The Jacksonville Jaguars enter the 2024 regular season razor-thin at the cornerback position. While veteran Ronald Darby and the recently extended Tyson Campbell are set to lock down the two outside corner spots, the Jags are an injury away from a potential disaster in the secondary.
While there’s no time like the present to add cornerback depth now, the Jaguars could be primed to use an early draft pick at the position should things fall their way in the 2025 NFL Draft. Bleacher Report's Alex Ballentine recently assessed the biggest weakness on every NFL team’s roster, and he sees current Ohio State CB Denzel Burke as the perfect long-term solution for the Jaguars.
Here was Ballentine’s reasoning:
The Jaguars are dangerously thin at cornerback, but there isn't much they can do about it at this point. It's going to take continued investment in the position and that starts with finding a long-term answer across from Tyson Campbell on the outside.
Utilizing an early draft pick on a corner would help. Denzel Burke figures to be one of the top options. The Ohio State coverman was ranked 20th overall on our big board before he decided to go back to Columbus in January.
The Jaguars have taken swings at the cornerback position in recent drafts. Campbell is homegrown as a former second-round pick in 2021, and the team selected a pair of corners this past April in Jarrian Jones (No. 96 overall) and De'Antre Prince (No. 153 overall). But to Ballentine’s point, 2025 might be the time to start swinging in the first round. Jacksonville’s last first-round corner was C.J. Henderson in 2020.
He’ll be an older prospect with some injury history, but Burke could be a viable target for the Jaguars in the latter half of Round 1. Per Ian Cummings of Pro Football Focus: “Had he declared for the 2024 NFL Draft, Burke would have been a late first-round prospect on my board. He returns with that same grade. With versatility across man and zone coverage, sharp processing, and playmaking ability on the ball and in support, Burke can be a quality starter early in his NFL career, with impact starter upside.”
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