Jaguars get pass-rush help in recent 2021 NFL Draft re-do

As soon as Trevor Lawrence declared for the 2021 NFL Draft, there was a 99.9 percent chance he would be the Jacksonville Jaguars’ choice with the first overall pick. However, it was less certain what player they would take with their other first-round selection, the 25th overall. There were several routes the Jags could’ve taken but in the end, they went with running back Travis Etienne.

In a recent do-over though, the Jags get some pass rush help instead of taking the former Clemson Tiger. Maurice Moton of Bleacher Report recently re-did the first round of the 2021 draft and had the Jaguars taking edge rusher Odafe Oweh over Etienne. The NFL writer cites linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson’s poor production over the last two years (two sacks) as the reason for going with Oweh.

Moton notes that even though Oweh had concerns about his pass rush potential entering the 2021 draft, he put together a “decent” rookie year with the Baltimore Ravens, who originally took him with the 31st overall pick.

"After Jacksonville ranked 25th in quarterback pressures (146) for the 2021 campaign, team brass goes with Odafe Oweh, who can line up opposite edge-rusher Josh Allen. Oweh quelled concerns about his low collegiate sack count (seven in three years) with a decent rookie campaign on the edge of the Baltimore Ravens defense. He recorded 27 quarterback pressures and five sacks. In a full-time starting role, the Penn State product could see a significant rise in those numbers."

The Jaguars haven’t gotten much production from Chaisson over the last two seasons and even though they tallied 32 sacks in 2021 — 14 more than the year before —  their pass rush could have still used a boost. Oweh would have provided it.

RB Travis Etienne still has time to be a difference-maker for the Jaguars.

Selecting a running back in the first round isn’t a sound strategy due to the depth at the position in the draft. Unless you know for a fact that you will have a shot at choosing someone of the caliber of Adrian Peterson or LaDainian Tomlinson, you are better off waiting to take one in later rounds.

However, Etienne didn’t have control over what team he was going to go to and he could eventually become a playmaker in the Jaguars’ offense. During last year’s training camp, he showed explosiveness and the ability to catch the football out of the backfield. Head coach Doug Pederson could certainly find a role on offense for E-T-N. But for the time being, he has an incomplete grade because he missed his rookie campaign after suffering a Lisfranc injury in the preseason.

Having said that, the Jaguars could also have used Oweh. Edge defender Dawaune Smoot is a fine player but the Jaguars need a true difference-maker opposite outside linebacker Josh Allen if they want to relentlessly wreak havoc at the line of scrimmage. Maybe the front office didn’t want to take a pass rusher on consecutive years because they expected Chaisson to improve in Year 2. But that’s not how things worked out. Also, Oweh would have been a better pick than running back Najee Harris, who was the Jags’ pick at 25 in another draft re-do.

Hindsight is 20/20 and the Jaguars wouldn’t have been second-guessed if Etienne had become a top running back in the NFL last season. Still, Oweh would have been a solid addition to their defense.