The success of the Jacksonville Jaguars draft came together on Day 2

While the Jaguars made a splash by landing Josh Allen with the seventh pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, the success of the selection process came in Day 2.

Do the Jacksonville Jaguars have a roster at this moment that can win the AFC South title? The question is up for debate, but if you ask members of the team’s front office, they think they did enough during the three days of the NFL Draft to fill holes which will make them a contender this coming season.

As I sat and listened to Tom Coughlin, David Caldwell, and Doug Marrone Saturday afternoon, I got the sense that they were all of the opinion that this organization found the key players at the right time during the seven rounds that took place Thursday through Saturday.

Coughlin gushed about second-round selection Jawaan Taylor, who the team made a deal to trade up in Round 2 to select.

"“… I will just say this: to be able to have Jawaan Taylor at the top of the second round, for us, you talk about something that really, legitimately made the draft and put us in the position where we would have two first rounders for our first two picks,” Coughlin added."

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Many people on social media made the comparison of getting Allen in the first round and stealing Taylor in Round 2 with the 35th pick to the Jaguars drafted Jalen Ramsey in the first round in 2016, then making a deal in the second round to take Myles Jack.

Time will tell if this draft class has that same kind of impact.

"“I don’t think anyone would argue with that. You know the story with Josh. Every scenario that you talked about you really didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to because you never thought he Josh Allen) would fall,” Coughlin continued.“There he was with the Giants; the Giants decided to go quarterback and there wasn’t any question about what we were going to do. To set that up and then to have Jawaan and be able to do something about that – move up three spots and take him. We just knew at the start of the second round that we could not afford to let him get away as long as he was sitting right there. We didn’t think he would make it there, but he did.”"

I am most intrigued to see if Taylor can become the right tackle this team has lacked for more than a decade. A lot of the success of this draft class will depend on what Taylor does more than any other player. That’s not to say Allen won’t be counted on to make an impact, but the growth and development of this offensive line is key to the success of new quarterback Nick Foles and the team’s running game.

Is this enough (the 2019 Draft Class and free agency) to put the Jaguars back in the playoffs? Coughlin answered that question as well.

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"“Obviously, we have to go through a lot of work to get there,” he said. “The minds have to be right, we have to perform as one, as a team. I certainly believe that. I believe that in order to get to where you want to go, the fastest way is the division. Win the division. We tried to put ourselves in that position and hopefully, we can… I certainly feel like this is a good start.”"

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