Jacksonville Jaguars 2015 Draft: The Good, the Bad and the Baffling

As hard as it is to believe, the 2015 NFL draft is finally over. It took months to wait for and felt like mere moments during it, but the Jacksonville Jaguars have concluded their NFL draft and are ready for the next step.

The Jaguars addressed some crucial needs in this draft, and I think it's fair to say that they got better on a lot of different levels this year. With their selections this year, they got starting talent, some solid backups and even a few guys who could start in the future.

General manager Dave Caldwell's draft plan was apparent, and every pick seemed to be tailored to the Jaguars' specific needs. They didn't go with the best available; they went for whatever the best fit was at the right time.

This can make all the difference. Sometimes, a team has no choice but to take the most talented players, but the Jaguars instead went for the guys who can come in and play their natural game sooner rather than later.

Caldwell deserves a lot of credit for another draft that shows the Jaguars are heading in the right direction. Smart, fitted selections were the theme of this draft, and at the end of the weekend, the Jaguars can be satisfied with their work.

With the intro out of the way, let's look at the good, the bad and the baffling of the Jaguars' 2015 NFL draft.

Dante Fowler Jr. Period.

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A lot of people, including myself, saw the Jaguars going a lot of different ways in this draft. I projected Dante Fowler Jr. at various points, but that's really a chalk selection, which is part of the reason the selection is so great.

Speculation can get creative in its survival tactics, and that led to a lot of questions about the Jaguars' first-round pick. In my last mock, I thought the Jaguars would go with the best player in the draft, defensive tackle Leonard Williams.

I also thought the Jaguars would trade, which was a common move many thought the Jaguars might make. However, with Williams and their choice of edge-rusher on the board, the Jaguars went with the best fit in Fowler.

Besides Fowler's tremendous amount of swagger (see: gold shoes), he is a tremendous player with a lot of potential. The Jaguars knew he could start Week 1 and that he could most likely offer more down the road, and they couldn't pass that up.

As he continues to work on his game and nail down all the aspects of being an NFL starter, Fowler will only improve. This is especially true considering he fits in the system perfectly as a Leo, and the Jaguars will reap the benefits.

Overall, the selection of Fowler showed the Jaguars demeanor when selecting players: It's not about the most talent, but about the best fit. They're creating a cohesive, competitive team in Duval County, and Fowler is ready to spearhead the way.

Top Talent Players

Every single player selected in this year's draft except for Neal Sterling went to a top college football program. Everywhere from Alabama to Notre Dame was represented, and the Jaguars did more than just select players by doing this.

There are no guarantees in the NFL draft, but you can't help but feel good about the quality of most of the schools the Jaguars selected from:

• University of Florida
• University of Alabama
• University of South Carolina
• University of Louisville
• Florida State University
• Ohio State University
• University of Notre Dame 

There are very few top programs you can list besides those seven schools, which is incredible. Ohio State won the national championship last season, Florida State the year before that and Alabama before that.

And the other schools are consistently recruiting and performing at a top level as well, save for Florida's spell of mediocrity that they'll most likely come out of. Not just the SEC either! The Big Ten, the ACC and even the independents are represented through Notre Dame.

Selecting players from top programs doesn't necessarily guarantee anything, but selecting players who played to the highest standards will bring that attitude to the NFL team. If you want to challenge for a Super Bowl eventually, you have to build a championship mentality.

This aspect of the Jaguars' draft could be meaningless down the road, but for the time being, I think it gives the Jaguars and the fans a lot of confidence. They're setting a standard in Jacksonville, and now they can plan to live up to that bar in the future.

Money Where Your Monmouth Is

Despite the attitude of a lot of people, it's okay to admit that you've never heard of Monmouth University. The Internet isn't the friendliest of places, but in this situation, it's perfectly okay to admit you've never heard of the Hawks, or their Jaguars' draft selection, Neal Sterling.

Sterling was the dominant force of the Hawks offense, evidenced by the fact that he led them in every single receiving stat this past season. The Jaguars made a strong selection by getting the 6'4", 240-pound receiver, and it'll be interesting to see where and how they use him.

Sterling wasn't a well-known option by the majority of the fanbase, but his stats and his size don't seem to be disappointing anybody at the moment. Sterling obviously can be a tall, jump-ball threat, but the Jaguars will probably use him as a tight end.

I'm not sure whether he'll end up on the current depth chart as a TE or a WR, but at either spot, he's got a bright future. The jump from Monmouth and FCS football to the NFL won't be easy, but he can do it.

The Jaguars broke the trend of selecting top college football programs and their players with the selection of Sterling. Sterling will be the fifth player in Monmouth history to play in the NFL, the most recent being Philadelphia Eagles receiver Miles Austin.

Sterling may have come from humble beginnings, but he has the ability and the potential to be a contributor the Jaguars for a long time.

The Jaguars Trade with the New York Jets to Move One Spot Back

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

This is where we get to the "baffling" part of the draft. For whatever reason, the Jaguars received a trade offer from the New York Jets in the fourth round for their pick, which was literally the next spot up.

This isn't a criticism of the Jaguars. They would move one spot back, get a seventh-round pick and were pretty sure that the Jets wouldn't select the player the Jaguars had in mind, James Sample.

What made the pick more confusing was that the Jets' selection was Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty. Why in the world would the Jets need to trade up for Petty rather than just select him with their initial pick?

There's no way the Jaguars would've taken him with quarterbacks Blake Bortles and Chad Henne firmly implanted in the starting and backup spots. The only thing that could possibly make sense here is that the Jets thought another team would trade up for him. 

There's nothing concrete yet, but I can't see a scenario where that needed to happen. The Jaguars were involved with one of the most bizarre trades of the draft and came out, in my opinion, considerably better.

Maybe that's the magic of the NFL draft.

Jaguars Take 2 Tight Ends in the 7th Round

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

As mentioned, Sterling will most likely play tight end for the Jaguars, which was a good use of the 220th overall pick. However, the Jaguars threw a bit of a curve ball by drafting essentially a second tight end in Ben Koyack at 229th.

If Sterling does end up playing tight end, than the Jaguars will have drafted two tight ends, and both were in the seventh round. They are far different players, but it's still a bit crazy that they took two.

Koyack is a great blocking TE who could offer the Jaguars a lot in terms of the running game, and he's got better hands than his 317-yard, two-touchdown 2014 season lets on. He's a great value, but despite all of this, the Jaguars took two tight ends in the draft, and in a single round.

Koyack and Sterling will both make contributions to the Jaguars this upcoming season and in the future, but a position like outside linebacker could've been addressed with either pick and would've made more sense.

However, GM Dave Caldwell has a plan in mind, and he hasn't disappointed with his actions so far. I'm not sure exactly when or how the selection of both these players will play out, so I have to say the jury is out on this one.

Ground-Pound Offense in the Jaguars' Future?

David Stephenson/Associated Press

With the selections of running back T.J. Yeldon, guard A.J. Cann and both tight ends, it's becoming apparent that the Jaguars are looking to have a higher presence in the running game. They haven't had a great rushing attack in a few seasons, and it looks like they're pushing for one in 2015.

GM Dave Caldwell selected Yeldon in the second, which could be considered a bit of a reach, but nonetheless, the Jaguars took the guy they like best. Yeldon is a proven back, and what's best is that Yeldon can do just about anything the Jaguars ask of him.

He's got solid hands out of the backfield, can block and, if he can overcome his fumbling issues (10 times in 576 carries), is a really good back as well. He's quick, strong and has great vision for the hole.

The selection of Cann, who's a terrific run-blocker, is just more proof of this. Cann excels at creating holes inside and will be a direct competitor with current starting guard Zane Beadles for the starting job.

The addition of Koyack and Sterling also help, and at this point, I can imagine the Jaguars lining up with a lot of formations with two tight ends to help with the running game. Running the football may be a lost art in the NFL, but the Jaguars are giving it their best shot.