JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – After selecting Leonard Fournette with the fourth pick of the draft on Thursday, the Jacksonville Jaguars went with Alabama offensive tackle Cam Robinson in the second round (34th overall).
Jacksonville traded their second- (35th) and sixth-round (187th) picks to the Seattle Seahawks for their second-round (34th) pick in order to move up one spot and select Robinson.
At 6-foot-6 and 322 pounds, Robinson has prototypical size for a left tackle in the NFL. As a junior Robinson was won the Outland Trophy as the nation’s top interior lineman for 2016. Alabama puts several prospects in the NFL every year and Robinson was good enough to start as a true freshman. He started every game at left tackle during his time in Tuscaloosa (43 games).
“Last night was tough,” said Robinson on a conference call with Jacksonville reporters on Friday night. “Of course you want to go in the first round but I feel I landed in the perfect spot.”
Going into the draft the expectation was that Branden Albert would be the Jaguars left tackle with Jeremy Parnell on the opposite side at right tackle. So far Albert has failed to show up for the voluntary part of the Jaguars offseason program. Having competition at every position has been a constant theme for the Jaguars and nobody’s job is safe according to general manager Dave Caldwell.
“We see Cam Robinson as a left tackle,” said Caldwell. “He will compete for the starting job with Branden Albert.
Robinson is also looking forward to blocking for Fournette.
“It’s going to be really cool," said Robinson. "I've known Leonard for a while. We came out of high school in the same class, both from Louisiana. He was the number one player in the state. I was the number two player in the state. It’s going to be fun.”
In round No. 3 the Jaguars selected Illinois DE Dawuane Smoot (63rd overall). Smoot is listed at 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds. He recorded five sacks last season at Illinois.
"I felt I should've went a lot higher but I'm just happy to get picked," said Smoot on a conference call Friday night.
This is the second straight season that the Jaguars have selected a pass rusher in the third round of the NFL Draft. As a rookie Yannick Ngakoue led the team with eight sacks.