(04-29-2023, 08:21 PM)OG-JAGFAN Wrote: My take. 

The first 3 picks were offense. It was clear that supporting the Qb was the top priority. I have no problem with the picks in these rounds.

The team is bringing in a ton of competition. Players like Devon Lloyd who appeared to be lost at times are going to feel the pressure. Competition is always good.

The team decided to take 13 swings this year. Will have some strike outs, base hits, and hopefully some home runs. I do not buy a ton of stock on where a player is drafted. Sure the odds drop of getting a starter in every round. There are also plenty of cases were great players drop in later rounds for stupid reasons. See Tom Brady 6th round or Jerry Rice dropping to 16th overall from a lackluster 40 yard time. There are plenty of other examples.

The team is comfortable with Herndon at nickle. Unless they make a move outside the draft I do not see many options at corner.

I know these were not the Draft Expert type of picks. The so called Experts get as many wrong as the average GM. Mike Mayok was a draft expert king so he got his shot at GM. We know how that turned out. My point is because a player is not on ESPN or NFL network draft board does not mean it's a bad pick. They very well could all be bust. I am taking the wait and see approach.

The draft tells me a few things.

1.  I think it would have gone differently had Cam Robinson not been suspended.  I think the Jaguars still might have gone OL at some point in the draft, but I don't think it would have been top priority had the team not lost Jawaan Taylor in free agency AND Cam Robinson for 6 games.

2.  This will be the first draft in a while, for us where we won't have a bunch of new and relatively immediate starters.  I think for the first time in a while, I think the team didn't add many starters, but is still a decent draft because it HAS added quality depth at RB, WR, maybe TE, ILB, DL, but though I'm not entirely thrilled wih the draft in terms of number of immediate starters, I DO think we'll get some contributions from the players in this class. 

3.  One guy I think will end up a starter will be the SS out of Texas A & M, Antionio Johnson.  If you were a proponent of drafting Alabama's Branch, I think you'll be happy with Johnson.  There were some similar elements to Texas A & M's and Alabama's defense where Branch and Johnson had similar roles and responsibilities in the box.  They produced similar big plays.  If Johnson is utilized in the Jaguars defense in that way, I think Jaguars fans will be pleased with what they see out of him.

4.  However, I am having a more difficult time envisioning the role for Yasir, Abdullah.  In the speculation I have heard, he will have the role of a pass rusher but I don't see it.  I saw some compared him with former Broncos edge rusher Elvis Dumervil.  It would be great if we could get similar production out of him as Denver got out of a young Dumervil, and he seems to have a similar build.  But it was hard for me to see how he was utilized in college translates into a dominant edge rusher based on what little I've seen in the clips of him.

5.  Another player that excites me from this draft class is Penn State WR Parer Washington.  When this draft season rolled around, WR was NOT particularly high in the priorities of most Jaguars fans, especially with the addition of former Falcons' WR Calvin Ridley.  However, the late addition of Washington has the potential to be huge for the Jaguars.  He has the ability to make the spectacular play, from catches to run after the catch.  But it would seem he needs to improve his consistency.  But I think he has good players around him from which to learn.  In time, he could be a good WR.

6.  I would bury the hatchet and re-sign Yannick Ngakoue.  I didn't want him to leave in the first place.  But hopefully now he has a better grasp of the market for his services.  I still think he still has fuel in the tank and can still be a productive edge rusher.  But even assuming all of the above is true, we will need more edge rush production from somewhere, whether it's Josh Allen, Abdullah, or even one of the earlier draft picks from years past.

---

(04-30-2023, 03:26 PM)RicoTx Wrote:

(04-30-2023, 01:58 PM)GaJag Wrote: It was a preseason game. I was there.

Absolutely NOT a preseason game.  It happened in Atlanta.  Eugene Robinson hit him on a totally unnecessary play out of bounds in a blowout win.  So I don't know what or who you're thinking of.

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/p...0/gamelog/

The hit that ended Banks' career was NOT in the preseason, nor was it in Jacksonville.

It was a regular season game in Atlanta (somewhere around the end of November/early December.

Ray Buchanan delivered the hit that blew out Banks' knee, not Eugene Robinson.

---