2024 NFL Draft: ESPN Slots Pass-Rusher to Jaguars in Too-Early Mock Draft

The Jacksonville Jaguars do not have the 2024 NFL Draft in mind. 

Sitting at 5-2 (tied for the NFL's second-best record) and on a four-game winning streak, the Jaguars have Super Bowl aspirations in 2023. But that doesn't mean others can't look ahead in much too-early scenarios.

ESPN delivered a too-early NFL Draft and first-round mock this week, with an unsurprising selection heading to the Jaguars in the late first round.

ESPN's Jordan Reid mocked a first-round pass-rusher to the Jaguars at No. 24 overall, years after the Jaguars took first-round pass-rushers in 2019 (Josh Allen), 2020 (K'Lavon Chaisson), and 2022 (Travon Walker).

"Travon Walker hasn't developed as fast as the team had hoped, and maybe Jacksonville could try to slide him inside. Regardless, the Jags need help opposite of Josh Allen, who is their most consistent pass-rusher with seven sacks," Reid said.

"Robinson is explosive and has the bend to finish at the quarterback. His average time to generate pressure is 2.38 seconds, the third-quickest mark in the FBS this season. He can line up in multiple alignments and collapse the pocket in a hurry."

The Jaguars are tied for No. 24 in sacks through seven games, with Allen recording seven of their 13 sacks so far. Travon Walker has another 2.5, K'Lavon Chaisson has two, Dawuane Smoot has one, and Roy Robertson-Harris has 0.5. The Jaguars also rank 17th in pressure rate and eighth in blitz rate, which means the Jaguars are getting pressure at an average rate but are blitzing more often than most teams. In short, the Jaguars are relying on more than just their front four to get after the quarterback. 

"It’s funny because you probably have a vision of what it would look like, even your offense. But, each year, you’re almost starting over and it’s dictated by your personnel and who your guys are. It kind of morphs and shapes into different things," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said last week. 

"It still doesn’t mean you want to be able to stop the run, in our division, pass rush we talk a lot about that in this room. That’s every week. You have to determine how much man coverage you want to play. That’s predicated on your personnel. Pressure, do you want to be a pressure team or do you want to play zone and keep everything in front of you? It’s something you talk about when you go through the hiring process and what the vision might look like, but it changes and shapes based on the personality of the team.”