Midway through the 2023 season, it looked like the Jacksonville Jaguars were poised to win the AFC South and be positioned to be competitive for a run in the postseason. However in the back half of the season, the wheels came off the wagon for the Jaguars, and they lost some surprising games to miss out on the playoffs. In speaking with Jacksonville sources, the team aims to get bigger and more physical this offseason.
The Jaguars are poised to franchise tag edge rusher Josh Allen to keep him hunting quarterbacks for them. It sounds like wide receiver Calvin Ridley will hit unrestricted free agency, but Jacksonville could address the receiver position in the 2024 NFL Draft. However, it sounds like the organization is more inclined to draw on the 2024 NFL Draft’s deep receiver class by taking one on Day 2.
For the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, it sounds like cornerback is Jacksonville’s preferred position. The team wants to get bigger and more physical on defense, so that leans more toward cornerback prospects like Alabama’s Terrion Arnold, Alabama’s Kool-Aid McKinstry or Iowa’s Cooper DeJean. Toledo’s Quinyon Mitchell is not as good of a fit as the those three, and Clemson’s Nate Wiggins is not a big corner. There is still a lot of the draft process remaining, and free agency could alter draft priorities, but right now, it sounds like getting bigger and more physical on the outside is a desire for Jacksonville. The 2024 NFL Draft has good depth of cornerback prospects for the Jaguars to consider.
