5 Things We Will Be Closely Watching at Jaguars Rookie Minicamp

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars' 28-player rookie class will hit the practice field for the first time this weekend, and we will be there for all of it.

So, what will we be watching closely when Jaguars rookie minicamp officially kicks off this weekend? We break it down below.

Comparing the Rookie TEs

The highest-selected player by the Jaguars in this year's draft, Texas A&M tight end Nate Boerkircher will be the top attraction at practice on Saturday. The No. 56 overall pick in this year's class, Boerkircher is set to be a key piece of the Jaguars' offensive plans moving forward. With that said, the things he does best might not really be on full display until the Jaguars put the pads on.

While we will not see the Jaguars' shift to more 12 personnel happen over the course of one singular practice, it will be interesting to see Boerkircher's ability in the passing game on-air since he was not targeted much with the Aggies. At the same time, we will also see the Jaguars introduce fifth-round tight end Tanner Koziol, who is quite different than Boerkircher in terms of his skill-set.

In many ways, Koziol is closer to being an oversized receiver than he is a true tight end who will make their money in the trenches. That does mean this is the kind of setting where the athletic and productive pass-rusher could stand out, though, and it will be fascinating to see the Jaguars start to balance two young talents who could not be more different.

J'Mari Taylor's First Impression

One of the most interesting undrafted free agents signed to the Jaguars' roster is Virginia running back J'Mari Taylor. He had an incredible college career that checks all of the boxes of being intangibly rich, and the Jaguars even considered using a draft pick on Taylor. He is set to be the only rookie running back the Jaguars added this offseason, which could mean he gets plenty of chances to impress this weekend.

Taylor very well could push veteran running back DeeJay Dallas for a spot as the Jaguars' No. 4 running back over the course of training camp, and the start of that journey begings this weekend. It was this point last year when LeQuint Allen began to stand out, and Taylor very well could take advantage of his oppurtunity and do the same thing this weekend. It will also be interesting to see if the Jaguars have him return any kicks like he did in college.

Rookie Cornerbacks Begin Push to 53

The Jaguars' cornerback depth chart has a ton of talent at the top, led by Travis Hunter, Montaric Brown, Jarrian Jones, and Jourdan Lewis. Christian Braswell is an experienced and versatile No. 5 cornerback who the coaching staff is a fan of, and he also presents a lot ol special teams ability. That might mean the best chance for a Jaguars rookie cornerback to make the roster is at the No. 6 spot.

The only two rookie cornerbacks the Jaguars added this offseason were undrafted free agents Devon Marshall and Preston Hodge, who were two of the most productive cornerbacks in college football last season. Both players have a ton of ball skills, toughness, and the ability to play inside and out.

Again, no jobs will be won or lost here. That comes in the training camp, and this serves as simply the first of many steps toward finding a spot on the Jaguars' roster. But it still an important step, especially in terms of seeing who gains the early momentum in the push for the 53-man roster.

Joey Aguilar's Day

Joey Aguilar is not set to be the only quarterback on the practice field this weekend. Monmouth quarterback Derek Robertson announced an invitation to rookie minicamp following the draft in April, which means the Jaguars will have a pair of rookie arms taking the field under Liam Coen, Grant Udinski, and Spencer Whipple this weekend. With that said, Aguilar is the most interesting signal-caller the Jaguars will host.

Aguilar is an older quarterback whose age and extensive college career likely kept him from being trafed. He has a legit arm and some quality traits as a passer, though, and there is a real scenario where he develops and pushes Carter Bradley for the No. 3 quarterback job. For Aguilar to do that, though, he will need to impress here and there at rookie minicamp.

Aguilar has the talent to do just that, and there will be no shortage of weapons at his disposal as he will be the one getting the ball to the Jaguars' four drafted pass-catchers. He will be one of the most interesting players to track over the course of the first rookie practice.

The Deep Rookie WR Room

Wide receivers take up 25% of the Jaguars' rookie group: they drafted two receivers in Baylor's Josh Cameron and Stanford's CJ Williams, while they also signed five undrafted rookies in Brady Boyd, Alex Bullock, Ben Patterson, Michael Wortham, and Trebor Peña. This means there will be seven rookie receivers on the field, and that does not even take into account any potential non-rookies who will be at practice.

Cameron is obviously the biggest name of the group, but the Jaguars have plenty of different types of receivers who will be on the field: big targets, slot receiver types, returners, and everything else. There will be a battle for depth spots at receiver, and this is where players can start to make their statements and really push for a spot.

It is fair to say that Cameron should have the biggest edge considering he was the highest-drafted player the Jaguars have at the position. His best stuff might come when the pads come on, though, since he excells at breaking tackles, blocking, and special teams. Wortham is an electric athlete who can do a lot of different things on the field, which makes him an interesting name to keep an eye on.

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