Jacksonville's Top 10 Draft Picks Not From the State of Florida

In the past, I've taken a look at the draft blunders of the Jacksonville Jaguars.

This time, I thought we'd go in a different direction and pick the best players the Jaguars have drafted with one interesting caveat: No player on the list had ties to the state of Florida before being drafted by the Jags.

For example, Fred Taylor would be out of the conversation because he went to the University of Florida. Reggie Nelson would be disqualified because he was born in Melbourne.

Got it? Good. Let's get into it.

No. 10: Josh Scobee

Birthplace: Longview, Texas
College: Louisiana Tech
Draft Status: fifth round pick, 2004

During his first five years in Jacksonville, Scobee has been the model of consistency. He's connected on 79.4 percent of his field goal attempts, including 7-of-12 from 50 yards or longer.

Right now, Scobee has 471 career points. The franchise record is 764, held by Mike Hollis. If Scobee plays in Jacksonville for four more years, he should easily capture the record.

No. 9: Brad Meester

Birthplace: Iowa Falls, Iowa
College: Northern Iowa
Draft Status: second round pick, 2000

From the time Meester entered the league, he has been the team's mainstay at center.

He played in all 16 games in six of his first seven seasons. Injuries have caused him to miss 11 games in the past two seasons, but he is still projected to be the starter in 2009 and will help lead a revamped offensive line.

No. 8: Aaron Beasley

Birthplace: Pottstown, Pa.
College: West Virginia
Draft Status: third round pick, 1996

Beasley was an integral member of Jacksonville's defense during the glory years of the late 1990s.

In his nine-year NFL career, six of which came with the Jaguars, Beasley broke up 108 passes, hauled in 24 interceptions and scored two touchdowns. His best year came in 1999, when he picked off six passes.

No. 7: Tony Brackens

Birthplace: Fairfield, Texas
College: Texas
Draft Status: second round pick, 1996

Another key member of those dominating defenses in the '90s, the 6'4", 265-pound defensive end had his career shortened by injuries. But at the height of his game, he was definitely Jacksonville's best pass rusher.

In eight seasons, all of which came with the Jags, Brackens recorded 55 sacks and forced 28 fumbles. He posted 12 sacks in 1999 and 11 in 2001.

No. 6: Donovin Darius

Birthplace: Camden, N.J.
College: Syracuse
Draft Status: first round pick, 1998

Best known for being a hard-hitting strong safety, Darius never shied away from laying a big lick on someone.

Darius finished his NFL career with 635 total tackles, 49 pass breakups, 14 interceptions and eight forced fumbles.

In his final three seasons in the NFL, Darius only played a total of 15 games. After the 2006 season, the Jaguars cut Darius loose after nine years with the club. He then went to Miami and played three games in 2007.

No. 5: Kevin Hardy

Birthplace: Evansville, Ind.
College: Illinois
Draft Status: first round pick, 1996

The last of three picks from 1996 to make this list, all of whom played on the defensive side of the ball, Hardy was a physically imposing linebacker who anchored those Jacksonville defenses in the early days.

Hardy had a nine-year NFL career, spending his first six in Jacksonville. He recorded 562 tackles, 36 sacks, nine forced fumbles, seven fumble recoveries, and five interceptions.

His best year came in 1999, when the Jacksonville linebacker had 10.5 sacks and earned a trip to the Pro Bowl.

No. 4: Marcus Stroud

Birthplace: Thomasville, Ga.
College: Georgia
Draft Status: first round pick, 2001

Stroud made up one half of the most dominating defensive tackle tandem in this decade (and yes, his partner in crime is on this list).

The 6'6", 310-pound monster wreaked havoc up front and allowed the linebackers to flow to the ball and make plays. One of his best statistical seasons came in 2002, when he had 6.5 sacks and six pass deflections. He made consecutive trips to the Pro Bowl between 2003-05.

2007 was a tough season for Stroud, who was suspended for violating the substance abuse policy and suffered a "significant" ankle injury near the end of the season.

The Jaguars decided to let Stroud go, and he went up to Buffalo and started all 16 games in 2008.

No. 3: Maurice Jones-Drew

Birthplace: Oakland, Ca.
College: UCLA
Draft Status: second round pick, 2006

They say that good things come in small packages, and MJD has lived up to that statement.

There are very few running backs in the NFL who have matched his production in the last three years. He has 3,941 combined rushing and receiving yards with 34 rushing touchdowns and four receiving scores.

Now that Jones-Drew will be the full time starter, look for him to break the 1,000-yard plateau. I also expect him to make his first trip to the Pro Bowl.

No 2: John Henderson

Birthplace: Nashville, Tenn.
College: Tennessee
Draft Status: first round pick, 2002

Not only has Henderson been one of the most dominant defensive tackles during his NFL tenure, he's also been one of the craziest.

As I'm sure you all know, Henderson has a member of the staff slap him in the face before Henderson takes the field.

How would you like to have that job?

Henderson is usually successful at slapping opposing offenses around. With Stroud by his side, Henderson created chaos up front and made it hard for the offense to move the ball.

Henderson was a Pro Bowl selection in 2004 and 2006, but he's struggled in his past two seasons, recording career lows in tackles (38 in 2007, 44 in 2008) and sacks (four combined in two years). If Jacksonville is to return to a playoff caliber level, Henderson must step up.

No. 1: Tony Boselli

Birthplace: Boulder, Colo.
College: USC
Draft Status: first round pick, 1995

Had Boselli not had his career shortened by injuries, he would have gone down as one of the best offensive tackles ever to play the game.

As it stands, he still ranks as Jacksonville's best draft pick ever.

Boselli anchored the offensive line from 1995-2001. His presence was critical to the success of the offense, which included Mark Brunell, Fred Taylor, Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell.

He was chosen to five consecutive Pro Bowls from 1996-2000, and was named to NFL 1990s All-Decade Team. More importantly, he has stayed very active in the community.

Here are some of the players who were ineligible because of their ties to the state: Fred Taylor, born in Pahokee and played at Florida; Rashean Mathis, played at Bethune-Cookman College; Greg Jones, played at Florida State; Bobby McCray, born in Miami, played at Florida.