Jacksonville Jaguars rebuild offense in recent mock draft

The Jacksonville Jaguars have needs in both offense and defense, so it would make sense for them to take a balanced approach in the 2021 NFL Draft. However, a recent mock draft predicts that they will heavily focus on the offensive side of the ball early in the draft.

Seth Galina of Pro Football Focus recently put together an AFC South 3-round mock draft using a simulator and projects that the Jaguars will use their first four selections, two in the first round and two in the second, on offense and wait until the third round to take a defensive player.

• No. 1  Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson
• No. 25 Elijah Moore, WR, Mississippi
• No. 33 Teven Jenkins, OL, Oklahoma State
• No. 45 Travis Etienne, RB, Clemson
• No. 65 Elijah Molden, DB, Washington

This is an interesting haul, as two of the Jaguars’ major additions in free agency, safety Rayshawn Jenkins and cornerback Shaquill Griffin, were on defense, so it would make sense for the team to use their early-round picks on offense.

At this point, everyone expects the Jaguars to take Trevor Lawrence with the top pick in the draft, so his selection doesn’t come as a surprise. On the other hand, the Elijah Moore pick is interesting to say the least. Jacksonville signed Marvin Jones Jr. in free agency and has a talented wide receiver duo in DJ Chark Jr. and Laviska Shenault Jr.

While they should still add another wideout in the draft, they may have better options available in the second half of the first round. The Ole Miss standout could be a solid slot wide receiver in the NFL but Rashod Bateman is a more complete prospect. Also, the team’s brass had a meeting with Florida’s Kadarius Toney, per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, so he would be a more logical candidate at 25.

The Jacksonville Jaguars picks in the second round make sense.

This year’s offensive tackle class is pretty deep, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see Teven Jenkins slide to the second round. Both Cam Robinson and Jawaan Taylor are set to be the starters in the season opener but neither of them played well in 2020, and the Oklahoma State product could challenge for a starting job right out of the gate.

Then, there’s the Travis Etienne pick. While it would be a reach to draft a running back in the first round or early in the second, taking one with the 45th pick may be a sound decision. The Clemson product is one of the top 3 running backs in the draft, so the Jags should strongly consider pulling the trigger if he’s available at 45. They have a workhorse in James Robinson but they also need someone that can play in case the sophomore can’t go. Etienne could be their man.

The Jaguars, at last, use a draft pick on a defensive player, safety Elijah Molden, in the third round. The Oregon native played safety late in 2020 but he’s a better fit at slot cornerback. Although the team brought back Tre Herndon and Sidney Jones, the Washington product could compete for the starting nickel job.

The Jaguars fail to address a few needs in this mock draft. They could also use a defensive tackle, an EDGE defender, and a tight end. Nevertheless, they have a finite amount of selections, so all things considered, they do a good job of addressing does a good job of addressing filling most holes in this mock.