2020 NFL Mock Draft: Jacksonville Jaguars Select OT Andrew Thomas at No. 9

With the 9th pick of the 2020 DBN Community NFL Mock Draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars select...

Andrew Thomas, OT, Georgia

The selection and write-up were made by GrandAdmiralThrawn0905:

On January 21, 2018, Jacksonville Jaguars had a 10-point lead over the New England Patriots with 14 minutes and 53 seconds remaining in the AFC Championship game. The Jaguars then went on to blow that lead, ending their hopes of reaching their first Super Bowl in team history and thus starting a free fall that has them where they are today. Jaguars owner Shahid Khan announced that Head Coach Marrone would be retained for the 2020 season, despite back to back losing seasons(5-11 and 6-10) since making it to the AFC Championship in 2017. If you’re Jaguars Head Coach Marrone or General Manager Dave Caldwell, you might feel the pressure to win now.

In only two years, they have gone from being a team that was 15 minutes away from the Super Bowl to a team that doesn’t look to be competing for anything other than the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Their best defenders that season were Jalen Ramsey, Calais Campbell, Paul Posluszny, A.J. Bouye, Telvin Smith Sr. and Yannick Ngakoue five of those six players are no longer with the team, and the remaining player, Ngakoue, was franchise tagged, but has made it clear that he wants out of Jacksonville and is widely thought to be dealt away with come draft day. Sacksonville is dead and trying to go through that style of team building again would be foolish, especially with a front office and Head Coach that needs to show results now. A team could try to replace those players through the draft by the very picks they got for their players, but it would be unrealistic to try to expect to hit on all those picks. If the Jaguars wanted an elite DT or a shutdown CB they shouldn’t have made those trades.

However not all hope is gone, there’s a New Hope, Gardner Minshew. For the first time in a long time, the Jacksonville offense was fun to watch. Thanks to the impressive start, the sixth-round draft pick took home the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month award in September. That month, in four games, he went 84 of 121 for 905 yards, threw seven touchdowns and one interception with a passer rating of 106.9. A sixth round pick did that! As soon as the Jaguars could, they unloaded Nick Foles contract and building around Minshew would be the smart thing to do. During the off season the Jaguars hired Jay Gruden as the offensive coordinator who is expected to run a West Coast Offense. There are a few issues with Minshew mostly that he doesn’t have an elite arm or great mobility. Thus for the Jags to have the most success those limitations have to be minimized.

For the 9th overall pick the Jaguars will select OT Andrew Thomas, Georgia.

At 6-foot-5, 315-pounds, Andrew Thomas is exactly the type of offensive lineman the Jags gravitate towards and it’s hard to envision them not being high on him. Jawaan Taylor (6-foot-5, 312-pounds) and Cam Robinson (6-foot-6, 322-pounds) are prime examples of their love for massive Southeastern Conference linemen who bring a gritty mentality to the field.

Andrew Thomas is the best all-around tackle prospect in this draft, projecting near the top of the class as a pass protector and a run blocker. While there are other prospects that project (slightly) higher than him in one facet or the other, no one blends the two better than the three-year starter out of Georgia. While left tackle is not an immediate need with Cam Robinson on the roster who’s serviceable, not great, the Jaguars still need to reinforce their offensive line to give Minschw the best chance to succeed. Thomas would seem to fit the bill over Louisville’s Mehki Becton because out of the gate Thomas is less of a project and a much better pass blocker. The Jaguars need someone who is more plug-and-play with the No. 9 overall pick, rather than a high-upside, more project-type offensive lineman like Becton or Jedrick Wills who primarily played right tackle. Thomas can come in right away and start at left tackle with little concern which would allow the Jaguars to shuffle Cam Robinson to the inside. Thomas isn’t nearly as flashy of a prospect as Tristan Wirfs or Mekhi Becton might be, but he is an ideal offensive line prospect in terms of consistency. Nearly every rep looks the same, and there will never be any mystery in what you are getting from him. If the Jaguars want to provide stability to their offensive line early on, Thomas is a good fit, even if he isn’t perfect. Thomas has all the gifts needed to become a high quality left tackle in the NFL and that is worth a top ten selection.

I was tempted to go with one of the top receivers on the board in Jeudy, Lamb, or Ruggs. However the amount of depth at WR in the draft class and the Jags having the 20th pick overall and 12 picks throughout the draft plus Ngakoue requesting a trade allows the Jags some room for maneuverability. Realistically the Jags can get a stud at Left Tackle and one of the top receivers in the draft.

Pokorny: “There’s nothing left for me to say, he covered it all! I was about to point out the potential of a wide receiver for Minshew, but that was addressed at the end, and it would work out perfect for them if they can still grab a receiver at the 20th pick.”

The Cleveland Browns are up next, led by xfl2001fan.