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The Jacksonville Jaguars’ 5 Worst Draft Picks in the Last 10 Years
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- The Jacksonville Jaguars’ 5 Worst Draft Picks in the Last 10 Years
Drafting is an inexact science. Even the best of the best miss for any number of reasons—injuries, poor scheme fit, off-the-field issues, lack of development, and so on. With the 2026 NFL Draft now in the rearview mirror, things should be quiet on the personnel side until training camps open in July.
With that in mind, it seems like the perfect time to go back over the last 10 drafts to identify picks which didn't pan out for each of the 32 clubs. Before we begin, let's set the ground rules: We're starting with the 2016 draft, so no players from the 2026 draft are eligible.
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Now that we've established the parameters, here are the Jacksonville Jaguars ' five worst draft picks of the past decade:
Dishonorable Mentions
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TE Josh Oliver (69th Overall, 2019)
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DE K'Lavon Chaisson (20th Overall, 2020)
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LB Chad Muma (70th Overall, 2022)
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RB Tank Bigsby (88th Overall, 2023)
5) DL Taven Bryan , 29th Overall (2018)
Coming off a season in which they fell just short of a Super Bowl appearance, the Jags added to their high-priced defensive line by selecting Bryan. He never turned his athleticism into production, working mostly as a rotational piece, and Jacksonville declined his fifth-year option. Three spots later, the Ravens scooped up future MVP Lamar Jackson , but then again, Jacksonville already had Blake Bortles .
4) DT Maason Smith , 48th Overall (2024)
Scouts were tossing around names like Chris Jones and DeForest Buckner when Smith was coming out of LSU. Not anymore. Smith appeared in 24 of 34 games in his first two years, and that was all Jacksonville needed to see. They traded him to Atlanta in April in a classic change-of-scenery deal for fellow 2024 second-rounder Ruke Orhorhoro .
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3) WR Laviska Shenault Jr., 42nd Overall (2020)
The 2020 NFL Draft was an abysmal affair for the Jaguars, which included selecting Shenault in Round 2. He had middling production for two seasons before being traded to Carolina in 2022 for a pair of late-round picks. As bad as that was, it looks exponentially worse when you remember the Jaguars passed on Justin Jefferson , Brandon Aiyuk , Tee Higgins , and Michael Pittman to draft K'Lavon Chaisson, setting the stage for Shenault.
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2) RB Leonard Fournette , 4th Overall (2017)
Fournette had a couple of decent seasons with the Jags and was an important part of the team's improbable run to the AFC Championship Game during his rookie campaign. He lasted just three years with the Jaguars, however, with the team releasing him after failing to find a trade partner. He'd enjoy a renaissance in Tampa Bay, where he earned the nickname "Playoff Lenny," but he was a disaster for Jacksonville, which bypassed Patrick Mahomes and Christian McCaffrey among many others on draft day.
1) CB C.J. Henderson , 9th Overall (2020)
It's hard to overstate how bad the first-round cornerback class of 2020 was, which included Jeff Okudah , Damon Arnette , Noah Igbinoghene , and Jeff Gladney . Henderson fit right in. He played eight games as a rookie before landing on IR with a groin injury. The following year, Henderson lasted just two games before being jettisoned from the S.S. Urban Meyer to Carolina for a journeyman tight end and a third-round pick. Absolutely brutal.
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Related: The Indianapolis Colts' 5 Worst Draft Picks in the Last 10 Years
This story was originally published by Lindys Sports on Jun 15, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Lindys Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
