Jacksonville owns the first overall pick in the draft for the second year in a row after failing to see much improvement in 2021, finishing the season at 3-14. Last year, the pick was straightforward. The Jaguars have been looking for a long-term franchise quarterback since Mark Brunell left the team in 2003, and a generational prospect fell into their laps in Trevor Lawrence.
This time around, it’s not so simple. The elite prospects in this class are a pair of edge rushers, which remains a need for Jacksonville even though it’s been addressed in the first round in two of the last three drafts. There’s a lot of debate about which of the two between Michigan’s Aidan Hutchinson and Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux should be the top pick, but ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. thinks he knows the answer.
“I think Aidan Hutchinson, the defensive end from Michigan, I think the body of work, the production, that Nick Bosa, Joey Bosa mentality in the Big Ten… The intensity, the consistency, being disruptive against the pass, getting after the quarterback and the run game, as well,” Kiper told Field Yates on ESPN’s First Draft. “Being a great leader, setting a great tone for that defense… People will talk about the Georgia game, Stetson Bennett got the ball out quick, they knew what they had to do in that game.”
The Jaguars are on the clock for the 2022 NFL Draft. @MelKiperESPN breaks down the top player on his board right now: Michigan DE Aidan Hutchinson. pic.twitter.com/N89kopHkqU
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) January 18, 2022
Kiper still likes Thibodeaux as a prospect, slotting him to go with the second pick, but he worries that the former No. 1 recruit doesn’t bend the edge like the league’s elite pass rushers do and is still working on developing his secondary move set. Per Kiper, Thibodeaux is more of a project player.
“When you look at Aidan Hutchinson, I give him the slight edge there over Kayvon Thibodeaux, defensive end from Oregon, who I would put in that second spot right now to the Detroit Lions,” he said.
There are other options for the Jaguars too, of course. One of the most likely non-pass rusher options is Alabama offensive tackle, Evan Neal. He’s one of the better tackle prospects in recent years, and he demonstrated his versatility in college, starting on both the left and right sides over his career. He may project more as a right tackle at the next level, though, and if that’s the case, it may be hard to justify that value at No. 1 overall.
Regardless, the Jaguars have multiple options with this pick as there’s no clear-cut top prospect. We’ll see who emerges as the favorite in the coming months as the pre-draft process gets underway.
