This week, we asked Jacksonville Jaguars fans if they were ok with the team not trading back in to make a pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
A whopping 90% of respondents are just fine with Jacksonville’s Round 1 approach.
An aggressive trade-up wouldn’t have made much sense.
As we previewed in Big Cat Country’s latest staff roundtable, the 2026 talent pool is thin. That’s part of the reason we saw a running back, off-ball linebacker, safety, and tight end go off the board in the first half of Round 1. Even beyond the top crop, this draft seems to offer more role players at non-premium positions than potential stars at premium spots.
It’s not the type of year to trade up in, and that especially applies to Jacksonville. After years of aggressive spending in free agency, plus last year’s trade-up for Travis Hunter, the Jaguars understand that they’re in a position to reload resources.
General manager James Gladstone said after Round 1 ended, “I think the idea of a volume play is an important thing for us to acknowledge … that gives you a lot more chances to hit, a lot more chances to miss. But we’ll take the chances at this stage knowing that we feel good about our process.”
The Jaguars currently have +2500 odds to win Super Bowl LXI, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Check out Big Cat Country’s draft home page for our extensive coverage, and let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
