Myles Jack

After five seasons it might be safe to say that Jack is more athletic than specifically skilled as a linebacker because he hasn't been able to turn that athleticism into above-average playmaking production. He has just six sacks in his last four seasons, and only three interceptions in that span. The good news is that his tackle rate has picked up the last two years, and if he maintains that he should be a useful IDP for that reason alone. Jack has 184 tackles over his last 1,548 snaps, which projects to about 120 tackles per 1,000 snaps.

Jack worked at inside linebacker last season and had the worst production of his career with 66 total tackles, a half-sack and one interception in 11 games. He'll move back to outside linebacker in 2020 following the signing of Joe Schobert. Jack had career highs in tackles (107) and sacks (2.5) in 2018, but he may not be able to replicate those numbers after a down year, especially with Schobert expected to provide significant production.

The abrupt hiatus taken by Telvin Smith leaves the Jaguars defense with a mammoth tackle void, as Smith led the team with 134 in 2018. Jack has yet to really break out as a tackle threat, only barely hitting triple-digits despite playing over 1,000 snaps last year, while in 2017 he fell well short (90 tackles on 1,018 snaps). Even if it's not in Jack's nature to specifically pad his tackle count, he almost has to by default now that Smith isn't there stealing so many stops. If Jack does break out as a tackle source, the full showing could be explosive given his other skills.

He doesn't have the instincts of teammate and fellow standout IDP Telvin Smith, but Jack is an even better athlete, and the retirement of Paul Posluszny opens up a breakout scenario for Jack this year. Still not 23 until September, Jack already has two NFL seasons to his credit, and with the tackle fiend Posluszny out of the picture, Jack should see his rate significantly increase after posting just 90 last year on 1,018 snaps. Perhaps a top-five athlete at linebacker, Jack likely holds untapped potential as a blitzer and turnover threat, too.

The Jaguars brought Jack along slowly last season, carefully monitoring his snap count as he worked back from a serious knee injury. The expectation is that in Year 2, Jack will be able to hit the ground running as a starting middle linebacker.

While Jack was unable to participate in OTAs, he should have no trouble working his way into an impact role as an outside linebacker in Year 1. Long-term knee concerns caused the UCLA product to slip to the second round of the draft, but there’s no question he’s a top-tier talent.