The Jacksonville Jaguars are that new trendy team around the National Football League.
Coming off a much more competitive season than the franchise has been accustomed to, the Jaguars made sure to continue those good vibes with some solid free-agent signings in March.
General manager David Caldwell and Co. added two top-end defensive starters in lineman Malik Jackson and former Pro Bowl safety Tashaun Gipson in free agency.
If that wasn’t enough to help rebuild a struggling defense, the Jaguars were able to pick up two of the top-five overall players in the 2016 NFL Draft.
After seeing both the San Diego Chargers and Dallas Cowboys pass up on defensive back Jalen Ramsey within the first few picks, Jacksonville nabbed him with the fifth selection. He’s slated to start at corner as a rookie.
Then, in one of the most awe-inspiring moves of the entire three-day draft, Jacksonville picked up former UCLA linebacker Myles Jack at the top of the second round.
Jack was considered the best all-around player in the entire draft, but concerns over his knee condition forced the all-world athlete out of the first round.
NFL Network’s Jeff Darlington caught up with the two Jaguars rookies, asking them how exactly this happened.
“It was probably destiny. It just so happened, I got the opportunity to come to Jacksonville,” Ramsey said. “And too many teams slept on the great. That is what it is. So, their loss, our gain.”
Adding this much upper-echelon talent to a defense that’s been among the worst in the NFL over the past five seasons will surely put the Jaguars in position to compete for the AFC South title in 2016.
When asked about how the process played out after seeing himself drop to the second round, Jack responded:
“Yeah, you know it’s definitely crazy,” Jack said. “But kinda looking at it all the way around, No. 1 this is where I wanted to be. No. 2, I am playing with Jalen. Like, I mean we were two of the top-three dudes in this draft, and for us to be playing together — I don’t know how they let that happen.”
In addition to acquiring these two elite-level players, Jacksonville will get 2015 top-five pick Dante Fowler Jr. back in the mix after the pass rusher missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury.
That’s three blue-chip prospects added to a unit that needs to step up with the lethal amount of talent the Jaguars have on offense.
If this happens, Jacksonville could very well find itself in position to best both the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans in the AFC South moving forward.
Such is the nature of the beast in an ever-evolving NFL. Of course, it’s now all about these players living up to what their college game tape tells us.