Senior Bowl Preview: Which DTs in Mobile Should the Jaguars Be Interested In?

In a few short weeks, the Jaguars will have a chance to see the nation's top senior draft prospects up close. Which DTs should they focus on?

Every January, herds of NFL coaches, scouts, front office executives and more flock to Mobile, Alabama for the Reese's Senior Bowl. Here, they are able to witness first-hand how the top senior NFL Draft Prospects take to NFL coaching and perform in individual drills.

This year's Senior Bowl, which commences on Jan. 25, will once again provide teams like the Jacksonville Jaguars a key opportunity to scout their potential picks come April.

JaguarMaven will be present at Mobile this year to provide the most comprehensive content possible for Jaguars coverage, but until then we will preview each position group leading up to the week of practice. 

This preview will focus on arguably Jacksonville's greatest need entering 2020: defensive tackle. Jacksonville had the second-worst rush defense in terms of yards allowed per rush in 2019, and a big reason was because of the loss of Marcell Dareus early in the season and the ineffectiveness of nose tackle Abry Jones in his place.

Luckily for the Jaguars, there are a number of talented defensive tackles set to take center stage in Mobile. Here are a few the Jaguars should hone in on during the week:

Alabama DT Raekwon Davis

A three-year starter for the Crimson Tide, the 6'7", 312-pound Davis exploded onto the scene in 2017. He led Alabama in sacks with 8.5, recorded an interception and a fumble recovery, and totaled 10 tackles for loss. After his breakout first season as a starter though, Davis' numbers fell off of a cliff the last two years. In 2018 and 2019 combined, Davis recorded two sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss, a far cry from his terrific production in 2017.

Despite the dip in numbers, Davis still has the tools to entice a team like Jacksonville who needs versatile defensive lineman to play all across the front. He is a physical presence who looks like he was modeled out of clay, but he needs to show he can put those tools together to create constant disruption. The week in Mobile will be telling to the NFL on how Davis can develop and what role he would thrive in. He will need to show much more consistency during the week of practices for evaluators to feel fully comfortable with him.

South Carolina DT Javon Kinlaw

Like Davis, South Caroline Gamecocks defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw is a mammoth of a man and at least has the appearance of a player you build a defensive front around. The 6'6", 310-pound Kinlaw recorded 10 sacks, 15 tackles for loss, and two forced fumbles in the last two seasons, but even those solid numbers don't do his impact justice. He was legitimately a consistently disruptive force in the middle of South Carolina's defense, living in SEC backfields. 

Thanks to Kinlaw's explosiveness, length, and strength, he is a hard assignment for any blocker. He still has to improve on how quickly he diagnoses plays, but he has the raw talent to hear his name called early come April.

Utah DT Leki Fotu

Need a behemoth at nose tackle to eat up blocks and let linebackers roam free? Then Leki Fotu is your man. A 6'5", 335-pound space-eater who moves like a much lighter player, Fotu is a perfect fit for what the Jaguars' defense is missing, regardless if they run a 4-3 or a 3-4 in 2020.

In three years as a starter, Fotu recorded 17 tackles for loss and headlined a Utah defense that grew into one of the most dominant units in the country. He has good quickness off of the snap and plays with violent hands and even displays impressive leverage despite his size. Jacksonville should keep their eyes on Fotu all week in Mobile. 

Ole Miss DT Benito Jones

A four-year contributor at Ole Miss, the 6'1", 329-pound Benito Jones offers a blend of size, hustle, and production to draw attention to what he does in Mobile and beyond. In 45 career games, Jones recorded some really solid numbers for a big man with 31 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, and one forced fumble. 

If a team misses out on a player like Fotu early, Jones could be a nice backup option. He has enough traits that look like he can translate and contribute early and compares favorably to Houston Texans defensive lineman D.J. Reader from a physical and a skillset perspective.