I am sitting here watching the ESPN Mock draft with the media reporters making the picks (DiRocco) with McShay and Bill Polian commenting on the players.

 

DiRocco picked Jack, and Polian began to analyze.  He said that Jack would do well in our system, but not as a MLB.  He said Jack wasn't strong enough to be a MLB.  He said he would fit best as a Will.

 

As you probably know, Caldwell rose through the ranks as a Polian protégé before becoming Jaguars GM.  Assuming they see eye to eye on Jack, it becomes more doubtful to me that the Jaguars will take him at 5.

 

Most of the speculation-at least from my perspective, centered around whether Jack was BIG enough to play the position.  He looked so natural and athletic in coverage and running the ball, it was assumed by many he'd be too small to play the position.  But once people did the research, I and others realized he was actually bigger than Kuechly.  But apparently in Polian's eyes, strength did not accompany his size, apparently making him ill suited to MLB and more suited to Will.

 

The problem there is the Jaguars already have a good young player at will in Telvin Smith.  He has been good enough to win defensive player of the week a couple of times.  Despite some who say he isn't good in coverage, he has made big plays in the passing game, including an INT for a TD vs. Buffalo.  Of course, you could make the argument that Jack would be an upgrade over Smith, and you could never have enough fast, athletic LBs, and Smith would be amazing depth.  But that doesn't seem to be the best use of the talent on the roster.  To me, if he isn't strong enough to play MLB, he's marginally strong enough to play Otto.  While Skuta can certainly be upgraded, I wonder if Jack is the guy to fit that position.  I would envision a bigger guy with more length (Floyd if we trade down would seem to make sense).

 

A couple of additional considerations.  It's entirely possible Caldwell and Polian don't see eye to eye on Jack's ability to play MLB.  Neither guy has been 100% perfect in drafting.  It's also entirely possible Jack can improve his strength and power, and even if he isn't the best player to play MLB his first year, perhaps later in his career he can make the move successfully.

 

But if Caldwell shares Polian's concerns about Jack's ability to play MLB, and sees a Jack pick as somewhat redundant to Smith, perhaps, in addition to the questions regarding his knee, that would be enough to cause Caldwell to go in another direction on Thursday night.

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