The following positions have been identified by this Board, local media and national experts as top needs for 2023-24 (in no particular order):

Interior offensive line
Outside (Edge) pass rusher
Tight end (even if Engram re-signed)
Interior defensive line
Corner/nickel


There is certainly a good case that can be made for any of these positions being addressed in either rounds 1 or 2 of the upcoming draft. Prior to making decisions on the draft, I believe 3 important questions need to be answered:

1. Which free agents need to be paid? My guess is they pay Engram, re-structure Agnew and try to work out reasonable deals with Taylor, Key and Manhertz.

2. Which players under contract for 2023-24 are let go? Griffin and Chaisson are no brainers. RRH and Jenkins will be tough decisions due to money saved by releasing them. Both had great moments, but were inconsistent.
    Re-structuring their contracts is a possibility.

3. What is the defensive scheme Caldwell plans to use next season? To me, this is the most important decision our coaches have to make. Caldwell primarily went with the 3-4 defense utilizing Trevon Walker as an Edge rusher. Does he get another year to improve upon his less than stellar performance rushing the passer in this scheme? If Caldwell has faith that Walker can significantly improve upon his 3.5 sacks after an off-season of learning better pass-rushing skills, I see the Jaguars continuing to use the 3-4 as their base defense. However, Caldwell and Pederson may believe that switching to a 4-3 base would make better use of the current roster's skillset. Walker and Allen would move to DE in this scheme and Caldwell would have to determine where to position their linebacker group of Oluakon, Lloyd and Muma.

  Since I am not presumptuous enough to believe I know the answer to this question, I'll leave that up to the coaching staff. My order of needs come draft time will be determined by the answers to these 3 questions. If the team stays in a 3-4 base defense with Walker at Edge, the need for another Edge goes down although I'd still draft one in the mid-rounds. If they remain in a 3-4, but move Walker to DE in this scheme then an Edge rusher becomes a top priority in the draft. Finally, if they go to a 4-3, then the need for an interior pass rusher on the defensive line must be addressed fairly early (no later than round 3) in the draft.


Regardless of which scheme they use on defense, the team needs to draft an interior offensive lineman in the first 2 rounds and a cornerback no later than rounds 3 or 4. While I wouldn't draft a tight end in round 1, I'd certainly consider taking Musgrave or Washington in the 2nd round to give the offense another weapon for Lawrence.


I realize this is a lot of information to sort out, but my intent is to summarize the options which this team has during the off-season based on the previous comments on this Board. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on this, especially regarding which defensive scheme should be utilized going forward.

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