Senior writer John Oehser's five Jaguars takeaways from Day One of the 2015 NFL Draft …
1.The Jaguars got their guy.All right: NFL teams say this every year in the first round. Few teams are in a position where you know it's true. The Jaguars weren't going quarterback, so when Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota went 1-2, you knew their selection at No. 3 would be the player they liked best. Not everyone expected it to be University of Florida edge rusher Dante Fowler Jr., but with Leo pass rusher a bigger immediate need than strong-side defensive lineman – and with the team feeling it needed a young edge rusher – Fowler was the selection over Southern California defensive tackle Leonard Williams. And apparently, it was an easy decision, too, with General Manager David Caldwell and Head Coach Gus Bradley agreeing on it six days before.
2.The plan has been followed.Say this for Caldwell: when he sets a plan, he stays with it. He said in 2013 an ideal approach for the first three years of the building process would be selecting quarterback, left tackle and pass rusher early in drafts. He didn't absolutely, positively say those would be the team's first three first-round selections of his tenure, but he made clear it was a possibility. His reasoning was you needed to get those players early and you ideally wouldn't be selecting early for very long. After taking left tackle Luke Joeckel No. 2 overall in 2013 and quarterback Blake Bortles No. 3 overall last year, you wondered if Caldwell indeed would stick to the plan. He did.
3.The trade market wasn't there.We got this hint this last Friday, when Caldwell said he hadn't received a phone call from another team about the No. 3 overall selection. Caldwell's known for a pre-draft poker face, but this was no bluff. For all the pre-draft talk about a possible draft-day bonanza for that selection, Caldwell said he received no reasonable offer. Teams wanting Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota were no longer interested when the Titans took him at No. 2, and Caldwell said he hadn't expected a trade with Oakland at No. 4, Washington at No. 5 or the Jets at No. 6. After that, the price for moving up was too steep.
4.Fowler is going to be a lot of fun.Should we start with the suit? Or should we start with the shoes? Wherever you start, Fowler won the night with his draft outfit: a white suit with red trim and dazzling, gold shoes with … well, with what sort of looked like … spikes? Fowler is going to catch grief from his new defensive line mates, and he and his coaches will have a talk, but who cares what he wore on draft night? Fowler's an engaging personality, and if he's productive, he has dynamic star power.
5.Oh, the direction they can go …The Jaguars seem certain to get a very good player Friday with the fourth selection of Round 2, the No. 36 selection overall. Names such as edge rusher Randy Gregory of Nebraska, safety Landon Collins of Alabama, outside linebacker Eli Harold of Virginia and wide receiver Jaelen Strong of Arizona State remain on the board. So does running back Tevin Coleman of Indiana and wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham of Missouri. If Coleman and Strong are still on the board at No. 36, either could potentially be a good fit.
