What Brandon Beane's Comments on the 2023 Draft Class Mean for the Jaguars at No. 24

Brandon Beane gave the blunt truth about the 2023 draft class on Tuesday, which could say a few things about what the Jaguars' options are at No. 24.

Buffalo Bills general manager gave one of the most honest answers of the offseason on Tuesday, reflecting on the strength of the 2023 draft class as it gets deeper into the first round.

"It's not great."

Bills GM Brandon Beane wouldn't say how many, but said "It's not great" when asked how many first round grades they have this year on players in the draft.

— Joe Buscaglia (@JoeBuscaglia) April 18, 2023

Considering the Bills and Beane pick at No. 27 -- just three picks after the Jaguars' selection at No. 24 -- it is fair to say this is an opinion that quite a few teams throughout the 20s might share. 

It is a bit of a strange argument to make that there aren't 32 players worth taking with first round picks in every draft class (31 in this year's case). But the simple fact is that NFL teams operate with strict values in terms of player evaluation and investment. 

While there are likely not many classes where teams have 32 bonafide first-round grades, it is fair to wonder just how many players in this year's draft class would be a first-round pick in most other drafts. For this specific draft, between 16-20 sounds like a fair estimate. 

In short, that means there is a fair chance the second half of the first round next Thursday could get, well, interesting. There were raised eyebrows when Georgia Tech defensive lineman Keion White was invited to the draft, but that gives an idea of just what kind of prospects you can expect to see go off the board in the 20s and 30s. 

If this impacts the Bills, then it impacts the Jaguars, too. Every team's board is wildly different and not every team will agree on the strength of this draft class. But if the consensus is that this is a weaker first-round in comparison to past drafts, then it could be tough for teams like the Jaguars and Bills to trade down.

Considering that moving down would be the best option for both teams, this is obviously unfortunate. It could mean that each team is potentially aggressive in moving up a few picks for a player they have a first-round pick on, but ultimately it likely means they will be making their original selections at No. 24 and No. 27.

"Every year there’s strengths and weaknesses in the draft, positions that maybe have more depth, but the key, again, is taking a look at what our needs are but also factoring in the best available as we stack the board," Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke said last month at the NFL Scouting Combine. 

"We want to stack the board true to the value of the player. Then we’ll make the decisions once we get the board stacked.”

How that board falls will be a mystery until next Thursday. But for now, it looks like it could be hard for teams in the Jaguars' and Bills' range to be sellers.