JaguarsTalk: Jacksonville Jaguars 2022 NFL Draft Round 3

JaguarsTalk: Round 3 was definitely more productive than round 2

I like the selections in this round. I, in fact, really like them. I certainly don’t like them because I’m a homer, seeing as how I just moved to the area. I’m not sure if we have had the talk or not yet, but since birth, really since inception (of the pregnancy, not the Leo movie) I have been a Redskins fan. Save your breath, as I am well aware that they call themselves the Washington Commanders now. I am also well aware of how stupid a name that is for me once proud football team. Ha, I meant to type “my” once proud football team but evidently me Irish heritage sometimes controls me fingers. And strangely, I’m not even drinking during this column. I’ll chalk it up to the Conor McGregor fight interviews I watched this morning. He is a beast at 170lbs. It’s awfully early to go on a tangent in this young column so I will refrain. Suffice it to say, Conor is the one guy I wouldn’t want to fight at any weight. Oh, and I’m not a homer for the Jags because I am unfortunately tied to a team with a horrible name and an equally horrible past two decades. Though my allegiances will make the upcoming Skins/Jags game column rather interesting.

Another guy I wouldn’t want to go up against is third round pick, number sixty five. (Say it with me in your best Michael Buffer voice) The center out of Kentucky, standing six feet six inches and weighing in at three hundred pounds, first team all-SEC, Mr. Luuuuuke Fortner. A beast of a man, folks. Senior Jaguar writer John Oehser had Luke on his podcast. I didn’t listen. I don’t want my columns to be influenced by the paid help. In truth, I mostly didn’t listen because I want Luke on my podcast. Also, I want a podcast. But if I had listened to Johnny he probably would have talked about Fortner’s positional versatility.

My boy Chris once pointed out, when away from his van down by the river, that a lot of people go to college for seven years. I know. They’re called doctors. Well Luke went for five, and in that five year career with the Cats, he played three different positions. Fortner was a right guard, a left guard and a center. This maneuverability wasn’t lost on Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson, nor general manager Trent Baalke. They both have commented numerous times about moving Luke around but they have also said that they like him in the middle with Trevor’s hands all up in his business. Fortner’s ability to hike the ball will surely make newly re-signed Tyler Shatley a very expensive (eventual) second teamer. And hey, big guys get hurt so depth is a good thing. With starting center Brandon Linder retiring we have to give credit to the Jags brass for wisely continuing the trend of satisfying needs through the draft and getting Trev some more protection.

Speaking of the man destined to unseat Troy Polamalu as the head and shoulders spokesman, Lawrence needed protection. The man was on his back quite a bit. We are going for shampoo spokesman, not the new face of Sleep Number. According to Statmuse Lawrence was sacked thirty two times in 2021. While that’s no comparison to pretty boy Burrows, who played the entire season in the prone position (50+ sacks), we need to take into account the number of QB hurries, batted balls, busted plays, collapsed pockets, blocked throwing lanes, and throw aways. Frankly, I am too lazy to look up all of those statistics and add them together. That requires two of my least favorite things, research and math. Here at JaguarsTalk we like to stick to hidden movie quotes and surface level assessments. Many thought, including yours truly, it was a real possibility that with the number one selection in the 2022 NFL draft Pederson was going to take NC State big man, offensive tackle, Ikem Ekwonu. That would not have been a selection garnering any complaints. We need to protect the blind side of last year’s number one pick. “If we are being honest, from the snap of the ball to the snap of the first bones, closer to four seconds than five.” Jacksonville doesn’t need another Taylor/Theismann introduction. Trevor is the man you build this team around. Nobody would have batted an eye if the Jags drafted protection for that flowing mane. But in not drafting Ekwonu it opened the door for Fortner to come to Jacksonville. Frankly, it might have been the right play considering the offseason moves the Jaguars made, adding Brandon Scherff and bringing back Shatley and Cam Robinson. Fortner kinda feels like a steal of a pick for the Jags in round number three (just barely).

And this brings us to the second and final pick of round three, one of my favorites (I have many), a work horse of a linebacker, Chad Muma from Wyoming. Number seventy overall and the third defensive selection of the draft for the Jaguars. It’s fair to say that Muma caught some fans off guard. Jacksonville traded back into the first round to select inside linebacker Devin Lloyd out of Utah and with Foyesad Oluokun as part of the linebacking core, why draft another inside linebacker? Speed is the answer. This guy won't drop below fifty-five but he will blow-up opposing offenses (see what I did there?). He was a pick six machine last year, taking two to the house for the Cowboys. And there really is no substitute for how a pick six can turn the tide of a game. Put a few of them together and you’ve got a potential season changing playmaker. Plus, as everyone else and their mother has already reported, Muma will have a major impact on special teams from day one. As a guy who is more familiar with Beamer Ball than you are, special teams play is extremely strategic. It’s like the behind the scenes reason why teams win.

And that brings us to our farewell paragraph. Until next time, when we take a wild ride into the remaining rounds of the Jaguars 2022 draft. I will leave you with this little nugget: Keep the Washington Redskins moniker and just change the emblem on the helmet to a potato. They will still be horrible because Dan Snyder will still be their owner, but at least everyone’s happier.

As always, comments, love letters, messages of hope, and random musings are welcome below: