B
Jacksonville Jaguars
A masterclass at the trade table lands the Jaguars a B.
by Bryce ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 21 picks
· 7 steals
· 9 reaches
The tape said wait; the Jaguars did not. Jason Henderson went at pick No. 233, a good 149 picks before the board was ready.
The Thomas pick is the one they will point to when this weekend is judged. The trade ledger is the best part of the whole weekend.
They punted on interior defensive lineman, and it is the miss that keeps the grade honest.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but interior defensive lineman.
Pick-by-Pick
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and D'Angelo Ponds at pick 64 is the proof. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
The board had Jacob Rodriguez higher than the 81st pick, and the linebacker fell to them anyway. A need, and now a little less of one.
No edge and no loss on Skyler Bell in the Round 3 slot; it is a wash and a sensible one. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A top-tier safety at a bargain, Michael Taaffe in slot 89, plain and simple. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
The board had cheaper options than Nicholas Singleton at No. 100, and it noticed. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Billy Schrauth at pick No. 124 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A clean, defensible pick in the Round 5 slot with a little surplus value in Kage Casey. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Patrick Payton this early at No. 167. A minor need, but a need all the same.
A quiet steal in pick 203: Red Murdock for less than the market said. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Eric McAlister in slot 209. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A market-rate wide receiver, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Eli Heidenreich. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Value with a capital V on Aiden Fisher in pick No. 230, a genuine coup. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Lander Barton at the 231st pick nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. It fills a real need, too.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Kalil Alexander well ahead of where he belonged. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Jason Henderson. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Joe Fagnano in No. 237 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
They went early on Nolan Rucci in the Round 7 slot, and the value did not follow. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They reached a country mile for Logan Taylor at the 240th overall pick, and the board is aghast. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A premium they did not need to pay, Josh Moten a notch or two before his time. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Aidan Hubbard at Round 7, Pick 36 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
A wide receiver of that caliber at pick 257 is the definition of value, full stop. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.