Jaguars' Tony Khan Applauds Trent Baalke's Recent Draft Day Trades

The Jaguars have traded down in the first round two years in a row now, while still having the ability to land their top targets.

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. (1), center, holds up his new jersey next to general manager Trent Baalke, left, and head coach Doug Pederson during a press conference Friday, April 26, 2024 at EverBank Stadium’s Miller Electric Center in Jacksonville, Fla. Jacksonville Jaguars selected LSU’s wide receiver Thomas Jr. as the 23rd overall pick in last night’s NFL Draft. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA

During the first decade of Shad Khan's ownership of the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Jaguars were rarely a team that implemented trade downs in the first round.

From 2013 all the way until 2022, the Jaguars didn't make a single trade down in the first round. The only time they even traded on the first day of the draft was in 2022 when they traded up into the bottom of the first round to select linebacker Devin Lloyd.

The Jaguars have seen a shift in the last two years, though, and Jaguars Chief Football Strategy Officer Tony Khan, the son of owner Shad Khan, is a fan of the change.

In 2023, the Jaguars traded down from No. 24 to No. 25 -- and then from No. 25 to No. 27 -- picking up right tackle Anton Harrison, and picks No. 130 (Tyler Lacy), No. 160 (Antonio Johnson), and No. 240 (Derek Parrish) in the process. What was at first one pick turned into four picks, with three of those picks at least having a chance to make an impact for the Jaguars in 2024.

Then this year, the Jaguars traded down from No. 17 to No. 23, picking up wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr., No. 167 (Keilan Robinson), and the Vikings' 2025 third and fourth-round selections.

Speaking on The Locked On NFL Draft Podcast, Khan pointed out how the recent first round trades have impacted the Jaguars.

"I see Trent making these great trades, you know, [standing] by his side when he made these awesome trades the last couple years and stacked up picks. And it's been a great, great strategy," Khan said. "You got the players that we wanted two years in a row in the first round and made multiple trades back to get multiple picks across several years. And I think that's a great strategy to get more players in."

"For everyone who loves Locked On, the NFL draft and people who really follow the draft closely. I mean, once we really get into it in February, March, April, we're talking so deep in the draft, and we're talking about, you know, a few hundred players we all know very well," Khan said. "And it's kind of crazy because those draft picks and those are third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh round picks, and those are good players. And it's been a really effective strategy."

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