Jags select an interesting option at OT late in Draft Network’s 1-round mock draft

With the Jacksonville Jaguars currently 1-8, fans have constantly found themselves looking at mock drafts for the 2021 offseason. To make matters worse their schedule is only going to get more brutal with several playoff contenders like the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns, and others remaining.

Part of the issue has been the inconsistency at quarterback, which has led to many mock drafts slotting Justin Fields to the Jags, and understandably so. Draft Network’s Kyle Krabbs seemingly didn’t want to break that trend in his latest mock, slotting the star signal-caller to the Jags, who may need a leader to steer them after some potential organizational changes.

2. Jacksonville Jaguars – Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State

The Jaguars are proving to be quite the tough out—they gave the Green Bay Packers everything they could handle in Week 10 but ultimately came up short. There’s plenty to improve upon with this team, but there’s no denying the chance to get an improvement in the quarterback department. Justin Fields may not catch Lawrence, but he’s every bit of a grand prize for Jacksonville in this scenario. Jacksonville can use the knowledge of Fields’ skills to help steer their search for any organizational changes and then aim to build around him from there.

There is certainly not much to disagree with there as the Jags are a good spot for Fields when looking at their offensive tools. They have emerging players like Laviska Shenault Jr., James Robinson, and D.J. Chark already in place, which could alleviate a lot of pressure off a rookie quarterback. The Jags also could potentially take their time with putting him on the field as Gardner Minshew II and Jake Luton might be players who can start initially in 2021.

With their second pick in the first round, the Jags were slotted an athletic option at left tackle in Texas offensive lineman Samuel Cosmi.

25. Jacksonville Jaguars – Samuel Cosmi, OT, Texas

The Jaguars, much like the Jets, decide to pair their rookie signal caller with a primary protector. Sam Cosmi is super toolsy and athletic at the tackle position, a bit of a deviation away from the maulers they’ve drafted in the past. And, to be fair, that formula has had mixed results, so why not try something different? Cosmi can continue to help himself by developing added functional strength, but he’s got all the traits that don’t grow on trees along the offensive line and can help protect for an athletic quarterback in large part because he was tasked with doing exactly that at Texas.

As Krabbs pointed out, the type of tackles we’ve grown accustomed to seeing the Jags draft over the years are those similar to Cam Robinson, who is a 6-foot-6, 320-pound monster in the run game. However, it’s worth noting the Jags could be going with a regime change and the next staff could be looking to get more athletic on the line.

At 6-foot-7, 300 pounds, Cosmi has displayed great movement skills during his time in Texas. However, he needs some technique polishing and doesn’t appear to be as pro-ready as Robinson was coming out of Alabama.

It’s possible Robinson could be back next season for the simple fact that the Jags may not want to add any new holes on their roster. Additionally, going with a rookie on the blindside is likely to come with its rough moments. That’s certainly something they may not want in the future, especially if they have to draft a quarterback in the first round.