2025 NFL Draft: Analyst Projects Game-Changer to Jaguars in Latest Mock

Who did ESPN's Field Yates mock to the Jacksonville Jaguars at No. 5?

Apr 28, 2022; Las Vegas, NV, USA; The Pick Is In is displayed before Georgia defensive end Travon Walker is announced as the first overall pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars during the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft at the NFL Draft Theater. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Sooner than later, the Jacksonville Jaguars and new head coach Liam Coen will have a potentially franchise-changing opportunity.

When the 2025 NFL Draft comes around, Coen and the Jaguars will be able to use the No. 5 pick to potentially make a statement and set the tone for the start of a new regime. But how exactly should they use the pick?

That, for now, is the million dollar question -- especially considering the Jaguars still need to make a general manager hire.

With that in mind, it is always a smart process to look at what evaluators, insiders and draft experts project to the Jaguars at various stages of the offseason.

This time, the mock comes from ESPN's Field Yates. And in Yates' projection of the draft's first round, he has the Jaguars going in an expected but impactful direction with University of Michigan defensive lineman Mason Graham.

"The Jaguars need major repairs on defense after finishing 31st in yards allowed per play (5.9), last in net passing yards allowed per attempt (7.5), 30th in interceptions (six) and 28th in sacks (34)," Yates said.

"Graham is one of my top three players, as he combines elite quickness off the ball as an interior disrupter and the strength to change the complexion of a run defense. From the day he stepped onto Michigan's campus, he was a difference-maker. He could be that again in Jacksonville between Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker."

There is no doubt the Jaguars could use the pass-rush help. The Jaguars' pass-rush was completely fueled by Hines-Allen and Walker last year. It isn't a sustainable method to begin with since it didn't work last year to begin with, but the Jaguars have now gone back-to-back seasons with no backup pass-rush plan.

The Jaguars' pass-rush has been especially troublesome from the interior during that span, with most of the Jaguars' interior rushers finishing in the bottom quarter of qualifying defensive tackles in terms of pressure rate in 2023 and 2024.

The Jaguars have two players on the roster who could provide some pass-rush up the middle in Arik Armstead and Maason Smith, but this year's Super Bowl showed that you can never have too many disruptive defensive linemen.

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