2009 NFL Draft one year later: Jacksonville Jaguars

This is how NFL team are supposed to draft. The 2009 Jaguars draft class is a shiny example of how teams should conduct the draft. Their first four picks became regular starters, and six of the nine players they selected played at least 14 games. That is a very good draft, and one year later it looks even better. This is how a front office puts its team into the best situation on the field that it can.

A quick look at the 2009 Jaguars draft class:

1.Round One (8)- Eugene Monroe OT
2.Round Two (39)- Ebon Britton OT
3.Round Three (72)- Terrance Knighton DT
4.Round Three (73)- Derek Cox CB
5.Round Four (107)- Mike Thomas WR
6.Round Five (144)- Jarett Dillard WR
7.Round Six (180)- Zach Miller TE
8.Round Seven (250)- Rashad Jennings RB
9.Round Seven (253)- Tiquan Underwood WR

While the offense needs some work still, they got two solid pieces in 2009 as Monroe started 13 games at LT, and Britton started 15 games at RT. Knighton added to the DL got 45 tackles and started every game. Cox had four picks and also started every game. While the rest of this class contributed much like we expect lower round draft picks to.

Now here is the rub, despite doing an excellent job in the 2009 draft, the Jaguars ended up with a losing record. Sure they went from the 8th pick in 2009 to the 10th pick in 2010 but just because a team does a great job drafting does not mean immediate success will follow. Sometimes the team needs more pieces, or sometimes the coaching staff fails to use the pieces in the correct manner. For the Jaguars the answer seems to be not enough attention paid to the defense in the 2009 draft. That is something they will have to address in 2010. Given that we can give them a one year grade of B+.

Related Links:

•NFL Draft one year later
•Jacksonville Jaguars news and notes
•2010 NFL Mock Drafts
•2010 NFL Free Agents
•MTR Football.com