What We Saw From Nate Boerkircher and Jaguars' 2026 Draft Class at OTA No. 1

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars are back into the swing of things.

After a long offseason, the Jaguars' roster officially hit the practice field together on Tuesday as Liam Coen's squad put in a few hours of work for the first OTA session of the 2026 season.

QB1 (and QB1’s hair) pic.twitter.com/Znj1ZbeKyE
— John Shipley (@_John_Shipley) May 26, 2026

Tuesday was not the first time the Jaguars' rookie class was on the field at the Miller Electric Center; the 10-man draft class and 16 undrafted free agents performed at rookie minicamp two weeks ago. But it did give us our first chance to see the rookies blend in with the veteran roster, and quite a few impressions were made.

So, what did we see from the Jaguars' '26 draft class during their first OTA practice? We take a look below.

TE Nate Boerkircher

The top pick of the Jaguars' entire draft class, Nate Boerkircher certainly looked at home in the Jaguars' offense during his first OTA practice. It is clear that the tight end will be first and foremost led by Brenton Strange, who could ascend to the status of one of the NFL's best tight ends in 2026, but Boerkircher did not look out of place behind him.

While Boerkircher's game will be better appreciated and evaluated when the pads come on, he did show some serious pop in his hands during blocking drills. He also caught a pass over the middle during 7-on-7 drills for a solid gain, showing some impressive acceleration in space for his size. Boerkircher will stand out more and more once things get a bit more real, but he had a solid day.

"So, when you ask how quickly it was, it was probably pretty quick into the first game you put on that you see the way he plays, the effort, the strain, the physicality, the toughness, the speed, all of those things," Jaguars offensive coordinator Grant Udinski said after practice when we asked how quickly into his evaluation of Boerkircher he became a fan. "They pop off the tape no matter what clip you're watching.”

DL Albert Regis

alkbert regi — Feb 26, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Texas A&M defensive lineman Albert Regis (DL26) during the NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

It is naturally difficult for a defensive tackle to really play their game during an OTA practice. There are no pads on, and the running plays are clearly simulated at a different pace and intensity. That means we got a limited look at the Jaguars' entire defensive tackle room, including No. 81 overall pick Albert Regis.

Effort and motor can be evaluated during a time like this, however, and Regis certainly looked like he had the playstyle the Jaguars proclaimed he would bring. He truly does fly around the field and goes non-stop until the whistle. He is one to watch in training camp when the pads come on and he can really show what he can do.

OL Emmanuel Pregnon

Emmanuel Pregnon has certainly added some new blood to the Jaguars' offensive line, and his stature as one of the unit's most imposing physical skill-sets is easy to see. He certainly stands out amongst the Jaguars' offensive lineman with his size and frame, which says something considering he has been in the NFL for just a month to this point.

It will be tough to win a job at guard, of course, because the Jaguars certainly have some strong depth at guard. Ezra Cleveland, Patrick Mekari and Wyatt Milum are also set to factor into the guard position, which could provide an early hurdle for Pregnon's path to playing time.

DB Jalen Huskey

While Jalen Huskey did not get his hand on any footballs during Tuesday's practice, it was not hard to see why the Jaguars were interested in bringing him into the fold in the top-100. Without giving away too much about what took place, Huskey was certainly used in a number of ways in one practice alone.

Safety does look like a deep position group for the Jaguars, however, and that group stood out in a big way on Tuesday. Caleb Ransaw made his return, Antonio Johnson was active, and Eric Murray had an interception of Trevor Lawrence. A strong day from the entire safety room shows the kind of battle Huskey will be in for playing time.

DE Wesley Williams

Wesley Williams plays a position that is already tough to evaluate during this time of the year, but his physical skill-set and ability as a run-defender make him an even tougher player to really note in OTA practices. With that said, it did appear the backup defensive lines were doing a good job shutting down running lanes, and he was a part of that.

TE Tanner Koziol

It was a quiet practice for Tanner Koziol, but that is a direct result of the amount of mouths there are to feed in the Jaguars' offense as a whole, and then in the tight end room alone. Brenton Strange was a major focus, Nate Boerkircher will get his reps, and then Quintin Morris caught several passes during team drills. Koziol will have to fight for reps.

With that said, I do believe Koziol is going to be a perfect match for tight ends coach Richard Angulo. You can tell how keyed into the details of the position Angulo demands his room to be, especially in run blocking. Just watching Angulo coach Koziol in blocking should give confidence that he can take leaps in that regard.

WR Josh Cameron

Josh Cameron did not practice on Tuesday, but that was completely expected after he worked to the side during rookie minicamp. James Gladstone noted after the draft that he is dealing with an injury, so training camp should be his time to make an impression. There is certainly room to do so behind the Jaguars' top receivers.

WR CJ Williams

CJ Williams was one of the standout performers of rookie minicamp, and he had another productive practice outing on Tuesday. Williams was able to draw a defensive pass interference penalty on a deep route late in practice, and he otherwise continued to show solid hands and quickness as a route-runner.

In terms of the wide receiver room, it is clear who the top four are. Behind that group, though, it certainly felt on Tuesday as if Williams was one of the best receivers the Jaguars had amongst their backups. He keeps stacking good days.

DE Zach Durfee

Like we noted above in a few other cases, it is hard to really get a good feel for some positions in practices like these that have no pads and limited rules of engagement. Defensive end is one of those positions, which meant we mostly had to take a look at the physical traits that Zach Durfee brought to the table.

With that in mind, it did feel like Durfee's overall quickness was able to catch offensive linemen off guard off the snap. Durfee brings a different kind of skill-set to the Jaguars' defensive end room and that short-area burst definitely shows up in this setting. The true tests will come when the pads come on, however.

LB Parker Hughes

The final selection the Jaguars made in the 2026 draft, Parker Hughes has all of the tools to be a standout special teamer right off the bat. Hughes has legit speed at linebacker and has the profile the Jaguars like in terms of being a culture fit. Look for him to impress in the Jaguars' preseason when the Jaguars' starters are unlikely to play.

As for his first OTA practice, Hughes did make what would have been a tackle for loss during team drills late in practice. A checkdown pass was made to Ameer Abdullah, and Hughes quickly closed on him to shut down the play. It was a good first impression considering his speed is set to be the key part of his game.

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