Jacksonville Jaguars: 5 best draft picks all-time
By John Buhler
It’s really a shame that Maurice Jones-Drew played for Jacksonville when he did (2006-13), because outside of fellow UCLA Bruins teammate Marcedes Lewis, Jones-Drew was the only focal point in one the worst offenses in Jaguars history.
That’s not to discredit anything Jones-Drew did in his eight seasons with the Jaguars, as he will go down as one of the best players in Jacksonville history. Jacksonville took Jones-Drew with the No. 60 overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft and he wound up changing how the running back position would be drafted/played going forward.
Jones-Drew proved that NFL teams didn’t need to use a first-round pick on a running back when they could draft a multi-time Pro Bowler in the middle rounds. Jones-Drew was arguably the best dual-threat tailback (rushing and receiving) in the NFL from 2009 to 2011. He made the Pro Bowl all three years and earned an All-Pro nod in 2011 when he also led the NFL in rushing.
Jones-Drew played one uninspired season with the Oakland Raiders in 2014, but is best remembered for doing everything for the Jaguars offense in the late 2000s to the early 2010s. Jones-Drew retired with 8,167 career rushing yards for 68 touchdowns and had 2,944 receiving yards for 11 touchdowns.
He owns several Jaguars records including most career rushing touchdowns, most rushing yards in a season, most all-purpose yards in a game, and most all-purpose yards in a season. Jones-Drew will no doubt make the Pride of the Jaguars and does have a solid argument for Canton enshrinement for his contributions on the gridiron for some ghastly Jaguars teams.
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