Packers 2016 Draft: Last minute NFL mock draft

Pick #5 — Jacksonville Jaguars

Jalen Ramsey

There are three guys remaining considered to be a step above most of this draft class: Tunsil, Jack, and Ramsey.

While the team could use elevated play on the offensive line, much like San Diego the Jaguars already have invested a ton of capital on tackles; Jermey Parnell and Kelvin Beachum have been added on large contracts the past two offseasons, and though Luke Joeckel has been a massive disappointment to this point in his career he is a former #2 overall pick (teams tend to not give up on guys like that).  Because of this, I don’t think Tunsil ends up going here.

Between Ramsey and Jack though, this team probably can’t go wrong.

Each area (linebacker for Jack, safety (in Jacksonville’s case) for Ramsey) would immediately receive their best player

Jack has the potential to be a dynamic game-changer at linebacker, receiving comparisons to NaVorro Bowman (high praise indeed).

Ramsey can seemingly play anywhere in the secondary, and the passing game continues to be more and more emphasized in the NFL (further stressing the importance of high-caliber talent in coverage).

With that in mind, I think you have to go with the player who can help solidify a coalescing secondary; that’s Ramsey.

Jacksonville has added other talent in the secondary overall in recent years, but it all sits at cornerback as of now; Prince Amukamara, Davon House, and Aaron Colvin make up a 3-deep group that is mostly young and pretty decent. At safety the team just added Tashaun Gipson (who is talented, but is coming off a down season), but has nothing of note to build with beyond him; they actually just cut nominal starter Sergio Brown on the 18th, so the spot is even more open, and that could be the indicator of a move here.

Ramsey could bring it all together, immediately becoming this unit’s best player while helping bring up everyone’s overall effectiveness.

Something else to consider also: if there is one unit you can get by with having be subpar and still having a decently successful unit, it would be the linebackers.

Just look at Green Bay. The Packers have routinely been lacking in that area for years, yet still put up decent-to-respectable efforts due to stronger play being provided by the defensive line, pass rush, and coverage by the secondary. Obviously you want to be better than either team has been at LB, but there are ways to mitigate it, and it is usually easier to find a serviceable option for those spots than a reliable one on the back end.