March 19, 2026, 7:55 a.m. ET
Following the initial free agency waves, what is missing from the Jacksonville Jaguars’ roster?
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell recently answered that question for a number of NFL teams, including the Jaguars. His choice? Linebacker.
With Devin Lloyd now in Carolina, a do-it-all presence in the middle of the Jaguars’ defense, a lot of production now has to be replaced.
So how should the Jaguars go about doing that? Barnwell believes that the NFL draft will offer Jacksonville the opportunity to address this position.
“If Gladstone follows in Les Snead’s footsteps, a cost-effective solution at linebacker to replace Lloyd will be on the way in the months to come, likely via the later rounds of the draft,” Barnwell wrote.
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Linebacker is certainly a position that the Jaguars could add to in Lloyd’s absence. However, James Gladstone seems quite bullish about the players already on the roster at this position.
He recently mentioned Ventrell Miller as a candidate to replace Lloyd’s contributions on defense, while Branson Combs can take on Lloyd’s special teams responsibilities. From the sounds of it, Miller, Foye Oluokun, and Dennis Gardeck are — as of now — the Jaguars’ top linebacker options.
Is linebacker really the Jaguars’ top need?
While I can see where Barnwell is coming from, linebacker is not the Jaguars’ top need for the reasons just mentioned. There are options already on the roster to help absorb Lloyd’s absence. Anthony Campanile’s scheme will help with that as well.
So the biggest need that the Jaguars still have is at defensive tackle. This unit is short on depth and needs a more consistent pass rush — something that was lacking down the stretch last season.
Addressing defensive tackle should be higher up on the to-do list for Gladstone than linebacker.