The Sports Xchange

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — In the end, the Jacksonville Jaguars believed they had to take the one player with the most upside potential, the player who could do the most to help them the most on defense.

That’s why former Florida outside linebacker Dante Fowler is a Jaguar and defensive lineman Leonard Williams from USC and wide receiver Amari Cooper from Alabama are not.

Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell wouldn’t say how close the Jaguars came to drafting either Williams or Cooper, the two players most draft experts pegged for the Jaguars as the third overall pick. He did say there were three or four players that they really liked with the No. 3 selection and the difference between the players was marginal at most.

But Caldwell made it clear how happy the team was to have the former Florida Gators star, a pick that is bound to be popular with Jaguars fans, many of whom journey 75 miles to Gainesville on Saturdays as enthusiastic Gators supporters.

“His physicality is unmatched, it was the best in the draft,” said Caldwell, who made the Jaguars’ No. 3 overall pick for the second year in a row. “Young, good edge rushers are hard to find and next year is not a good year for edge rushers.”

It wasn’t a 24th hour decision on Fowler. Caldwell met with head coach Gus Bradley after last Friday’s draft media luncheon and after conferring with the team’s scouting staff, the decision was made. Fowler would be the latest Gators-turned-Jaguars player.

Hopefully, he’ll have a better showing than most of the others. The Jaguars have now drafted nine former Florida players (more than any other school), but it hasn’t always been a happy marriage. Only one of the previous eight ex-Gators was a success in Jacksonville.

Fred Taylor turned his first-round pick into an outstanding 11-year career with the Jaguars as the franchise leading rusher. But six of the other seven former Gators never played more than four seasons with the Jaguars. One, Josh Evans, is in his second year with the team.

Fowler’s selection is a major boost for the Jacksonville defense. He has the capability of being a three-down player and can play multiple positions, including inside. With tackle Sen’Derrick Marks not likely to be at full strength when the 2015 regular season opens after January knee surgery (ACL), Fowler could see more time inside than as an edge rusher, at least in the early going.

Fowler’s biggest asset falls in line with his head coach’s personality. Fowler has a motor that has been described as “ongoing, never shutting down.” Bradley’s enthusiasm and passion for the game is among the most intense of any head coach in the NFL. There’s no doubt that Fowler is a Gus-type-of-guy.

“I really like him,” Bradley said. “The effort is what really stood out. Every play. When you watch tape, especially with rushers, they take plays off. A guy plays hard for a while and then he does it. We looked to try to find plays where we felt like he took plays off and he didn’t. That gives us the opportunity that we don’t have to coach effort. We can get right into technique things that we want him to work on.”

Fowler appears to be the last piece of the defensive puzzle that the Jaguars set their sights on during the offseason. The Jaguars were active in free agency, signing six players on the first day, four of whom play defense. Especially important was improving the pass rush and putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks. That was accomplished with the signings of strong-side defensive end Jared Odrick, outside linebacker Dan Skuta, who will likely start now at the Otto spot, and two players in the secondary.

Add Fowler, who is likely best suited to be playing the Leo spot opposite Skuta, and the Jaguars might have fulfilled all their shortcomings along the defensive line. Caldwell thinks that Fowler fits the profile of the LEO and then some.

“To have a LEO that can play at 260 pounds and play the run down, that’s a good thing,” Caldwell said. “Sometimes you have a LEO that is just a third-down rusher and only weighs 245, 250 and has a hard time holding up in the run down. We have a LEO that can rush the passer but also play first and second downs against the run.”

There is no debating Fowler’s talents, especially his versatility. He could bull-rush an offensive tackle into the backfield on one play, set the edge by knocking down a pulling guard on the next and on third down he might drop into zone coverage for a brief time before zeroing in on the quarterback for a sack.

How important is it to be known as a guy that can play all three downs?

“It shows guys that I’m a complete player,” Fowler said. “I’m very versatile and that’s what guys really like about me. The motor comes, but my big part of it is that I’m a jack-o-all trades and I can play more than one spot.”

The last time the Jaguars drafted a defensive end with their first pick in the draft was in 2008 when they selected former Florida standout Derrick Harvey. Fowler is hoping the similarities end there.

Harvey never came close to gaining stardom. His work ethic was mediocre at best, he fought injuries and his eight sacks in three years left the Jaguars no choice but to release him.

Fowler doesn’t appear to anything like Harvey other than their size. Fowler’s motor never stops; Harvey’s rarely got going.

The Jaguars are counting on Fowler to be a game-changer.