2025 NFL Draft: Jaguars Fortify Defensive Line in Latest Mock

Daniel Jeremiah goes with a popular option for the Jacksonville Jaguars with the No. 5 pick.

Jan 1, 2024; Pasadena, CA, USA; Michigan Wolverines defensive lineman Mason Graham (55) tackles Alabama Crimson Tide running back Jase McClellan (2) in the third quarter in the 2024 Rose Bowl college football playoff semifinal game at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Sooner than later, the Jacksonville Jaguars and new head coach Liam Coen will have a potentially franchise-changing opportunity.

When the 2025 NFL Draft comes around, Coen and the Jaguars will be able to use the No. 5 pick to potentially make a statement and set the tone for the start of a new regime. But how exactly should they use the pick?

That, for now, is the million dollar question -- especially considering the Jaguars still need to make a general manager hire.

With that in mind, it is always a smart process to look at what evaluators, insiders and draft experts project to the Jaguars at various stages of the offseason.

The latest such mock draft comes from Pro Football Focus and does not have any surprises in stock for the Jaguars at No. 5. Instead, PFF projects one of the best players in the draft to the Jaguars in Michigan Wolverines defensive lineman Mason Graham.

"Even though there will be a new general manager making this pick in 2025, this is basically the same pick former GM Trent Baalke would have made here. Graham is a 320-pound game-wrecker in the middle of the defense who is an excellent run defender and provides an interior pass rush," PFF said.

The entire Jaguars defense needs an overhaul entering the 2025 season, so it is far from a surprise to see the Jaguars consistently linked to Graham. He is one of the most productive and skilled players in the class, and the combine could only further strengthen his case as a top-five pick.

The Jaguars do have a few talented defensive tackles already on the roster in Arik Armstead and DaVon Hamilton and second-year defenders Maason Smith and Jordan Jefferson. But it is clear the Jaguars will be placing an emphasis on the trenches in the 2025 offseason, especially as they remake the defense in defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile's image.

"Yeah, I think the most important thing you talk about when you talk about defense, is your play style. My vision for us defensively, we want to be a tough, fast, physical, violent at the point of attack team. What does that mean? That means that you’ve got guys who take pride in not getting blocked," Campanile said earlier this mont. "Everybody talks about running to the ball. I don't think there's another person in the world who believes in running to the ball more than I do. But you can't run to the ball if you don't get off the blocks, and that is something that's going to be celebrated in our room. It's going to be celebrated in the culture of our team.

"There's a point in every play where somebody tries to block you, right? Your passion to not stay blocked is really what makes plays on defense. Coaching, scheme, all that stuff—that's great, really important. But at the end of the day, the players win the game, and the violence at the point of attack, the effort, the strain, and the finish that it takes to not stay blocked and run to the football—that's what really creates a great defense."

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