Give me Ikem over Neal all day, every day.

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This is the time of year where draftniks start to formulate their opinions on the ddraft overall and what their particular teams should do in the draft.  There are three guys generally speculated to be the #1 overall pick.  Of those three, it seems Evan Neal is not the most popular choice among many draftniks who are Jaguars fans.  However, contrary to popular belief, Evan Neal ‘s athletic attributes, positional value, versatility, and team need makes him the best choice for the Jaguars if the team is forced to stay at #1.

There is certainly an argument to be made that Neal is the BAP at that spot in the draft.  Based upon the mocks by the national draft experts, Neal is almost universally viewed as a top 3 player.  With his massive size at 6-7. 350 lbs and his considerable athletic ability, it makes him an imposing specimen.   He was a 5 star recruit out of high school, so he has been identified as a pro prospect for years.  He was a 3 year starter At Alabama, playing against top notch pass rushers, giving up only one sack this year.  He received pro level coaching from Doug marrone.  Say what you will about Marrone as a head coach, he is known for getting production out of the OL.  In large part due to Marrone's coaching, one of Neal's strengths is his technique.  Technique is a huge part of what makes for the best tackles.  Anthony Munoz had great technique, as did Boselli. Neal's technique will help his transition into the NFL.   This combination of warrant consideration for him at the top spot.

From a need basis, there is plenty to like about Beal being the #1 overall pick.  As of this writing, the Jaguars have three (3) starters from last year who are free agents:  Cam robinson, Andrew Norwell, and AJ Cann.  Furthermore, RT represents a huge hole, as Taylor has been awful.  His propensity to give up sacks and commit penalties kept the Jaguars and TL in far too many awful down and distance situations which bogged down drives.   Some will argue T is less of a need than people think because Cam Robinson only gave up one sack and Walker Little showed promise at LT at the end of the year.  However, Robinson has been viewed by most as a liability at LT, and most thought it was a mistake tp slap a franchise tag on him last year.Walker Littls started all of three gmes after being sidelined since 2019 in college due to a knee injury and Covid.  He is far from a proven commodity.  Most people argued OL was definitely the area of biggest need last year.  Walker Little’s 3 games as a starter, does not equal the team has upgraded OL.  Drafting Neal would increase comnpetition on the OL and be a bit of a safeguard against possible failure by Little.  Furthermore, dating back to 2015, of the team’s NINE (9) first round picks in that span, SIX (6) f them have been spent on the defense.  Of the three offensive players referenced, two of those picks were RBs-Fournette (no longer on the team) and Etienne (missed his entire rookie season with a Lisfranc injury).  The 3rd was Trevor Lawrence.  Besides the pending free agents along the OL, there is huge need at the skill positions.  Chark, the only one of the receivers who can get any kind of vertical separation, is a free agent.  Meanwhile, the defense not only had the benefit of all of those high picks, the bulk of the free agency money went to the defense last year.  Trevor Lawrence needs help,  refusing to prioritize getting him surrounding help especially when the draft value is there is gross negligence.
 
Furthermore, Neal’s versatility would have a tremendous positive impact on OL depth.  Injuries to the OL can be one of the biggest obstacles to team success.  If you recall, one of the main reasons the 2018 Jaguars fell off so dramatically from the 2017 performance was the injuries to the offensive line, starting with the loss of LT Cam Robinson. Conversely,it’s proven that sufficient quality depth along the OL can prove to mitigate the negative effects of injuries, even if it wouldn’t completely prevent the injuries from happening.  Jaguars fans who were around the first five years can remember one of the big advantages we enjoyed was having a guy in Ben Coleman who could step in and play LT at a reasonably high level when Boselli went out with injury.  Indeed, at various points, Coleman had success against guys like Derr8ick Thomas, Neil Smith and Jevon Kearse enabled the Jaguars to win games against quality opponents because they were able to provide adequate protection for Brunell in Boselli’s absence.  To cite a more contemporary example, the 2017-2018 Philadelphia Eagles, coached by Doug Pederson,, won the Super Bowl despite being down to their 3rd string LT.   With Neal’s proven versatility (having played 3 positions along the OL in college), the Jaguars could begin to replicate the deoth dynamics cited above.  If you drafted Neal, minimally, you’d have two guys who could put in quality snaps in at LT with he and Little-replicating the dynamic with Boselli and Coleman.  If you kept Robinson, Taylor, Little and still drafted Neal, the team would be in a position where no fewer then three players could presumably give you quality snaps at LT (Neal, Robinson and Little) and three guys who could play RT in a pinch (Neal, Little, and Taylor), which would enable the Jaguars to keep performing at a reasonably high level like that Eagles’ team Pederson coached to a title.   Neither Hutchinson nor Thibideaux can provide that sort of versatility.

Some would argue that taking Neal would be a mistake, especially if he couldn’t immediately play LT, or that selecting Neal would serve to waste Walker Little’s development at LT.  I submit neither proposition would  be the case.  First off, Jon Ogden played G his first year and he was the 4th overall pick in 1996.  Nobody contends Ogden was not worth the selection that year because he started out as a G, and there isn’t too much difference between the #1 overall pick and the $4 overall pick, especially in a draft class without a top tier QB.  Furthermore, I submit that sometimes, the standard of drafting shouldn’t necessarily be BAP, but instead BAP for the team.  The 2013 draft wasn’t a particularly strong draft, especially at the very top.  But two teams in Peserson’s career benefitted greatly from it in Kansas City and Philadelphia.  KC picked LT Eric Fisher #1 overall.  While Fisher was no Boselli, he was the best player  that draft for the Chiefs.  He wound up solidifying LT for the Chiefs for years, and manned that most important spot for the Chiefs when they won the Super Bowl about three years ago, and his absence was critical to the Super Bowl loss the following year to Tampa.  In Philly, the Eagles drafted Lane Johnson out of Oklahoma.  While some thought he had the capability of playing LT, he has played exclusively RT for the Eagles, and was a critical part of the OL that helped the Eagles win the Super Bowl under Pederson.  You don’t necessarily have to be all world to be the # 1 pick in the draft, just the best player for the team that’s picking in that spot.  As for Little, I would envision Little and Neal competing for OL position if Neal were drafted.  I submit the competition would make both players better no matter which side of the line they played.


I believe Neal would provide a tremendous upgrade to the OL no matter whic side of the OL he played on and would provide a lot of support to Trevor Lawrence.  He would fit a need and improve depth tremendously with his versatility  He certainly warrants consideration at #1.

He warrants consideration, but I wouldn't make him my pick.  I start with BAP.  People are entitled to their opinion, but there seems to be a consensus among most that Neal is not BAP at #1.  I saw a 2022 NFL prospect tracker with 8 different sites.  Not one of them had Neal as the BAP.  Not one.  Only two had him second.  Hutch, on the other hand, was #1 in five of those sites.  While Neal is often being mocked to Jacksonville, many of them appear to be doing it largely on perceived need and sometimes ignorance.  I heard one mock drafter on the radio (who projected Neal to the Jaguars) being asked "Why not just franchise Cam Robinson?" and he was a complete deer in the headlights and just stuttered trying to find words to say.  It was obvious he hadn't even considered it.  I doubt he considered the Walker Little factor either.  Many of these professional mock drafters study the draft prospects in detail, but they often don't know the situation in all 32 teams and that's often multiplied by 10 with the Jaguars.  

In regards to needs, your stat about 6 out of our last 9 first round picks being defense sounds nice, but isn't a good argument to justify offense.  3 of those defensive draft picks are no longer on the team and a 4th isn't under contract next year and even if he was hypothetically re-signed, his name is Taven Bryan.  Of the two who are actually under contract for next year, one of them is named K'Lavon Chaisson.  Only 1 of those players is still with team and expected to be a starter for the Jaguars next year.  A single former first rounder being a good defensive player is not great a reason to blindly ignore the entire defensive side of the game.  Besides, when looking at need, I personally don't look at it as "offense" versus "defense", but position versus position.  Just because your defense is better than your offense, it doesn't mean that a defensive position couldn't be your biggest need or vice versa.  While I support taking the edge rusher at #1 this year, it doesn't mean that I'm ignoring offense this off-season.  If I had my way, it would be quite the opposite.  We have the top draft picks in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round and another early 3rd rounder.  I would likely use at least 3 out of those 4 picks and possibly all 4 on offense.  We also have a ton of money in free agency and would highly target offensive positions with that money.  The top pick would be a nice bone to defense, but the off-season would otherwise be a feast to the offense.

I've also seen this line about 3 offensive line starters being free agents, but I consider it to be misleading.  Bartch started the majority of the season and clearly outplayed Cann.  I consider Bartch to be last year's starting guard and would be this year's starting guard assuming the same team returned.  That leaves two starters as free agents.  One of them is Cam Robinson.  If we want him back, we got him back because of the franchise tag.  That leaves 1 player.  Norwell is the only starting offensive lineman who could leave without us choosing to let him go.  However, he's a guard.  I'm not using the #1 overall pick on a guard.  As such, he's irrelevant to the #1 overall pick discussion.

I also think versatility is extremely over-rated when talking about the #1 overall pick.  Yes, for later picks, and particularly depth picks, it's nice to have players who can play multiple positions to fill in as needed.  However, with the #1 overall pick, I'm taking him to play ONE position.  You mention Coleman and Boselli.  The versatility was with Coleman.  Did Boselli have previous experience at right tackle and guard?  I really don't know and I really don't care.  We took Boselli to play left tackle and I wouldn't want Boselli to play anything but left tackle.  If we draft an offensive lineman #1 overall, I want him at left tackle.  

This brings me to one of my big issues.  With this pick, we are doing one of two things.  One possibility is that we are drafting Neal to be right tackle.  You don't take right tackles at #1 overall.  The positional value is not there.  Let's find some other way to address it.  The other possibility is that we are putting Neal at left tackle which means we are giving up on Walker Little as a left tackle.  That feels extremely premature.  He was a rookie last year.  He was a highly touted draft pick that only dropped to the early second round because of an injury which appears to be healed.  Although it was a limited opportunity, when given a chance to play, he looked good.  I'm not guaranteeing he's the long term answer, but I reject someone who is guaranteeing he's not.  Why not wait a year and see how it plays out?  With so many needs on a 3-14 team, why are we using the very valuable #1 overall pick on a player that isn't BAP and might turn out to not even be a need?

Let's also not under-estimate the value of a good pass rush.  Put pressure on the opposing quarterback and their offense will fall apart.  I've seen it too often.  i also see what happens when you don't put pressure on the quarterback.  Good teams with good quarterbacks will walk all over you.  If our ultimate goal is to be the best, we need a dominant pass rush.  The AFC is completely loaded with great young quarterbacks.  We need to counter that with a great young pass rush.  Josh Allen isn't enough.  You need two edge rushers.  The benefits will filter through the team.  Get a good pass rush and our entire secondary will look better.  By ending these ridiculously long drives, our defense will be more rested and our run defense will be better.  Get some 3 and outs and put THEIR tired defense back on the field and our offense will look better.  Pass rush is a huge part of the game and has become more and more important with the game being centered around passing.  Last year, we drafted the most important position on offense.  This year, let's draft the most important position on defense.  Oh yeah, and he's BAP too.

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This is the time of year where draftniks start to formulate their opinions on the ddraft overall and what their particular teams should do in the draft.  There are three guys generally speculated to be the #1 overall pick.  Of those three, it seems Evan Neal is not the most popular choice among many draftniks who are Jaguars fans.  However, contrary to popular belief, Evan Neal ‘s athletic attributes, positional value, versatility, and team need makes him the best choice for the Jaguars if the team is forced to stay at #1.

There is certainly an argument to be made that Neal is the BAP at that spot in the draft.  Based upon the mocks by the national draft experts, Neal is almost universally viewed as a top 3 player.  With his massive size at 6-7. 350 lbs and his considerable athletic ability, it makes him an imposing specimen.   He was a 5 star recruit out of high school, so he has been identified as a pro prospect for years.  He was a 3 year starter At Alabama, playing against top notch pass rushers, giving up only one sack this year.  He received pro level coaching from Doug marrone.  Say what you will about Marrone as a head coach, he is known for getting production out of the OL.  In large part due to Marrone's coaching, one of Neal's strengths is his technique.  Technique is a huge part of what makes for the best tackles.  Anthony Munoz had great technique, as did Boselli. Neal's technique will help his transition into the NFL.   This combination of warrant consideration for him at the top spot.

From a need basis, there is plenty to like about Beal being the #1 overall pick.  As of this writing, the Jaguars have three (3) starters from last year who are free agents:  Cam robinson, Andrew Norwell, and AJ Cann.  Furthermore, RT represents a huge hole, as Taylor has been awful.  His propensity to give up sacks and commit penalties kept the Jaguars and TL in far too many awful down and distance situations which bogged down drives.   Some will argue T is less of a need than people think because Cam Robinson only gave up one sack and Walker Little showed promise at LT at the end of the year.  However, Robinson has been viewed by most as a liability at LT, and most thought it was a mistake tp slap a franchise tag on him last year.Walker Littls started all of three gmes after being sidelined since 2019 in college due to a knee injury and Covid.  He is far from a proven commodity.  Most people argued OL was definitely the area of biggest need last year.  Walker Little’s 3 games as a starter, does not equal the team has upgraded OL.  Drafting Neal would increase comnpetition on the OL and be a bit of a safeguard against possible failure by Little.  Furthermore, dating back to 2015, of the team’s NINE (9) first round picks in that span, SIX (6) f them have been spent on the defense.  Of the three offensive players referenced, two of those picks were RBs-Fournette (no longer on the team) and Etienne (missed his entire rookie season with a Lisfranc injury).  The 3rd was Trevor Lawrence.  Besides the pending free agents along the OL, there is huge need at the skill positions.  Chark, the only one of the receivers who can get any kind of vertical separation, is a free agent.  Meanwhile, the defense not only had the benefit of all of those high picks, the bulk of the free agency money went to the defense last year.  Trevor Lawrence needs help,  refusing to prioritize getting him surrounding help especially when the draft value is there is gross negligence.
 
Furthermore, Neal’s versatility would have a tremendous positive impact on OL depth.  Injuries to the OL can be one of the biggest obstacles to team success.  If you recall, one of the main reasons the 2018 Jaguars fell off so dramatically from the 2017 performance was the injuries to the offensive line, starting with the loss of LT Cam Robinson. Conversely,it’s proven that sufficient quality depth along the OL can prove to mitigate the negative effects of injuries, even if it wouldn’t completely prevent the injuries from happening.  Jaguars fans who were around the first five years can remember one of the big advantages we enjoyed was having a guy in Ben Coleman who could step in and play LT at a reasonably high level when Boselli went out with injury.  Indeed, at various points, Coleman had success against guys like Derr8ick Thomas, Neil Smith and Jevon Kearse enabled the Jaguars to win games against quality opponents because they were able to provide adequate protection for Brunell in Boselli’s absence.  To cite a more contemporary example, the 2017-2018 Philadelphia Eagles, coached by Doug Pederson,, won the Super Bowl despite being down to their 3rd string LT.   With Neal’s proven versatility (having played 3 positions along the OL in college), the Jaguars could begin to replicate the deoth dynamics cited above.  If you drafted Neal, minimally, you’d have two guys who could put in quality snaps in at LT with he and Little-replicating the dynamic with Boselli and Coleman.  If you kept Robinson, Taylor, Little and still drafted Neal, the team would be in a position where no fewer then three players could presumably give you quality snaps at LT (Neal, Robinson and Little) and three guys who could play RT in a pinch (Neal, Little, and Taylor), which would enable the Jaguars to keep performing at a reasonably high level like that Eagles’ team Pederson coached to a title.   Neither Hutchinson nor Thibideaux can provide that sort of versatility.

Some would argue that taking Neal would be a mistake, especially if he couldn’t immediately play LT, or that selecting Neal would serve to waste Walker Little’s development at LT.  I submit neither proposition would  be the case.  First off, Jon Ogden played G his first year and he was the 4th overall pick in 1996.  Nobody contends Ogden was not worth the selection that year because he started out as a G, and there isn’t too much difference between the #1 overall pick and the $4 overall pick, especially in a draft class without a top tier QB.  Furthermore, I submit that sometimes, the standard of drafting shouldn’t necessarily be BAP, but instead BAP for the team.  The 2013 draft wasn’t a particularly strong draft, especially at the very top.  But two teams in Peserson’s career benefitted greatly from it in Kansas City and Philadelphia.  KC picked LT Eric Fisher #1 overall.  While Fisher was no Boselli, he was the best player  that draft for the Chiefs.  He wound up solidifying LT for the Chiefs for years, and manned that most important spot for the Chiefs when they won the Super Bowl about three years ago, and his absence was critical to the Super Bowl loss the following year to Tampa.  In Philly, the Eagles drafted Lane Johnson out of Oklahoma.  While some thought he had the capability of playing LT, he has played exclusively RT for the Eagles, and was a critical part of the OL that helped the Eagles win the Super Bowl under Pederson.  You don’t necessarily have to be all world to be the # 1 pick in the draft, just the best player for the team that’s picking in that spot.  As for Little, I would envision Little and Neal competing for OL position if Neal were drafted.  I submit the competition would make both players better no matter which side of the line they played.


I believe Neal would provide a tremendous upgrade to the OL no matter whic side of the OL he played on and would provide a lot of support to Trevor Lawrence.  He would fit a need and improve depth tremendously with his versatility  He certainly warrants consideration at #1.

He warrants consideration, but I wouldn't make him my pick.  I start with BAP.  People are entitled to their opinion, but there seems to be a consensus among most that Neal is not BAP at #1.  I saw a 2022 NFL prospect tracker with 8 different sites.  Not one of them had Neal as the BAP.  Not one.  Only two had him second.  Hutch, on the other hand, was #1 in five of those sites.  While Neal is often being mocked to Jacksonville, many of them appear to be doing it largely on perceived need and sometimes ignorance.  I heard one mock drafter on the radio (who projected Neal to the Jaguars) being asked "Why not just franchise Cam Robinson?" and he was a complete deer in the headlights and just stuttered trying to find words to say.  It was obvious he hadn't even considered it.  I doubt he considered the Walker Little factor either.  Many of these professional mock drafters study the draft prospects in detail, but they often don't know the situation in all 32 teams and that's often multiplied by 10 with the Jaguars.  

In regards to needs, your stat about 6 out of our last 9 first round picks being defense sounds nice, but isn't a good argument to justify offense.  3 of those defensive draft picks are no longer on the team and a 4th isn't under contract next year and even if he was hypothetically re-signed, his name is Taven Bryan.  Of the two who are actually under contract for next year, one of them is named K'Lavon Chaisson.  Only 1 of those players is still with team and expected to be a starter for the Jaguars next year.  A single former first rounder being a good defensive player is not great a reason to blindly ignore the entire defensive side of the game.  Besides, when looking at need, I personally don't look at it as "offense" versus "defense", but position versus position.  Just because your defense is better than your offense, it doesn't mean that a defensive position couldn't be your biggest need or vice versa.  While I support taking the edge rusher at #1 this year, it doesn't mean that I'm ignoring offense this off-season.  If I had my way, it would be quite the opposite.  We have the top draft picks in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round and another early 3rd rounder.  I would likely use at least 3 out of those 4 picks and possibly all 4 on offense.  We also have a ton of money in free agency and would highly target offensive positions with that money.  The top pick would be a nice bone to defense, but the off-season would otherwise be a feast to the offense.

I've also seen this line about 3 offensive line starters being free agents, but I consider it to be misleading.  Bartch started the majority of the season and clearly outplayed Cann.  I consider Bartch to be last year's starting guard and would be this year's starting guard assuming the same team returned.  That leaves two starters as free agents.  One of them is Cam Robinson.  If we want him back, we got him back because of the franchise tag.  That leaves 1 player.  Norwell is the only starting offensive lineman who could leave without us choosing to let him go.  However, he's a guard.  I'm not using the #1 overall pick on a guard.  As such, he's irrelevant to the #1 overall pick discussion.

I also think versatility is extremely over-rated when talking about the #1 overall pick.  Yes, for later picks, and particularly depth picks, it's nice to have players who can play multiple positions to fill in as needed.  However, with the #1 overall pick, I'm taking him to play ONE position.  You mention Coleman and Boselli.  The versatility was with Coleman.  Did Boselli have previous experience at right tackle and guard?  I really don't know and I really don't care.  We took Boselli to play left tackle and I wouldn't want Boselli to play anything but left tackle.  If we draft an offensive lineman #1 overall, I want him at left tackle.  

This brings me to one of my big issues.  With this pick, we are doing one of two things.  One possibility is that we are drafting Neal to be right tackle.  You don't take right tackles at #1 overall.  The positional value is not there.  Let's find some other way to address it.  The other possibility is that we are putting Neal at left tackle which means we are giving up on Walker Little as a left tackle.  That feels extremely premature.  He was a rookie last year.  He was a highly touted draft pick that only dropped to the early second round because of an injury which appears to be healed.  Although it was a limited opportunity, when given a chance to play, he looked good.  I'm not guaranteeing he's the long term answer, but I reject someone who is guaranteeing he's not.  Why not wait a year and see how it plays out?  With so many needs on a 3-14 team, why are we using the very valuable #1 overall pick on a player that isn't BAP and might turn out to not even be a need?

Let's also not under-estimate the value of a good pass rush.  Put pressure on the opposing quarterback and their offense will fall apart.  I've seen it too often.  i also see what happens when you don't put pressure on the quarterback.  Good teams with good quarterbacks will walk all over you.  If our ultimate goal is to be the best, we need a dominant pass rush.  The AFC is completely loaded with great young quarterbacks.  We need to counter that with a great young pass rush.  Josh Allen isn't enough.  You need two edge rushers.  The benefits will filter through the team.  Get a good pass rush and our entire secondary will look better.  By ending these ridiculously long drives, our defense will be more rested and our run defense will be better.  Get some 3 and outs and put THEIR tired defense back on the field and our offense will look better.  Pass rush is a huge part of the game and has become more and more important with the game being centered around passing.  Last year, we drafted the most important position on offense.  This year, let's draft the most important position on defense.  Oh yeah, and he's BAP too.

Two great posts there ^  Really well thought out and well written.  

My thinking on this issue continues to evolve.  But right now, I am strongly leaning towards retaining Robinson and drafting one of the two edge rushers.  It seems like letting go of Cam and drafting Neal is just churning our roster and not making any great improvement.  We've got plenty of cap space, so tagging Cam or signing him to a contract is not going to kill us.  He's a decent left tackle, but who do we have opposite Josh Allen?  Really not much.  Of course, all this has been said before.  

There's a million ways to skin a cat, so the above plan is of course not the only decent plan.  But it seems like the simplest, safest thing to do.  And it allows us to use the #1 overall pick on a player who will give us the greatest roster upgrade.  

Maybe I'm just gun-shy from a decade of thinking we can let a guy walk because he's easily replaced, and then acquiring a replacement who is worse than the guy we let walk.  We have Trevor Lawrence on his rookie contract for 4 more years.  If we start the rebuilding process by tearing things down first, we add years to the rebuilding process.  We know what we have in Cam Robinson.  Hutchinson and Thibodeaux are there for the taking.  Let's not make a hole in the roster that forces us into picking by position instead of by player.

So what I am saying is, let's keep Cam Robinson.

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I agree with that completely and have said so repeatedly. I hate the idea of using the most valuable and rare draft asset simply to fill a hole that we created ourselves by not tagging Cam.

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This is the time of year where draftniks start to formulate their opinions on the ddraft overall and what their particular teams should do in the draft.  There are three guys generally speculated to be the #1 overall pick.  Of those three, it seems Evan Neal is not the most popular choice among many draftniks who are Jaguars fans.  However, contrary to popular belief, Evan Neal ‘s athletic attributes, positional value, versatility, and team need makes him the best choice for the Jaguars if the team is forced to stay at #1.

There is certainly an argument to be made that Neal is the BAP at that spot in the draft.  Based upon the mocks by the national draft experts, Neal is almost universally viewed as a top 3 player.  With his massive size at 6-7. 350 lbs and his considerable athletic ability, it makes him an imposing specimen.   He was a 5 star recruit out of high school, so he has been identified as a pro prospect for years.  He was a 3 year starter At Alabama, playing against top notch pass rushers, giving up only one sack this year.  He received pro level coaching from Doug marrone.  Say what you will about Marrone as a head coach, he is known for getting production out of the OL.  In large part due to Marrone's coaching, one of Neal's strengths is his technique.  Technique is a huge part of what makes for the best tackles.  Anthony Munoz had great technique, as did Boselli. Neal's technique will help his transition into the NFL.   This combination of warrant consideration for him at the top spot.

From a need basis, there is plenty to like about Beal being the #1 overall pick.  As of this writing, the Jaguars have three (3) starters from last year who are free agents:  Cam robinson, Andrew Norwell, and AJ Cann.  Furthermore, RT represents a huge hole, as Taylor has been awful.  His propensity to give up sacks and commit penalties kept the Jaguars and TL in far too many awful down and distance situations which bogged down drives.   Some will argue T is less of a need than people think because Cam Robinson only gave up one sack and Walker Little showed promise at LT at the end of the year.  However, Robinson has been viewed by most as a liability at LT, and most thought it was a mistake tp slap a franchise tag on him last year.Walker Littls started all of three gmes after being sidelined since 2019 in college due to a knee injury and Covid.  He is far from a proven commodity.  Most people argued OL was definitely the area of biggest need last year.  Walker Little’s 3 games as a starter, does not equal the team has upgraded OL.  Drafting Neal would increase comnpetition on the OL and be a bit of a safeguard against possible failure by Little.  Furthermore, dating back to 2015, of the team’s NINE (9) first round picks in that span, SIX (6) f them have been spent on the defense.  Of the three offensive players referenced, two of those picks were RBs-Fournette (no longer on the team) and Etienne (missed his entire rookie season with a Lisfranc injury).  The 3rd was Trevor Lawrence.  Besides the pending free agents along the OL, there is huge need at the skill positions.  Chark, the only one of the receivers who can get any kind of vertical separation, is a free agent.  Meanwhile, the defense not only had the benefit of all of those high picks, the bulk of the free agency money went to the defense last year.  Trevor Lawrence needs help,  refusing to prioritize getting him surrounding help especially when the draft value is there is gross negligence.
 
Furthermore, Neal’s versatility would have a tremendous positive impact on OL depth.  Injuries to the OL can be one of the biggest obstacles to team success.  If you recall, one of the main reasons the 2018 Jaguars fell off so dramatically from the 2017 performance was the injuries to the offensive line, starting with the loss of LT Cam Robinson. Conversely,it’s proven that sufficient quality depth along the OL can prove to mitigate the negative effects of injuries, even if it wouldn’t completely prevent the injuries from happening.  Jaguars fans who were around the first five years can remember one of the big advantages we enjoyed was having a guy in Ben Coleman who could step in and play LT at a reasonably high level when Boselli went out with injury.  Indeed, at various points, Coleman had success against guys like Derr8ick Thomas, Neil Smith and Jevon Kearse enabled the Jaguars to win games against quality opponents because they were able to provide adequate protection for Brunell in Boselli’s absence.  To cite a more contemporary example, the 2017-2018 Philadelphia Eagles, coached by Doug Pederson,, won the Super Bowl despite being down to their 3rd string LT.   With Neal’s proven versatility (having played 3 positions along the OL in college), the Jaguars could begin to replicate the deoth dynamics cited above.  If you drafted Neal, minimally, you’d have two guys who could put in quality snaps in at LT with he and Little-replicating the dynamic with Boselli and Coleman.  If you kept Robinson, Taylor, Little and still drafted Neal, the team would be in a position where no fewer then three players could presumably give you quality snaps at LT (Neal, Robinson and Little) and three guys who could play RT in a pinch (Neal, Little, and Taylor), which would enable the Jaguars to keep performing at a reasonably high level like that Eagles’ team Pederson coached to a title.   Neither Hutchinson nor Thibideaux can provide that sort of versatility.

Some would argue that taking Neal would be a mistake, especially if he couldn’t immediately play LT, or that selecting Neal would serve to waste Walker Little’s development at LT.  I submit neither proposition would  be the case.  First off, Jon Ogden played G his first year and he was the 4th overall pick in 1996.  Nobody contends Ogden was not worth the selection that year because he started out as a G, and there isn’t too much difference between the #1 overall pick and the $4 overall pick, especially in a draft class without a top tier QB.  Furthermore, I submit that sometimes, the standard of drafting shouldn’t necessarily be BAP, but instead BAP for the team.  The 2013 draft wasn’t a particularly strong draft, especially at the very top.  But two teams in Peserson’s career benefitted greatly from it in Kansas City and Philadelphia.  KC picked LT Eric Fisher #1 overall.  While Fisher was no Boselli, he was the best player  that draft for the Chiefs.  He wound up solidifying LT for the Chiefs for years, and manned that most important spot for the Chiefs when they won the Super Bowl about three years ago, and his absence was critical to the Super Bowl loss the following year to Tampa.  In Philly, the Eagles drafted Lane Johnson out of Oklahoma.  While some thought he had the capability of playing LT, he has played exclusively RT for the Eagles, and was a critical part of the OL that helped the Eagles win the Super Bowl under Pederson.  You don’t necessarily have to be all world to be the # 1 pick in the draft, just the best player for the team that’s picking in that spot.  As for Little, I would envision Little and Neal competing for OL position if Neal were drafted.  I submit the competition would make both players better no matter which side of the line they played.


I believe Neal would provide a tremendous upgrade to the OL no matter whic side of the OL he played on and would provide a lot of support to Trevor Lawrence.  He would fit a need and improve depth tremendously with his versatility  He certainly warrants consideration at #1.

He warrants consideration, but I wouldn't make him my pick.  I start with BAP.  People are entitled to their opinion, but there seems to be a consensus among most that Neal is not BAP at #1.  I saw a 2022 NFL prospect tracker with 8 different sites.  Not one of them had Neal as the BAP.  Not one.  Only two had him second.  Hutch, on the other hand, was #1 in five of those sites.  While Neal is often being mocked to Jacksonville, many of them appear to be doing it largely on perceived need and sometimes ignorance.  I heard one mock drafter on the radio (who projected Neal to the Jaguars) being asked "Why not just franchise Cam Robinson?" and he was a complete deer in the headlights and just stuttered trying to find words to say.  It was obvious he hadn't even considered it.  I doubt he considered the Walker Little factor either.  Many of these professional mock drafters study the draft prospects in detail, but they often don't know the situation in all 32 teams and that's often multiplied by 10 with the Jaguars.  

In regards to needs, your stat about 6 out of our last 9 first round picks being defense sounds nice, but isn't a good argument to justify offense.  3 of those defensive draft picks are no longer on the team and a 4th isn't under contract next year and even if he was hypothetically re-signed, his name is Taven Bryan.  Of the two who are actually under contract for next year, one of them is named K'Lavon Chaisson.  Only 1 of those players is still with team and expected to be a starter for the Jaguars next year.  A single former first rounder being a good defensive player is not great a reason to blindly ignore the entire defensive side of the game.  Besides, when looking at need, I personally don't look at it as "offense" versus "defense", but position versus position.  Just because your defense is better than your offense, it doesn't mean that a defensive position couldn't be your biggest need or vice versa.  While I support taking the edge rusher at #1 this year, it doesn't mean that I'm ignoring offense this off-season.  If I had my way, it would be quite the opposite.  We have the top draft picks in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round and another early 3rd rounder.  I would likely use at least 3 out of those 4 picks and possibly all 4 on offense.  We also have a ton of money in free agency and would highly target offensive positions with that money.  The top pick would be a nice bone to defense, but the off-season would otherwise be a feast to the offense.

I've also seen this line about 3 offensive line starters being free agents, but I consider it to be misleading.  Bartch started the majority of the season and clearly outplayed Cann.  I consider Bartch to be last year's starting guard and would be this year's starting guard assuming the same team returned.  That leaves two starters as free agents.  One of them is Cam Robinson.  If we want him back, we got him back because of the franchise tag.  That leaves 1 player.  Norwell is the only starting offensive lineman who could leave without us choosing to let him go.  However, he's a guard.  I'm not using the #1 overall pick on a guard.  As such, he's irrelevant to the #1 overall pick discussion.

I also think versatility is extremely over-rated when talking about the #1 overall pick.  Yes, for later picks, and particularly depth picks, it's nice to have players who can play multiple positions to fill in as needed.  However, with the #1 overall pick, I'm taking him to play ONE position.  You mention Coleman and Boselli.  The versatility was with Coleman.  Did Boselli have previous experience at right tackle and guard?  I really don't know and I really don't care.  We took Boselli to play left tackle and I wouldn't want Boselli to play anything but left tackle.  If we draft an offensive lineman #1 overall, I want him at left tackle.  

This brings me to one of my big issues.  With this pick, we are doing one of two things.  One possibility is that we are drafting Neal to be right tackle.  You don't take right tackles at #1 overall.  The positional value is not there.  Let's find some other way to address it.  The other possibility is that we are putting Neal at left tackle which means we are giving up on Walker Little as a left tackle.  That feels extremely premature.  He was a rookie last year.  He was a highly touted draft pick that only dropped to the early second round because of an injury which appears to be healed.  Although it was a limited opportunity, when given a chance to play, he looked good.  I'm not guaranteeing he's the long term answer, but I reject someone who is guaranteeing he's not.  Why not wait a year and see how it plays out?  With so many needs on a 3-14 team, why are we using the very valuable #1 overall pick on a player that isn't BAP and might turn out to not even be a need?

Let's also not under-estimate the value of a good pass rush.  Put pressure on the opposing quarterback and their offense will fall apart.  I've seen it too often.  i also see what happens when you don't put pressure on the quarterback.  Good teams with good quarterbacks will walk all over you.  If our ultimate goal is to be the best, we need a dominant pass rush.  The AFC is completely loaded with great young quarterbacks.  We need to counter that with a great young pass rush.  Josh Allen isn't enough.  You need two edge rushers.  The benefits will filter through the team.  Get a good pass rush and our entire secondary will look better.  By ending these ridiculously long drives, our defense will be more rested and our run defense will be better.  Get some 3 and outs and put THEIR tired defense back on the field and our offense will look better.  Pass rush is a huge part of the game and has become more and more important with the game being centered around passing.  Last year, we drafted the most important position on offense.  This year, let's draft the most important position on defense.  Oh yeah, and he's BAP too.

Great post, Duke!

In your first paragraph, you reference the 8 or so different sites, none of which had Neal listed as the BAP overall.  While it's persuasive, it's not entirely flawless either.  In 1996, Keyshawn Johnson was viewed by many sites to be the top overall pick and the best player.  Know who else came in that draft?  Jon Ogden and Ray Lewis.  As for the mock drafter you heard on the radio, his Jaguars ignorance comes as no surprise, though Neal shouldn't be penalized because that guy was an idiot.

As for my observation that 6 out of the last 9 first round picks were on the defensive side of the ball, you are right that it's not overly persuasive, with the caveat that I admittedly did not provide sufficient context to make it more persuasive.  I did not offer that statistic to suggest there are no defensive needs.  Because we habitually foolishly are unwilling or unable to retain our good players, most notably from the 2016 draft, our top two players performance wise from that 2016 draft are gone, and neither have been sufficiently replaced.  Yes, we missed on Taven Bryan, CJ Henderson and Chaisson.  But even including all of that, the free agency expenditures of last year were overwhelmingly on the defensive side of the ball.  Rayshawn Jenkins...Griffin, Ford, RRH, Malcolm Brown, Ward...even Tyson Alualu...all on the defensive side of the ball.  The offense investment paled by comparison.  We signed Marvin Jones...a 31 year old possession WR.  We signed a blocking TE nobody heard of who had no positive impact for us last year.  We signed Carlos freaking Hyde, and everyone hated that signing from the start.  He, too, had next to no positive impact.  We screamed for them to use all of that cap room on a T...or a TE like Henry ir Jonnu Smith.  The FO did absolutely nothing.  The results of the offensive neglect in the draft since 2015 and free agency were obvious.  The defense, while not to be mistaken for the great defenses of our time, showed considerable progress in many areas, while offensively, we were the worst in our entire history.  For about half a season, there was improvement in terms of sacks allowed, but most observers would say that was due to Trevor Lawrence's pocket awareness and athletic ability.  It wasn't due to any infusion of talent.  We went with the same guys we grew to universally label a liability in 2018, 2019, and 2020.  Neglecting the OL when we have the chance to get a potentially dominant LT with would not be prudent, especially now that we have TL.  You mentioned that with the picks we have in rounds 2-4 or so might go exclusively towards the offense.  The difference is, guys who could potentially play LT and a high level are rarely found outside of the first round.  every so often, you can find a David Bakhtiari or a Michael Roos ir Matt Light, but those guys are few and far between.  Conversely, NFL history is replete with capable edge rushers like Charles Mann, Yannick Ngakoue, Greg Lloyd, Jason Taylor, Max Crosby, Jared Allen, Jason Gildon, Joey Porter being found in that range.  You may intend to address the offense later on, but the chances of you getting a T of Eveb Beal's (or Ekwonu's) caliber are small under normal circumstances, and it seems particularly small in this year's tackle class.

As for the incumbents vs. FA that are on our line, you seemingly (though perhaps not-I've no desire to misrepresent you) operate under the assumption that those incumbent OL NOT departing via free agency somehow can't or shouldn't be upgraded.  You seem quite pleased with Bartch.  I do not share your confidence in him.  I don't see him getting much movement in the running game, and I've seen him whiff on blocks in pass protection.  Did he induce projectile vomiting?  No.  But he didn't inspire much confidence, either. To me, he'd be a top reserve on a better team. I am hopeful Walker Little can be the long term answer at one of the T spots, but the fact is, he is an unknown.  He wound up starting three games last year, in part because he went two full seasons without playing college ball.  His first start was against Buffalo, and he had a rough go of it.  He performed fairly well in his other two starts at the end of the season.  Though he got practice work at RT, we never saw him there in a game.  Considering the guy starting ahead of him on the right side, either that is a damning indictment of the previous coaching staff, or a testament as to how much work Little had to do to knock off the rust.  Either way, he's still a relative unknown.  Do I really need to get started on Jawaan Taylor?  Bottom line is the current environment provided by the offensive line is not conducive to Trevor Lawrence thriving without a significant infusion of talent, and waiting until the 2nd round or later under the current circumstances.  If I could be convinced that Walker Little can handle LT at a fairly high level, and that we won't have another slew of OL injuries like we had in 2018, I might be willing to change this part of my analysis. After all, I have repeatedly pointed out that as a general rule, the best FOs build their OL in the middle rounds.  But I don't have much faith in our FO, as currently constructed, to do that.  Do you?  The success Baalke had in building the OL came largely from the first round in SF.

You dismiss versatility as being overrated.  I strongly disagree.  Whether it's the QB who can throw on the run as well as from the pocket, the edge rusher who could beat you with speed or power, the DL who could play NT, 4-3 DT or 3-4 DE, versatility is always a plus in the draft.  The Ravens had Tony Jones at LT when they drafted Ogden.  Was he a wasted pick because he played G his rookie year?  Was that Ravens draft somehow less because of that?  Of course not!  It went down as one of the best drafts in recent NFL history because they added him to the roster and found a way to get him on the field.  You never know what can happen in the future.  Aside from the whole slew of injuries thing that could necessitate a move at some point, you could have another J.J. Watt or Reggie White or Neil Smith added to the division and he'll play LDE.  When that happens, we'll want to have two very strong and talented tackles with the ability to provide good pass protection.



As for your edge rusher analysis, I agree with your assessment as a general rule, but I reiterate my previous argument about edge rushers being readily available in the middle rounds.  I don't think your analysis takes that into consideration.

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

He warrants consideration, but I wouldn't make him my pick.  I start with BAP.  People are entitled to their opinion, but there seems to be a consensus among most that Neal is not BAP at #1.  I saw a 2022 NFL prospect tracker with 8 different sites.  Not one of them had Neal as the BAP.  Not one.  Only two had him second.  Hutch, on the other hand, was #1 in five of those sites.  While Neal is often being mocked to Jacksonville, many of them appear to be doing it largely on perceived need and sometimes ignorance.  I heard one mock drafter on the radio (who projected Neal to the Jaguars) being asked "Why not just franchise Cam Robinson?" and he was a complete deer in the headlights and just stuttered trying to find words to say.  It was obvious he hadn't even considered it.  I doubt he considered the Walker Little factor either.  Many of these professional mock drafters study the draft prospects in detail, but they often don't know the situation in all 32 teams and that's often multiplied by 10 with the Jaguars.  

In regards to needs, your stat about 6 out of our last 9 first round picks being defense sounds nice, but isn't a good argument to justify offense.  3 of those defensive draft picks are no longer on the team and a 4th isn't under contract next year and even if he was hypothetically re-signed, his name is Taven Bryan.  Of the two who are actually under contract for next year, one of them is named K'Lavon Chaisson.  Only 1 of those players is still with team and expected to be a starter for the Jaguars next year.  A single former first rounder being a good defensive player is not great a reason to blindly ignore the entire defensive side of the game.  Besides, when looking at need, I personally don't look at it as "offense" versus "defense", but position versus position.  Just because your defense is better than your offense, it doesn't mean that a defensive position couldn't be your biggest need or vice versa.  While I support taking the edge rusher at #1 this year, it doesn't mean that I'm ignoring offense this off-season.  If I had my way, it would be quite the opposite.  We have the top draft picks in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round and another early 3rd rounder.  I would likely use at least 3 out of those 4 picks and possibly all 4 on offense.  We also have a ton of money in free agency and would highly target offensive positions with that money.  The top pick would be a nice bone to defense, but the off-season would otherwise be a feast to the offense.

I've also seen this line about 3 offensive line starters being free agents, but I consider it to be misleading.  Bartch started the majority of the season and clearly outplayed Cann.  I consider Bartch to be last year's starting guard and would be this year's starting guard assuming the same team returned.  That leaves two starters as free agents.  One of them is Cam Robinson.  If we want him back, we got him back because of the franchise tag.  That leaves 1 player.  Norwell is the only starting offensive lineman who could leave without us choosing to let him go.  However, he's a guard.  I'm not using the #1 overall pick on a guard.  As such, he's irrelevant to the #1 overall pick discussion.

I also think versatility is extremely over-rated when talking about the #1 overall pick.  Yes, for later picks, and particularly depth picks, it's nice to have players who can play multiple positions to fill in as needed.  However, with the #1 overall pick, I'm taking him to play ONE position.  You mention Coleman and Boselli.  The versatility was with Coleman.  Did Boselli have previous experience at right tackle and guard?  I really don't know and I really don't care.  We took Boselli to play left tackle and I wouldn't want Boselli to play anything but left tackle.  If we draft an offensive lineman #1 overall, I want him at left tackle.  

This brings me to one of my big issues.  With this pick, we are doing one of two things.  One possibility is that we are drafting Neal to be right tackle.  You don't take right tackles at #1 overall.  The positional value is not there.  Let's find some other way to address it.  The other possibility is that we are putting Neal at left tackle which means we are giving up on Walker Little as a left tackle.  That feels extremely premature.  He was a rookie last year.  He was a highly touted draft pick that only dropped to the early second round because of an injury which appears to be healed.  Although it was a limited opportunity, when given a chance to play, he looked good.  I'm not guaranteeing he's the long term answer, but I reject someone who is guaranteeing he's not.  Why not wait a year and see how it plays out?  With so many needs on a 3-14 team, why are we using the very valuable #1 overall pick on a player that isn't BAP and might turn out to not even be a need?

Let's also not under-estimate the value of a good pass rush.  Put pressure on the opposing quarterback and their offense will fall apart.  I've seen it too often.  i also see what happens when you don't put pressure on the quarterback.  Good teams with good quarterbacks will walk all over you.  If our ultimate goal is to be the best, we need a dominant pass rush.  The AFC is completely loaded with great young quarterbacks.  We need to counter that with a great young pass rush.  Josh Allen isn't enough.  You need two edge rushers.  The benefits will filter through the team.  Get a good pass rush and our entire secondary will look better.  By ending these ridiculously long drives, our defense will be more rested and our run defense will be better.  Get some 3 and outs and put THEIR tired defense back on the field and our offense will look better.  Pass rush is a huge part of the game and has become more and more important with the game being centered around passing.  Last year, we drafted the most important position on offense.  This year, let's draft the most important position on defense.  Oh yeah, and he's BAP too.

Two great posts there ^  Really well thought out and well written.  

My thinking on this issue continues to evolve.  But right now, I am strongly leaning towards retaining Robinson and drafting one of the two edge rushers.  It seems like letting go of Cam and drafting Neal is just churning our roster and not making any great improvement.  We've got plenty of cap space, so tagging Cam or signing him to a contract is not going to kill us.  He's a decent left tackle, but who do we have opposite Josh Allen?  Really not much.  Of course, all this has been said before.  

There's a million ways to skin a cat, so the above plan is of course not the only decent plan.  But it seems like the simplest, safest thing to do.  And it allows us to use the #1 overall pick on a player who will give us the greatest roster upgrade.  

Maybe I'm just gun-shy from a decade of thinking we can let a guy walk because he's easily replaced, and then acquiring a replacement who is worse than the guy we let walk.  We have Trevor Lawrence on his rookie contract for 4 more years.  If we start the rebuilding process by tearing things down first, we add years to the rebuilding process.  We know what we have in Cam Robinson.  Hutchinson and Thibodeaux are there for the taking.  Let's not make a hole in the roster that forces us into picking by position instead of by player.

So what I am saying is, let's keep Cam Robinson.

You, me, and TheDuke.  The AOL message boards live on!  Too bad HaCJax passed on.  Do you know if any other former AOL posters are here?  All we need is a team good enough to where we can run some smack and to smack around some Steelers fans, and we'll be all set.    

As to your closing paragraph, based on your reasoning, would I be correct in assuming you want to retain DJ Chark?

Still on your closing paragraph, I would draw a distinction between most of those incidents of getting rid of players and Robinson.  Just about every player we've regretted getting rid of over the years were at some point pro bowl or better caliber players.  Jalen Ramsey has been All Pro.  Yannick Ngakoue was a Pro Bowler and double digit sack guy.  Calais Campbell was once Defensive player of the year for us.  While we didn't specifically jettison Telvin Smith, we were nonetheless sickened when he retired prematurely because he made a Pro Bwol and won a few defensive player of the week awards.  Allen Robinson made the Pro Bowl for us in 2015,,,,and he was our first pro bowler at the position since Jimmy Smith.  Cam Robinson doesn't have those accolades to his credit.  While I don't think he has been as bad as many has made him out to be, nobody would mistake him for a dominant, pro bowl caliber LT.  Besides, we're in the optimal position to replace him through the draft.  In fact, if Walker Little is who we all hope he is, we already HAVE Cam's replacement on the roster.

It certainly wouldn't be the end of the world if we kept Cam Robinson and took a player at another position at #1, but the dynamic you lament is not present with the Cam Robinson situation.

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

Leon Searcy also referenced Neal's punch on the radio...saying how Miami defensders quit on plays when Neal got a good punch.

You see that against Tennessee...

https://youtu.be/cpc_yMuFpdM

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

Whats the likelyness of us actuallty gettin him at 1 ,over apposed to thibs




www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahhmcssR3lY

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Whats the likelyness of us actuallty gettin him at 1 ,over apposed to thibs




www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahhmcssR3lY

Unsure, to be honest.

With the Jaguars having the #1 overall pick, anyone at the top of their board are likely to get serious consideration, anless the Jaguars are intent on trading back.'

But I'm not familiar enough with Baalke to be able to predict what he will do with any confidence *and I mean that in both senses of the word).

I don't know whether the EVP and other people will be brought aboard in time to run the draft, and if they are brought aboard in time to run the draft, I'm unsure how they will run the draft.

Nor do I know how much sway Pederson will have in the draft room.  That said, based upon his statement after his hiring was announced, he said he believed in building from the trenches, which standing alone, theoretically includes edge rusher.  But his next statement, if true, gives more insight.  I am paraphrasing, but he said a QB cannot throw from his back.

If they follow what successful teams typically do, they will try tio support the guy they believe will be their franchise QB.  The Steelers followed up their Terry Bradshaw pick with first round selections of WR Frank Lewis, RB Franco Harris, and WR Lynn Swann, and TE Bennie Cunningham in four of the next six drafts.  When they drafted Big Ben, they followed his selection with first round picks on offense in four of the next six drafts with first rounders spent on TE Heath Miller, WR Santonio Holmes, RB Rashad Mendenhall, and C Maurkice Pouncey.

Dallas followed up the Aikman selection with first rounders Emmitt Smith, WR Alvin Harper, and second rounders FB Daryl Johnston (taken the same year as Aikman), WR Alexander Wright, WR Jimmy Smith and WR Kevin Williams (who was their first pick in 1993, but taken in the 2nd round because they traded back).

Indy added RB Edgerrun James, and WR Reggie Wayne in two of the next three drafts, adding them to guys like LT Tarik Glenn and WR Marvin Harison who were already on the roster.  When they drafted Andrew Luck in 2012, they followed up his selection with TEs Coby Fleener and Brian Allen and WR T.Y. Hilton in the same draft, and used their first picks in subsequent years on T Jack Mewhort (2nd round), WR Phillip Dorsett, and C Ryan Kelly.

The Chiefs already had Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, LT Eric Fisher, RT Mitchell Schwartz, and RB Kareem Hunt on the roster when they added Mahomes in 2017.  The Chiefs were already a playoff caliber team, and Reid's offense was already entrenched on the roster.  There was already enough there for Mahomes to have a reasonable chance to succeed.  That's not the case here.

The Giants bucked that trend after the 2004 draft that netted them Eli Manning.  But their OL was already in good shape when Manning arrived in too4.  Three of the starters on the line were starters in that 2007 Super Bowl team.   They already had Tiki Barber, Amani Toomer and Jeremy Schockey on the roster.  He had sufficient support to succeed.  Again, that's not the case here.

The inescapable truth is that if Trevor Lawrence is to succeed at the level we all want, he will need surrounding help.  That will inevitably require adding superior talent around him.

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

I think they take him.  Just gut feel.  I don't know if it's the right or wrong move.  I think the problem this year, there is no clear-cut #1.

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I think they take him.  Just gut feel.  I don't know if it's the right or wrong move.  I think the problem this year, there is no clear-cut #1.

I fear you are right. I personally think Little could very well be our answer at LT. That still leaves RT but I am not quite ready to take a RT at #1. I would prefer the Edge Rusher at #1 this time around.

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One thing going for Neal is we know he is still extremely raw and wasn't coached a bit last year as bologna Marrone was his O-line coach last year.

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I think they take him.  Just gut feel.  I don't know if it's the right or wrong move.  I think the problem this year, there is no clear-cut #1.

I think at this point, barring any official athletic testing, that the top 2 would still be Thibs and Hutch if everyone wasn't hellbent on Trevor needs help Trevor needs help Trevor needs help. I think that's driving virtually all of the OT at 1 talk.

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I think they take him.  Just gut feel.  I don't know if it's the right or wrong move.  I think the problem this year, there is no clear-cut #1.

I think at this point, barring any official athletic testing, that the top 2 would still be Thibs and Hutch if everyone wasn't hellbent on Trevor needs help Trevor needs help Trevor needs help. I think that's driving virtually all of the OT at 1 talk.

Agreed. I believe Trevor would be better off if we weren't playing from behind all the time and if he had adequate receivers to throw to. We can achieve those goals via free agency and the draft. Our O-Line may not be great, but we're not nearly as bad as the Bengals were and they made it to the Superbowl. We were 27th in the NFL in sacks though. No wonder we lost so many games. Without pressure on the opposing QB, you're going nowhere!

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Everyone seems to be discussing 3 players. Hutch, Thibs and Neal. All 3 may very well be good players in time. The way I see it Hutch disappeared when he played against a stout SEC line both times this year. (Alabama and Georgia) Thibs played in the PAC-10 not know this year for its superior offensive lines. It was a shame he did not play against Ohio State, but against Utah he had 8 tackles over the span of 2 games. These guys will face much better competition as rookies so I would set my expectations lower for these guys if we draft them. Will they be good in time? Yea maybe so, but I do not expect they are the silver bullet to cure all our pass rush issues. It is flawed to say drafting one of them will make our offense better.

What I saw last year was a defense that played fairly well after the bye week. They were not the main reason we lost games. They would get a stop and be rewarded by a 3 and out, then come back on the field with the other team in pretty good field position. Guys we were 31st in time of possession last year. (20th the last 3 games) As a point of comparison in 2017 we were 5th and that was with Bortles as QB. The offense begins with the line. Sure Cincinnati had a questionable line. They also had a QB that lead the league in sacks too. In fact the super bowl ended with him being sacked. (you really want that?)

We have Little and Taylor under contract and can tag Cam. Taylor has been less than what we would like. So unless you want to be talking next year about tagging Cam again we may want to pick the best available offensive tackle. We would still need to tag Cam this year as just like the edge guys the any o-lineman we draft will need some time to adjust as well. If we wait till the second round it appears the best will be long gone by the 33rd pick but then I guess we could get lucky.

Now free agency and the cap issues of other teams can change every thing ....

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A new broom always sweeps clean.

Everyone seems to be discussing 3 players. Hutch, Thibs and Neal. All 3 may very well be good players in time.  The way I see it Hutch disappeared when he played against a stout SEC line both times this year. (Alabama and Georgia) Thibs played in the PAC-10 not know this year for its superior offensive lines. It was a shame he did not play against Ohio State, but against Utah he had 8 tackles over the span of 2 games. These guys will face much better competition as rookies so I would set my expectations lower for these guys if we draft them. Will they be good in time? Yea maybe so, but I do not expect they are the silver bullet to cure all our pass rush issues. It is flawed to say drafting one of them will make our offense better.

What I saw last year was a defense that played fairly well after the bye week. They were not the main reason we lost games. They would get a stop and be rewarded by a 3 and out,  then come back on the field with the other team in pretty good field position.  Guys we were 31st in time of possession last year. (20th the last 3 games) As a point of comparison in 2017 we were 5th and that was with Bortles as QB. The offense begins with the line.  Sure Cincinnati had a questionable line. They also had a QB that lead the league in sacks too. In fact the super bowl ended with him being sacked. (you really want that?) 

We have Little and Taylor under contract and can tag Cam.  Taylor has been less than what we would like. So unless you want to be talking next year about tagging Cam again we may want to pick the best available offensive tackle. We would still need to tag Cam this year as just like the edge guys the any o-lineman we draft will need some time to adjust as well. If we wait till the second round it appears the best will be long gone by the 33rd pick but then I guess we could get lucky.

Now free agency and the cap issues  of other teams can change every thing ....

Michigan didn't play Alabama last season. They only played Georgia. 

The Offensive Tackles in this draft aren't even close to being #1 overall picks. That would be reaching. You take the BAP.

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Everyone seems to be discussing 3 players. Hutch, Thibs and Neal. All 3 may very well be good players in time.  The way I see it Hutch disappeared when he played against a stout SEC line both times this year. (Alabama and Georgia) Thibs played in the PAC-10 not know this year for its superior offensive lines. It was a shame he did not play against Ohio State, but against Utah he had 8 tackles over the span of 2 games. These guys will face much better competition as rookies so I would set my expectations lower for these guys if we draft them. Will they be good in time? Yea maybe so, but I do not expect they are the silver bullet to cure all our pass rush issues. It is flawed to say drafting one of them will make our offense better.

You know who did play vs Ohio state though? 

https://twitter.com/PFF_College/status/1...hlkeg&s=19

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Everyone seems to be discussing 3 players. Hutch, Thibs and Neal.

For me, at least until we see Hutch run a 3 cone, it's between Thibs, Neal, Hamilton, and Cross. And I think Neal would be last of those 4.

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Everyone seems to be discussing 3 players. Hutch, Thibs and Neal.

For me, at least until we see Hutch run a 3 cone, it's between Thibs, Neal, Hamilton, and Cross. And I think Neal would be last of those 4.

No Ekwono in there? Some folks say he is better than Neal and Cross.  I say put Little at LT, get a RT in FA along with a couple of Guards and draft some IOL in midrounds. That leaves Edge at #1. I would not take a Safety at #1.

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For me, at least until we see Hutch run a 3 cone, it's between Thibs, Neal, Hamilton, and Cross. And I think Neal would be last of those 4.

No Ekwono in there? Some folks say he is better than Neal and Cross.  I say put Little at LT, get a RT in FA along with a couple of Guards and draft some IOL in midrounds. That leaves Edge at #1. I would not take a Safety at #1.

I need to see Ekwonu's athletic testing first, his feet don't scream tackle to me but they don't scream guard either so his jumps/3cone/SS will factor for me. I think he's good but not quite top tier with those other 4. He's in the next tier with Hutch and others.

I would rather not take a safety #1 either, but he's the most bulletproof prospect in this class and safety isn't a low tier value position anymore. If he is purely BAP, which he may be, then go ahead and take him considering the rest of this class is so imperfect.

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