Following Senior Bowl week, NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein put together his first 2025 NFL mock draft, and like many before this one, the Jacksonville Jaguars addressed their pass defense.
At pick No. 5 overall, the Jaguars took cornerback Will Johnson out of Michigan.
“The Jaguars could address the defensive line here, but they have a major need at cornerback opposite Tyson Campbell,” wrote Zierlein. “The Jags must get better on the back end if they are going to beat C.J. Stroud and the division-rival Texans.”
Johnson put together an impressive three seasons at Michigan–although of note, his 2024 season was cut short to only six games because of a turf toe injury.
But during that span, opposing quarterbacks had a completion rate of just 53% when throwing at Johnson. He surrendered 13.4 yards per catch and had excellent ball production with nine interceptions and seven more pass breakups.
For more on Johnson, here is a snippet from Zierlein’s scouting report:
“Teams love big, fluid cornerbacks with ball production and that is exactly what Johnson offers. He’s instinctive and plays with good body control and change of direction in space. He can play man coverage, but he’s at his best when playing with his eyes forward instead of chasing routes downfield.”
The need in the secondary for the Jaguars is obvious. This was a unit that was often picked on last season, ranking 24th in completion rate allowed and in the bottom three of the NFL in passer rating, yards per attempt, and interceptions.
While Zierlein has Johnson rated very highly–as many draft evaluators do–it’s worth mentioning that Daniel Jeremiah, who is one of the best in the business and very plugged in, had Johnson falling outside the top-10 in his first mock draft.
Obviously, the pre-draft process is important for every prospect, but that feels particularly true for Johnson.
