It’s never too early to read a mock draft, right?
It certainly can be too early to create one, but that doesn’t stop the NFL media industry from performing the exercise. Projections for the 2025 NFL draft have been rolling out since this year’s draft concluded in late April.
Matt Miller of ESPN is the latest analyst to release an early first-round mock, crafting the selection order based on the Football Power Index created by his outlet.
With the Jaguars slotted at No. 15 overall, Miller sent LSU offensive tackle Emery Jones Jr. to Jacksonville, citing his belief in the club’s need for help on its exterior offensive line.
The biggest weakness on the Jacksonville roster is at offensive tackle; Anton Harrison struggled on the right side as a rookie, and Cam Robinson was among the worst run-blocking left tackles in the league last season. But Jones — who starts at right tackle for the Tigers — has easy movement skills despite a 6-foot-6 and 315-pound frame, and I see the agility and balance to play left or right tackle in the pros. He has to clean up some timing issues, but his jump from freshman starter to sophomore standout (seven sacks allowed in Year 1 compared to four in Year 2) showed his potential.
The Jaguars took Harrison in the first round of last year’s draft, and opinions of rookie season performance vary based on the eye of the beholder. Miller and fellow ESPN analysts, Pro Football Focus and other outlets have raised concerns about his play or graded it poorly; Florida Times-Union, Sports Illustrated and A to Z Sports writers, among others, have commended his showing.
But the contracts of Robinson and his projected backup, Walker Little, are set to expire after this season, lending credence to the idea of Jacksonville targeting a starting-caliber offensive tackle next offseason, should the Jaguars not retain one or both of those players.
Jones, a rising junior, almost exclusively played right tackle over his first two seasons with the Tigers, accumulating 1,558 snaps in the role. He significantly sharpened his play as a sophomore, giving up two sacks and earning an above-average run-blocking grade, per PFF, after allowing five sacks and receiving an average run-blocking grade as a freshman.
Although Harrison started at right tackle for Jacksonville last year and will again this year, his college experience at left tackle (1,807 snaps) could push him to the opposite side in the event he teams up with Jones next offseason.
Jones was the second offensive lineman to come off the board in Miller’s projection, following his LSU teammate, offensive tackle Will Campbell, who Miller mocked to New England at No. 6 in a trade-down.
