exactly what the Jaguars need at the tackle position. Eventually, the Jaguars will have to decide whether they want to keep some continuity along the offensive line and pay an inconsistent Cam Robinson likely north of $10 million a year or trust a rookie tackle like Cosmi.

In our eyes, going with Cosmi would be the right move here. Sure it may be a bit intimidating to put your new franchise quarterback on the field with a rookie blindside protector, but Cosmi has proven at Texas that he is a reliable and effective blocker on the edge.