James Gladstone throws massive Jaguars curveball in recent NFL Mock Draft

Less than a week away from the 2025 draft, it looks like the Jacksonville Jaguars are leaning towards taking running back Ashton Jeanty with the fifth overall pick. However, nothing is set on stone, and there's a chance they could take a whole different direction. In fact, that's precisely what Adam Rank of NFL Media thinks the Jags will do.

Rank did an NFL mock draft and had Jacksonville taking tight end Tyler Warren, noting that the former Penn State Nittany Lion would give Trevor Lawrence another playmaker aside from Brian Thomas Jr.

"Love that you signed tight ends Hunter Long and Johnny Mundt in free agency, but that should not stop you from jumping at Warren, ranked as the sixth-best player in the class by both Daniel Jeremiah and Eric Edholm. As I mentioned in the intro, I urged the Raiders to draft tight end Brock Bowers in Round 1 last year, regardless of positional need, and it worked out pretty well for them. Jags, you should be stockpiling game-wreckers for Trevor Lawrence, and putting Warren and Brian Thomas Jr. in the same lineup would seriously help him."

As Rank noted, Warren is the top tight end prospect in this year's class and sixth-best player in Daniel Jeremiah's top 50 draft board. He's a potential Day 1 starter who could help the Jaguars fill the void left by Evan Engram's departure in the offseason.

After releasing Engram, the front office signed Hunter Long and Johnny Mundt in free agency. Both are solid depth pieces, but not much else. That's where drafting Warren would come in handy.

In Jacksonville, Warren could be serve as Lawrence's safety valve when opposing teams zero in on Thomas and free-agent acquisition Dyami Brown. Having said that, it would be a it surprising to see him going to the Jaguars at No. 5.

Granted, Warren has been mocked to Jacksonville a few times, the New Orleans Saints, the New York Jets, and the Indianapolis Colts appear to be more likely destinations. In fact, there's a strong chance the Jags will wait until Rounds 3 or 4 to add a tight end in the draft.

Why the Jaguars willl most likely pass on Tyler Warren in the NFL Draft

There's no doubt that Trevor Lawrence would be thrilled to throw passes to a player of Tyler Warren's caliber. However, it's hard to envision the Jacksonville Jaguars going tight end at No. 5, especially when you take into account that they are seemingly high on Brenton Strange.

A second-round selection in the 2023 draft, Strange had an underwhelming rookie campaign. But something clicked, and he proved to be a capable replacement for Evan Engram when he missed time, registering 40 receptions for 411 yards with two touchdowns.

With Engram out of the mix, the Jags are counting on Strange to take on a bigger role. But even if they wanted to add a tight end in the draft, they probably won't do it in Round 1. If given the choice between Warren, and running back Ashton Jeanty, they would probably take the latter despite the fact that they have Travis Etienne, and Tank Bigsby in the fold. The reason is that they would get better position value.

Heck, the Jaguars would likely not hesitate to choose offensive tackle Will Campbell if the New England Patriots passed on him or two-way star Travis Hunter if he somehow was still on the board at No. 5.

The bottom line is that Tyler Warren is a playmaker, but don't expect to hear his name called when the Jaguars are on the clock.

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