Jaguars: Recent mock draft presents wild AFC South scenario
Most NFL fans open up every mock draft imaginable with one sole purpose: See who their favorite team picked. But for Jacksonville Jaguars, what the team does on a recent mock put together by NFL's Peter Schrager is the least important thing. Instead, it's what the Jags' division foes end up doing in such an […]
Most NFL fans open up every mock draft imaginable with one sole purpose: See who their favorite team picked. But for Jacksonville Jaguars, what the team does on a recent mock put together by NFL's Peter Schrager is the least important thing.
Instead, it's what the Jags' division foes end up doing in such an exercise: Find a quarterback.
You see, in his mock, every AFC South foe ends up finding its quarterback of the future. Or at least, they try to. It starts with a wild trade with the Houston Texans who trade down with the Indianapolis Colts.
Starting there, here's how the dominoes end up falling in the "draft inside the draft" a.k.a. the quarterback draft:
- No. 2, Colts via Texans: QB C.J. Stroud
- No. 4, Texans via Colts: EDGE Tyree Wilson (including him to note they don't pick a QB here).
- No. 5, Seahawks: QB Anthony Richardson, Florida
- No. 11, Titans: QB Hendon Hooker, Tennessee
- No. 12, Texans: QB Will Levis, Kentucky
That's three brand-new quarterbacks for the AFC South. Such a scenario would mean quite a shift among the Jaguars' rivals. All this time, Jacksonville has been perceived as having a unique advantage with Trevor Lawrence being considered the only top-tier QB in the division.
While three rookie quarterbacks from this class wouldn't change that, there would definitely be more competition involved. If we're being completely real, it would make for very interesting matchups in the AFC South. I'd welcome such a scenario with arms wide open.
But hey, I won't leave you wondering. In Schrager's mock, the Jaguars end up addressing one of their top defensive needs by selecting DB Brian Branch from Alabama.
"I think it's offensive lineman or defensive back here for the Jaguars," writes the NFL.com analyst. "Branch was the slot corner for Alabama, but he could play all over Jacksonville's secondary."
I wrote about why I love this match earlier this month but Branch would be a great addition to this defense.
