Jaguars jump back into 1st round and draft Devin Lloyd at No. 27

After selecting Georgia defensive lineman Travon Walker with the first overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, it looked like the Jacksonville Jaguars were going to wait until Day 2 to add another player. However, they jumped back into the first round and took Utah linebacker Devin Lloyd with the 27th selection.

The Jags sent picks No. 33, 106, and 180 to get the 27th selection from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Unless they move up, they won’t have another selection until the third round. So why did Jacksonville move up six spots to acquire Lloyd? Georgia linebacker Quay Walker had been linked to the Jags but the Green Bay Packers took him with at No. 22. Georgia’s Nakobe Dean was still on the board but it’s possible that his relatively short height hurt his draft stock.

The Jaguars needed to add a linebacker to play opposite Foyesade Oluokun and Lloyd was one of the best they could have gotten. They didn’t want to miss out on him, so they returned to the first round. The California native was a three-year starter for the Utes. Last season, he appeared in 14 games, logged 111 total tackles, 22 tackles for a loss, seven sacks, one forced fumble, six passes defensed, and four interceptions. So what are the Jags getting in Lloyd? Derrik Klassen of the Bleacher Report scouting department describes him as “the epitome of the modern NFL linebacker“.

"Overall, Lloyd’s high-end play in space and ability to cover in all kinds of assignments will make him a good “Will” in the NFL. He has Pro Bowl potential that could get turned up another notch if he learns to play with more violence downhill."

What’s next for the Jaguars on Day 2 of the 2022 NFL Draft?

If the Jaguars don’t make any other trades, they will next pick at No. 65, the first selection in the third round, and at No. 70. With the selections of Walker and Lloyd, they’ve addressed two of their top needs on their to-do list. They can now focus on rounding out their offense. They could use a center, a left guard or a wide receiver and they should have plenty of options available in the third round.

If they want to take an interior offensive lineman, they could target Memphis’ Dylan Parham but if they want to take the wide receiver route, they could take either Western Michigan’s Skyy Moore or Trevor Lawrence’s former teammate Justyn Ross.

It’s hard to tell how things will play out on Day 2 of the draft, but the Jags need to continue to stockpile and if they believe there’s a playmaker available in the second round, they shouldn’t hesitate to trade up once again.