5 recent Jaguars draft picks we wish the team never made

The Jacksonville Jaguars have done a good job of identifying talent in the draft in recent years. That's mostly the result of dismissing general manager Dave Caldwell late in 2020 and replacing him with Trent Baalke the following year.

With Baalke leading the front office, the Jaguars have managed to build a well-rounded roster. In fact, owner Shad Khan believes that the 2023 team is the best one in franchise history. That's how stacked it is. Having said that, it's fair to wonder how much better Jacksonville would be right now if they hadn't made the following five picks.

The Jaguars wish they had never drafted Brenton Strange

Drafted in 2023, Round 2, pick 61

The Jags addressed a massive need in 2022 when they signed tight end Evan Engram in free agency. The former Ole Miss Rebel went on to have a career season in Jacksonville. The trouble was that he inked a one-year deal, so the team's brass chose to apply the franchise tag on him to keep him from leaving in 2023.

It was uncertain if the Jags and Engram were going to reach a long-term agreemenafter he got the tag. They did but the front office drafted Brenton Strange as insurance. At the time of the selection, Trent Baalke said that the team liked the versatility he brought to the table.

In retrospect, drafting Strange wasn't a bad decision. Head coach Doug Pederson had previously had success running two tight-end sets with Dallas Goedert and Zach Ertz. The issue is that the former Nittany Lion was a non-factor in his rookie season, registering five receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown.

Granted, Engram was targeted an impressive 143 times, but Strange would've found his way onto the football field if the coaching staff thought he could've contributed. The fact that the then-rookie tight end didn't get much playing time despite the fact that Trevor Lawrence was in need of weapons makes his underwhelming production look even worse.

The silver lining is that Strange has made strides in the offseason and still has ample time to put it all together.

The Jaguars wish they had never drafted CJ Henderson

Drafted in 2021, Round 1, pick 9th overall

After making the questionable decision to trade Jalen Ramsey in 2019, the Jaguars were in dire need of cornerback help. That's why it wasn't shocking to see them take C.J. Henderson with the ninth overall pick in 2020. Unfortunately, things didn't play out the way the front office envisioned.

Henderson flashed early as a rookie but then suffered a groin injury that ended his season prematurely. He underwent labrum surgery early in 2021 and was expected to return for training camp. However, the former Florida Gator missed a good portion because of a myriad of issues.

By Week 3 of the 2021 season, Jacksonville had seen enough and chose to trade Henderson to the Panthers while his stock was still relatively high. The Miami, Florida native netted them a third-round selection and tight end Dan Arnold, so you could make the case that the Jags got good value.

This is especially true when you consider that Henderson didn't do much of note during his stint with the Carolina Panthers. He became a free agent earlier this year and latched onto the division rival Houston Texans. Again, the former first-round pick failed to make an impression and was let go on cutdown day.

All things considered, selecting Henderson was a terrible decision but the front office deserves a bit of credit for cutting their losses when they could instead of trying to make it work out fully knowing that he wasn't going to pan out.

The Jaguars wish they had never drafted K'Lavon Chaisson

Drafted in 2020, Round 1, pick 20th overall

As bad as CJ Henderson was, the Jaguars' 2020 draft class looks even worse, at least the early selections, when you take into account that they had two picks in the first round.

Having drafted Henderson ninth overall, the Jags then chose K'Lavon Chaisson at No. 20. Originally, the Texas native was expected to be a rotational piece in his rookie season behind Calais Campbell and Yannick Ngakoue. However, Dave Caldwell chose to trade both before the start of the 2020 season, which put added pressure on Chaisson to deliver right off the bat.

This might not have been an issue if the former LSU Tiger had been NFL-ready but he was raw coming out of college. Compounding the issue is that he switched from rushing the quarterback from a standup position to lining up with his hand on the ground. To nobody's surprise, Chaisson was a non-factor as a rookie, logging a measly one sack.

Expected to make a leap in Year 2, Chaisson was instead the subject of trade chatter. Jacksonville ultimately decided to keep him but he failed to make an impact once again. Things didn't get much better when head coach Doug Pederson in 2022. Once again, the young pass rusher was an afterthought, and the only reason he got playing time in 2023 was that the Jaguars had nobody else behind Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen.

The team's brass didn't make an effort to bring Chaisson in free agency, and he's since joined the Carolina Panthers. While he still has time to turn the corner, there's no doubt he was a disappointment in Jacksonville.

The Jaguars wish they had never drafted Luke Fortner

Drafted in 2022, Round 3, pick 65

Unlike K'Lavon Chaisson or C.J. Henderson, center Luke Fortner wasn't a first-round pick. Then again, he was equally disappointing. Although the former Kentucky Wildcat flashed as a rookie, he also had ample room for improvement. This led the Jags to believe that he was going to make strides in Year 2 but ended up regressing instead.

So just how bad Fortner was in 2022? He ranked 31st among centers in pass-block win rate and posted a dreadful Pro Football Focus grade of 40.0. Not surprisingly, the Jaguars brought in Mitch Morse in the offseason to replace him.

Despite the arrival of Morse, the Jags are holding onto Fortner in 2024. Perhaps they hope he'll eventually put it all together but nobody will bat an eye if he doesn't.

The Jaguars wish they had never drafted Taven Bryan

Drafted in 2018, Round 1, pick 29th overall

Coming off an AFC Championship appearance the season prior, the Jaguars drafted defensive tackle Taven Bryan 29th overall in 2018. While the former Florida Gator had massive upside, the decision was under scrutiny because their defensive line was stacked and they had more pressing needs at the time.

Had Bryan developed into a difference-maker, it wouldn't have mattered but he spent four unremarkable seasons in Jacksonville. He did have a great game in 2021 but that was pretty much it. When he became a free agent the following year, the team's brass didn't make an effort to keep him. The Wyoming native ended up joining the Cleveland Browns and has gone on to become a journeyman defensive tackle.

Add the fact that quarterback Lamar Jackson, running back Nick Chubb, linebacker Shaquille Leonard, and right tackle Braden Smith were still on the board when the Jaguars picked Bryan, and the selection looks outright horrible.

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