Countdown to Kickoff: Profile on Jacksonville Jaguars No. 44 Myles Jack
The Countdown to Kickoff series continues on with a look at Jacksonville Jaguars rookie linebacker Myles Jack, who will look to make a big-time impact right away.
There are exactly 44 days until the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers open up the 2016 NFL regular season with a Super Bowl rematch. In the meantime, we at NFL Spin Zone are going to profile a player each day as we countdown the days to kickoff.
The Countdown to Kickoff series began with a look at No. 99 Joey Bosa and has continued on everyday since (check out all of the posts here).
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There are some strong choices to pick from here, with Markus Golden and Vic Beasley standing out as particularly interesting options. However, it was a rookie linebacker who really stood out for me.
Let’s take a look at Jacksonville Jaguars rookie linebacker Myles Jack.
Jack was considered a sure-fire top ten pick in the 2016 NFL Draft throughout the process. His raw athleticism and play-making ability at the linebacker made him a special prospect who had many teams involved.
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However, a knee injury suffered early in the 2015 season at UCLA caused some concern around Jack. The torn meniscus is not as devastating as a torn ACL, but concerns late in the draft process caused him to slip further than expected. Actually, much further than expected.
Jack may have been an option for the Jaguars with the fifth overall pick, but defensive back Jalen Ramsey fell and they quickly scooped him up as the best available player. I am sure the Jaguars never expected to have another chance to land Jack, but sure enough, he fell well past the top ten.
In fact, Jack was still on the board as the second-round of the draft began, as teams were scared off by his injured knee. The Jaguars quickly made Jack their second-round, trading up to the 36th overall pick to land the talented linebacker who could quickly become the biggest steal in the entire draft.
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Jack has big-time speed and athleticism that stands out on the field. He is great in pass coverage, can defend sideline-to-sideline against the run and also rush the passer. Jack’s incredible overall skill-set is perfect for today’s high-octane NFL and particularly in the Jaguars’ aggressive defensive system.
Jack will now join fellow young impact defenders like Ramsey, Dante Fowler Jr., Davon House, Telvin Smith and Malik Jackson to make one of the most talented defensive units in all of football.
Whether the pieces will come together successfully or not remains to be seen, but they undoubtedly have a ton of defensive upside, and Jack is a major part of the whole thing.
Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley is an extremely bright defensive mind who is going to put Jack in the best possible situation to succeed. Playing under Bradley and being surrounded by so much talent, I fully expect Jack to come in and shine right away.
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The knee is obviously somewhat of a concern, but the risk was undoubtedly worth it in the second round. I strongly believe that the Jaguars struck gold when they took Jack, and he is going to come in and immediately prove that to be the case.