Jaguars would not ditch Brian Thomas Jr. for top-notch corner in draft do-over

Calvin Ridley left a void at wide receiver when he bolted for the Tennessee Titans in free agency. The Jacksonville Jaguars took care of it when they drafted Brain Thomas Jr. 23rd overall. While you could make the case that they should've addressed other needs, the former LSU Tiger has been everything the Jags bargained for and then some. Ryan Fowler of Bleacher Report disagrees with that assessment, though.

Fowler did a do-over of the 2024 NFL Draft and had Jacksonville taking Kool-Aid McKinstry with the 23rd pick, pointing out that cornerback was a primary need for the Jags at the time.

"One of the draft's premier man corners, McKinstry working opposite Tyson Campbell was a player-to-team match that was often thrown around in the pre-draft process. In this exercise, it comes to fruition.

While Brian Thomas Jr. will have an opportunity to showcase his skill set this fall (deservedly so), the Jaguars had a legitimate top three in-house before his selection, and boosting the secondary was a primary need."

In Fowler's scenario, the Jags still agreed to move down six spots in exchange for two fourth-round picks, and a third-round selection. General manager Trent Baalke has previously stated that Thomas Jr. was their top target at No. 17 but if he hadn't been available at No. 23, they would've gone with Terrion Arnold. Kool-Aid McKinstry for his part ended up going to the New Orleans Saints in the second round.

One reason Thomas was projected to go in the first round was his deep-threat capability, something the Jacksonville offense had sorely lacked the past two years. The Louisiana native averaged over 17.3 yards per reception in his last collegiate season and later ran the 40-yard dash in 4.33 seconds at the NFL Scouting Combine.

So far, Thomas has lived up to expectations, turning heads in the offseason and making several impressive plays in three preseason games. His ability to get deep was on full display in catches for 41 and 38 yards against the Kansas City Chiefs and the Atlanta Falcons.

In Jacksonville, Thomas is expected to stretch the field, which will prevent opposing defenses from bringing extra defenders into the box. Similarly, tight end Evan Engram and slot receiver Christian Kirk will find more favorable matchups because the rookie wideout will draw coverage away from them.

The Jaguars wouldn't change Brian Thomas Jr. for Kool-Aid McKinstry

Kool-Aid McKinstry could turn out to be a fine player for the New Orleans Saints. Nobody is denying his talent. Having said that, wide receiver was a bigger receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars heading into the draft.

It's also worth noting that if the Jaguars wanted to take a cornerback in the first round, they could've chosen whichever one they pleased. After all, no corner had been selected by the time Jacksonville was on the clock at No. 17. The first one to go was Quenyon Mitchell at No. 22. Terrion Arnold was still on the board even after the Jags moved down, and ultimately landed with the Detroit Lions one pick later.

The team's brass ultimately took Jarrian Jones with the 96th pick and later Deantre Prince in the fifth round. The former has made a strong impression and is poised to have ample playing time as a rookie. The latter made the initial 53-man roster, so it's fair to say that the Jaguars are pleased with the picks they made. Heck, they could've drafted Thomas and later traded up to land McKinstry. However, things played out the way they expected.

The bottom line is that the Jaguars had several options in the draft but settled on Brian Thomas Jr. because they thought he was the best of the bunch. It's hard to see them changing the pick even if given the choice.

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