Big Cat Country
Happy Mason Graham Monday!
The NFL Draft is almost upon us. It’s now April which means the draft is a little over two weeks away.
Unless you have been living under a rock, Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham has been the clubhouse leader in mocks for the Jacksonville Jaguars at pick number five.
Graham checks a lot of boxes and has been the name before, during and after the change of front office staffs and coaches. Recent shakeups from teams picking ahead of Jacksonville have altered Duval’s quest to potentially land Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter instead of Graham, if you are looking for another option at #5.
Penn State tight end Tyler Warren’s name has picked up steam as a potential secondary option for the Jags. Even still, picking Graham at fifth overall seems to be the most likely scenario.
To no one’s surprise, we’re staring with a Graham mock from ESPN. The reasoning is the same as it has been all offseason and it’s a pretty sensical idea overall.
Jacksonville has big needs up front on defense that are too hard to ignore with this pick, and Graham would immediately reshape the complexion of both the pass rush and the run defense. He racked up 26 pressures and 14 run stops last season. The Jaguars, meanwhile, allowed the second-most yards (389.9 per game) and fifth-most points (25.6 per game) in the NFL last season. Lined up between edge rushers Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker, Graham would help this defense get back on track.
Ol’ number 32 gives us a mock this week, but it’s a bit of a wild one. Jones-Drew has Hunter going seventh overall and Graham going all the way down at 11. At five however, the former Jaguar legend has his old team taking Arizona wide receiver Tet McMillian.
Head coach Liam Coen aims to replicate what he had in Tampa with a pair of talented receivers at the center of his offense. Joining second-year pro Brian Thomas Jr., McMillan is a big receiver (6-foot-4, 219 pounds) with the ball skills and physicality to make contested catches.
As much as Graham makes sense, this pick also has its feet to stand on. The idea for much of Trevor Lawrence’s career has been that he hasn’t had help. With McMillian, the Jags may be able to do with Lawrence what the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were able to do with Baker Mayfield throwing to Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
The 33****rd Team’s Tyler Brooke
Now that we are done with our wildcard pick, let’s get back to Graham.
Mason Graham is being mocked to the Jaguars everywhere, and for good reason. The team desperately needs a three-down defensive tackle who can stop the run and has enough juice as a pass rusher to take some of the pressure off of Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen. Graham can do all of that and be a disruptive force in the...
