Mock Draft Roundup: PFF Slots Two Familiar Names to Jaguars in Post-Combine Mock

'Tis the season for mock drafts, a yearly tradition in which media attempt to project how the second-biggest day on the NFL calendar plays out.

As we inch closer and closer to the 2020 NFL Draft on Apr. 23, we will be tracking how other national media outlets are projecting the Jacksonville Jaguars to attack the draft. With two first-round picks for the first time since 1998, the Jaguars are one of the most interesting teams to monitor throughout this offseason, and it is worth examining how different people view the team's needs and how to address them.

Jacksonville owns picks No. 9 and No. 20, with the former a result of their 6-10 record and the latter a result of the team trading Jalen Ramsey to the Los Angeles Rams for a pair of first-round picks and one later round selection in 2021. With one of the weaker rosters in the AFC, the Jaguars have a number of directions they could take with their early picks that would make sense. It is ultimately hard to argue against more than two to three positions as positions of need for Jacksonville, so expect for mocks to continue to have wide-ranging results.

In a mock draft projected by Pro Football Focus this week, the Jaguars used each of their first-round selections to upgrade their defense. Each of the Jaguars' picks in this scenario is players we have seen mocked to the Jaguars a number of times by this point in the process, and don't expect that to change anytime soon.

So, how did PFF project the Jaguars' first round, and does it seem like a reasonable possibility for the draft to play out this way? We examined the picks to determine the answer.

No. 9: Auburn DT Derrick Brown

"Don’t get me wrong, I don’t believe Brown is as poor an athlete as he tested out at the Combine, where he put up the worst three-cone (8.22) of any defensive lineman in attendance," PFF wrote. "But there were concerns before Indy about whether he had enough juice to consistently affect the passing game, and those went unanswered with his testing. All that says is he may not be the can’t miss, top-five prospect some considered him to be before the draft."

While this doesn't lay out why Derrick Brown is a fit for the Jaguars, it does do a good job of summing up the concerns with Brown as a prospect, and why he is likely to be there for the Jaguars at No. 9 overall.

Brown is an elite run-stuffer as a zero- or one-technique defensive tackle, but he doesn't have the natural athleticism to change the complexion of a game from a three-technique. This could hurt his perceived value a bit and make him tumble past the first few picks, especially with players like Isaiah Simmons, Jeff Okudah, and several offensive linemen testing well. Those athletic players could be seen as more valuable than a top-tier run defending interior lineman, causing Brown to slip a bit come April.

The Jaguars need to be cognizant of this issue, but realistically they could still take Brown under the guise of drafting the best available player. Even with his faults, Brown still has some of the best tape of any player in this class and his projection to the NFL is a relatively safe one. He is NFL-ready and can step in and overhaul a run defense from his first day on the field.

With Marcell Dareus' team option declined by the Jaguars last week, Jacksonville now has a clear hole at the nose tackle position in Todd Wash's 4-3 defense. While the value of the pick is in question, the need and the rest of the draft class align for this selection to make sense.

No. 20: Alabama S Xavier McKinney

"McKinney’s greatness was never going to be captured in athletic testing. His 36-inch vertical and 10-foot-2 broad jump were solid if unspectacular figures for the position," PFF said. "On the field, though, McKinney is the do-it-all kind of safety the Jaguars have been missing."

The Jaguars like their starting safeties from 2019 more than most people on the outside do. They recently exercised Jarrod Wilson's team option, keeping him on the roster through 2021, and have referenced Ronnie Harrison as a player they expect to take a leap and be a leader moving into the future.

But even with Wilson and Harrison in the fold in 2020, it would make sense for the Jaguars to target a safety at some point in April. Whether that should be in the first round is a serious question mark, but the lack of depth at the position was a glaring issue in 2019 when Harrison dealt with a concussion. At the very least, the Jaguars need a No. 3 safety who could potentially push Wilson for a starting role on the defense.

McKinney would fill this role and more thanks to his versatility. He did it all for the Alabama defense, whether it was blitzing, playing as a deep safety, in the box, and even spending some time in the slot. He could be a moveable chess piece in the secondary that the Jaguars are currently missing, giving them more flexibility in the backend and providing them with a player who can match up with athletic tight ends.

The question the Jaguars would have to ponder in this scenario is whether the value of a safety would be greater than some of the other needs the Jaguars have, such as cornerback, defensive end, linebacker, or offensive tackle. It depends on how the board falls, but there is an argument to be made that players at those positions could make a more immediate impact for the Jaguars than McKinney.

How would you feel about this haul in the draft? Comment below and let us know!

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