The Jacksonville Jaguars didn't make many big moves in free agency and will instead wait until the NFL Draft to address the larger scale roster. The issue with that approach is that they don't hold a first-round selection — they gave it up as part of the trade for Travis Hunter last year — and their first pick will come at No. 56.
That means that many of the players the Jags are targeting could be gone by the time they're on the clock. The good news is that there will still be plenty of talent left at that point in the draft. That said, general manager James Gladstone will most definitely hope the draft breaks in a way that at least one of their preferred targets falls into his lap.
The Jaguars will (probably) be targeting specific needs in Round 2
You can almost bet that the Jaguars won't be looking for a quarterback, a running back, or a wide receiver in the second or even third round. They're set at those positions. Instead, the team's brass needs to address the interior defensive line, the pass rush, or maybe the linebacker corps.
Nick Baumgardner of The Athletic just had the Jags taking Cincinnati linebackerJake Golday at No. 56 in his top 100 mock draft, but they've also been linked to Texas Tech's Jacob Rodriguez and Texas Anthony Hill Jr. This makes sense when you take into account that Devin Lloyd bolted for the Carolina Panthers in free agency.
However, Ventrell Miller is the first in line to replace Lloyd. In fact, Liam Coen just heaped massive praise on him, so it's hard to imagine the Jaguars going linebacker in Round 2. That leaves the pass rush or the interior defensive line as their more likely focus.
Jacksonville picked defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny in Chad Reuter's three-round pick draft at NFL Media, but Christen Miller and Lee Hunter would also make sense. In fact, Kayden McDonald, who's projected to go in the first round, has also been brougth up as an option to bolster the interior defensive front if he manages to fall.
On the other hand, the Jaguars could also go pass rusher. The difference is that, unlike defensive tackle, this is a good year to draft a pass rusher. Still, if James Gladstone wants to take one with the 56th overall selection, he'll have several intriguing options.
T.J. Parker, Derrick Moore, and R Mason Smith could be available at that point of Round 2. All three would give Jacksonville a No. 3 pass rusher behind Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen to round out the rotation.
On the other hand, the Jags could also take the "best players available" route and either roll with offensive lineman Chase Bisontis or a cornerback like Chris Johnson or D'Angelo Ponds if they want to reinforce the depth behind Travis Hunter and Montaric Brown in the perimeter.
Then again, the Jaguars could always trade up to get their guy. This isn't far-fetched when you take into account that James Gladstone has shown that he isn't afraid to move up or down. In fact, the Seattle Seahawks and the Buffalo Bills would be viable partners to jump into Round 1 if Jacksonville wanted to.
The Jaguars would prefer certain prospects to fall to No. 56, but for that to happen, the first 55 picks need to break perfectly.