Jaguars WR Thomas' Place in Re-Draft Confirms Value

The Jacksonville Jaguars had a successful draft haul last offseason, and they did so again in a recent mulligan of last year's draft.

Apr 25, 2024; Detroit, MI, USA; LSU Tigers wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. poses after being selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars as the No. 23 pick during the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft at Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Jacksonville Jaguars' season went much differently than expected. Numerous injuries and losses were the story of the season. Jacksonville struggled to do much right this season or the previous season, leading to Doug Pederson's firing.

However, as bad as the Jaguars' season was, they still have reason to be hopeful for next season. Not only do they have a new head coach in Liam Coen, who is expected to improve over Peterson, but they also have one of the top rookies from this season in Brian Thomas Jr.

The Jaguars drafted Thomas towards the end of the first round of last season's draft and it turned out to be one of the better draft picks in franchise history. While it has only been one season, Thomas gave glimpses of what he is capable of, if put in the right situation.

Ali Bhanpuri and Tom Blair of NFL.com redid last offseason's draft. In their draft, the Arizona Cardinals traded up to the 12th pick to select Thomas, which is over 10 picks sooner than Thomas was drafted last offseason.

The fact that Bhanpuri and Blair projected such a vast difference in where Thomas went in the mock draft and where he went in real life proves that the Jaguars got a steal by selecting him with the 23rd pick in the draft.

"The Cardinals are delighted to move down and still get a dynamic receiver,"
Bhanpuri said. "And while there are reasons to be optimistic about their real-life pick at No. 4, Marvin Harrison Jr., he did not enjoy anything near the immediate breakout success of Brian Thomas Jr., who managed to turn heads despite being in an extraordinarily unsexy football environment in Jacksonville. Arizona cannot resist pairing him with Kyler Murray, perhaps giving the offense enough of a boost to nudge the Cards from middle-of-the-pack also-rans into actual contenders.

"One of the few things to go right in Jacksonville was the emergence of Brian Thomas Jr., who played so well that the Cardinals pilfered him in this exercise at No. 12 overall."

Thomas had an exceptional rookie season without other consistent pass catchers on the Jaguars' offense. Jacksonville also struggled to run the ball, which, in theory, should have made Thomas' job harder. Yet, the talented wide receiver continued to be productive.

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