8 Players the Jacksonville Jaguars Must Draft to Improve the Team

The Jacksonville Jaguars did quite a bit in the offseason to help their defense.

Free agents and trades brought five new starters to the team on the defensive side of the ball and other free agents have been instrumental as backups.

Now comes the reality that the offense needs help.

While Blaine Gabbert and Maurice Jones-Drew are fixtures on the team, there are holes everywhere that could be filled through free agency and of course the college draft.

While the list may become longer or shorter, here are some college stars who could help the Jaguars make a marked improvement in the 2012 regular season.

8. Andrew Luck, Quarterback, Stanford

OK, this is a pipe dream and a late Christmas present.

If the Jaguars somehow got the top pick in the 2012 Draft and took Luck, what would happen?

Which of their quarterbacks do they trade (Gabbert)?

But I don't see this happening and if they got the top pick, they could trade it for a king's ransom.

7. Michael Floyd, Wide Receiver, Notre Dame

May be the best Fighting Irish receiver since Tim Brown.

Floyd is third on everyone's wish list and may slip to the back-end of the first round where the Jags could trade back into the first round and grab him.

He is tall and thick, which makes him a better target for Blaine Gabbert.

6. Jonathan Martin, Offensive Tackle, Stanford

He keeps Andrew Luck's jersey clean.

A beast as well in the Pac-10.

A step below Matt Kalil, but he could be just as good in the pros.

If he is there, the Jaguars need to think long and hard about this one.

5. Trent Richardson, Running Back, Alabama

This is not an indictment of Maurice Jones-Drew.

Had CJ Spiller been available at the 10th selection in the 2010 draft, the Jags may have taken him.

You don't pass up a talent like Richardson who gives a stale offense more dimensions.

4. Alshon Jeffery, Wide Receiver, South Carolina

He is a stud. He will be gone in the first four picks.

Jeffery plays against great defenses every week and has proven to be a go-to guy on offense.

He is this year's AJ Green.

If the Jags get lucky enough to land him, he will be the best receiver they have ever had on their roster, period.

3. Quinton Coples, Defensive End, North Carolina

He is the top-rated defensive lineman in the draft.

The Jaguars front four has played better this year, but there are still questions about the ends.

Jeremy Mincey is a beast and runs all over the field.

Matt Roth has been a big help filling in for Aaron Kampman. He is a one-year guy who may or may not be back.

Does Aaron Kampman come back after this season?

Coples gives them a good pass-rusher to compliment the parts already in place.

2. Justin Blackmon, Wide Receiver, Oklahoma State

Doesn't have lightning speed, but he is better than any Jaguars receiver this side of Jimmy Smith.

My feeling is that Alshon Jeffery will be gone before the team selects if it is out of the top five.

Blackmon is a threat all over the field and can take some heat off Blaine Gabbert.

Gabbert to Blackmon could be as good as Dalton to Green in a few years.

1. Matt Kalil, Offensive Tackle, USC

Back in 1995, the Jaguars selected Tony Boselli with the second-overall pick in the draft.

That pick worked out pretty good for the team.

In 2009, the Jaguars selected tackles Eugene Monroe and Eben Britton with the first two selections in the draft.

That did not work out too well, as both have been injury prone.

Kalil is a beast and would help shore an unreliable and uncertain line.

It may be too early to call Monroe and Britton busts, but if you can take a huge tackle like Kalil, grab him and draft a receiver late in the first round or early second round.