Final Jacksonville Jaguars 2024 mock draft roundup

Nate Wiggins, Terrion Arnold, Malik Nabers, oh my!

Turn on Kevin Costner. It’s Draft Day.

The 2024 NFL Draft is finally here and the Jacksonville Jaguars hold the 17th overall pick. For a majority of these roundups, the assumed pick for the Jags was a corner. Now that the draft is just hours away, there is seemingly as little certainty as ever for who the team might take.

The Jags may trade down. They may stay put. They might even trade back or out of the first round entirely.

The only thing we know for sure is that if Vontae Mack is on the board, pick him no matter what.

ESPN

We start with Jordan Reid who keeps things simple. The pick, at 17 overall, is corner Quinyon Mitchell. The Toledo standout has long been linked to the Jags due to his ability to play man defense.

As the Jaguars transition to more man-to-man coverage under new defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, they really need another top-tier cornerback to play opposite Tyson Campbell. Mitchell is an ideal fit. An explosive and ascending prospect, he can get his hands on the ball (15 pass breakups in 2023) and stick on receivers. Mitchell also has the versatility to move around the defense.

The 33rd Team

Ari Meirov switches things up, with the Indianapolis Colts taking Mitchell at 15. The Jags then pivot to wide receiver, and draft LSU’s Brian Thomas Jr.

The Jacksonville Jaguars added Gabriel Davis this offseason but their initial plan was to add Davis while also retaining Calvin Ridley. Ridley left for the division-rival Titans, leaving the Jaguars with a clear need for a big outside receiver. Brian Thomas Jr. has the height, speed, length, ball skills and explosiveness to be that. His 17 touchdowns led the nation last season. Zay Jones, who has a $10 million cap hit, would find himself on the roster bubble if the Jaguars go receiver.

The Ringer

In Ben Solak’s mock, we have the Jags making a splash trade-up. Duval jumps up to eight overall, trading 17, 48 and a 2025 fourth-rounder to the Atlanta Falcons. Why? To draft LSU’s Malik Nabers, the presumed WR2.

Atlanta feels like a great trade-down team. With Nabers still on the board and Chicago (and the Jets, and the Chargers, and the Broncos) lurking, anyone with a hankering for an elite wide receiver needs to get up to this spot, and Atlanta should be happy to oblige. There’s plenty of smoke around the Jaguars’ interest in adding a top receiver prospect to replace Calvin Ridley, who was in their long-term plans before the Titans priced them out.

Yahoo Sports

Charles McDonald and Nate Tice put out their final mock, and have the Jaguars nabbing a receiver. The pick is not a super common one, as the duo has Jacksonville picking Texas receiver Adonai Mitchell.

The Jaguars have a huge need at wide receiver after losing Calvin Ridley to the in-division Titans. Here, they can call up Mitchell, who is a type of receiver they don’t really have on the roster. Still, he’s a nice fit with Trevor Lawrence as a big-bodied, athletic target who can win contested catches and bring down passes over the middle of the field.

NFL.com

The pick by Eric Edholm is a corner at 17, but again, this pick is not a common one. Edholm thinks the Jags take a smaller corner and go with Clemson’s Nate Wiggins, with the idea his speed is his greatest asset. Wiggins ran a sub-4.30 at the NFL Combine.

Wiggins doesn’t quite have the length or mass the Jags typically want at the position, but he does possess the speed, playmaking ability, effort and upside to make this a smart pick. Jacksonville needs immediate corner help, and the AFC South is suddenly loaded with WR talent.

ESPN

Mike DiRocco, the Jags’ very own, takes his final stab at who Jacksonville might take and thinks it’s Alabama corner Terrion Arnold. Much like Mitchell, Arnold has been a constant with mocks to the team.

Cornerback is the Jaguars’ top need. Arnold is a physical player with good ball skills (six interceptions, 20 pass breakups in the past two seasons) who should be a good fit for defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen’s system. Arnold could start out as the nickelback with Tyson Campbell, whose rookie contract expires following the upcoming season, and free agent signee Ronald Darby on the outside.

Jacksonville.com

Demetrius Harvey also takes a localized approach to this mock. He agrees with DiRocco, in that the Jags should take Arnold at 17.

A slam-dunk, no-brainer pick for Jacksonville on Thursday night will be Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold.Arnold checks all the boxes that Baalke, head coach Doug Pederson and, most importantly, defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen covet…

ESPN

On Wednesday, Matt Miller released his final mock, and made it a three-peat for Arnold. He has Arnold as this year’s CB1.

The Jaguars’ need at cornerback has been mentioned to me a lot. Other teams see Jacksonville as a franchise that you have to jump if you want one of the top corners in the class. But I have the Jags landing the draft’s CB1 in Arnold without moving anywhere. A physical cover man with textbook technique at the line of scrimmage, Arnold would fill a hole in the secondary opposite Tyson Campbell. One additional note, though: Don’t rule out a wide receiver here.

NFL.com

Charles Davis also likes Arnold, thinking the Jags don’t need to move anywhere to get a star player.

The board falls perfectly for the Jaguars in this simulation, as they get their pick of the litter at their top position of need.

1010XL

Another local media outlet puts their two cents forward with who the Jags might draft. Frank Frangie thinks the guy for Duval County is Thomas Jr.

KOA Colorado

This is a funky mock from a Denver Broncos radio station. In Benjamin Allbright’s mock, he has the Jags trading out of 17 with the San Francisco 49ers. The reason the Jags trade 17 is for wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. Taking San Fran’s spot at 31, the Jags then draft Wiggins.

CB Nate Wiggins Wiggins could slip to 2nd. Jax gives pick 17, 116 for Aiyuk and 31

Chris Simms

In the latest mock by the all-knowing Chris Simms— the same guy who said Zach Wilson would be better than Trevor Lawrence — he thinks the Jags should go with Wiggins.

Pro Football Focus

Trevor Sikkema is also in on the Wiggins hype train, noting his ability to force incompletions at a high clip.

Wiggins’ 6-foot-2 frame and length allow him to disrupt receivers in the contact window and at the catch point. He also has above-average athleticism for the position. His footwork is quick and controlled, his hips flip fluidly and fast and he has impressive recovery speed. Although Wiggins didn’t have many interceptions, his forced incompletion percentage and awareness prove that he is impactful. The best part about him is he remains confident in both man and zone responsibilities. He has a slender build, and that shows up when tasked with tackling, getting off blocks and handling stronger receivers in their routes.

Fox Sports

Joel Klatt thinks it’s either Mitchell or Arnold for the team in teal depending on what the Colts do at 15. In this scenario, the pick for Jax is Arnold.

If the Colts take Arnold, Mitchell would also make sense here. But this is a terrific spot for Arnold, he can really solidify the Jaguars’ secondary. I really love his story, with Nick Saban playing him at corner, as many thought he’d play safety in college. He was a freshman All-American and an All-American last year. He doesn’t have a ton of experience, so he has high upside. I love his game.

NFL.com

We round out this final installment with yet another local guy. Bucky Brooks ends our series with Arnold coming to Jacksonville at 17.

Adding a high-IQ cover corner with positional flexibility could help the Jaguars match up with the rising offenses in the AFC South.