Fun little draft nugget (Ashton Gillotte)

[staylor26]

It's here.

And it's instant cinema.@MikeSilver's behind-the-scenes from #Jaguars War Room is a must-read for all in #DUUUVAL and beyond... and confirms A LOT about how Day 2 played out especially https://t.co/0s2KBjegqd

— Mia O'Brien (@MiaOBrienTV) April 29, 2025

Mike Silver was in the Jags war room and revealed that they were going to take Gillotte at 70. When the Chiefs took him, they traded back.

Before they traded back, the Rams called and made an offer, but they also changed their mind when Gillotte came off the board.

Sounds like both the Jags and Rams really wanted this dude.

[RunKC]

“(Gillotte) was one of the favorites among DL coaches around the league. Feel like he’s got a chance to be a double-digit sack artist.”

Cynthia Frelund picked the Chiefs as the winners for the 1st round. And Daniel Jeremiah picked the Chiefs the winners again for the 3rd round. Brett Veach had another amazing draft. �� pic.twitter.com/OAlmX3JQxt

— Brad Henson Productions (@BradHensonPro) April 30, 2025

[staylor26]

I've been jerking it to this draft for days!

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Rausch

If you end up with 5 starters/contributors that's an extraordinary draft. Each one of these guys should contribute year 1. Positions like DE/DT often take a little longer to season and come along and our new coverage LB isn't exactly bumping Bolton or Tranquil for snaps in year one. That said our WR and HB should have a role immediately and see that role grow as quickly as they pick it up and produce.

We've needed a coverage guy at LB for years. We've needed big play ability at HB for about 2 years. We've needed pass rush help at DT for years. We've needed a ball hawk/playmaker who can create turnovers in the secondary for years. Nearly all these guys were taken in their projected range or much much lower than where they were projected. When you can address needs while getting great value at the individual picks I'd argue you've nailed the process.

Funny enough, of all the "I hopes" I've taken from this draft, Bassa bumping Tranquil out of the starting Will job could be the most impactful.

I mean there's obviously the "I hope ONL is Aaron Donald 2.0" sort of stuff. But let's just assume a top 75% outcome for any of these draft picks -- we have solid depth at OT, at DL (with our DEs often doing their best work inside on the pass rush), CB, WR and even RB when Mitchell is healthy.

Linebacker may be the position where we have a guy MOST likely to force himself into action. And Bolton always seems to have a 2-3 week injury absence at some point. Tranquil, as he ages, may be more likely to be injured and he's already undersized. And ultimately, Tranquil just looked a lot slower last season.

Bassa is a guy who could really come up massive for us this season.

[Urc Burry]

Is it crazy that a third round pick who hasn’t even made it to rookie mini camp has changed my stance on extending Karlaftis at least for the moment?

That can obviously change if George can take another step as a pass rusher. But I’m a little cautious on giving him huge money for what he has been

[O.city]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Funny enough, of all the "I hopes" I've taken from this draft, Bassa bumping Tranquil out of the starting Will job could be the most impactful.

I mean there's obviously the "I hope ONL is Aaron Donald 2.0" sort of stuff. But let's just assume a top 75% outcome for any of these draft picks -- we have solid depth at OT, at DL (with our DEs often doing their best work inside on the pass rush), CB, WR and even RB when Mitchell is healthy.

Linebacker may be the position where we have a guy MOST likely to force himself into action. And Bolton always seems to have a 2-3 week injury absence at some point. Tranquil, as he ages, may be more likely to be injured and he's already undersized. And ultimately, Tranquil just looked a lot slower last season.

Bassa is a guy who could really come up massive for us this season.

The issue I've always had with "coverage linebacker" is that in today's NFL, what's a "passing down vs running down"?

You need linebackers that can really do it all it seems.

[RunKC]

“Juiced up Danna” seems to be this kids comp and I don’t think that’s fair. Danna is pure effort on the edge bc his lateral agility and pass rush moves are average at best.

I feel like higher ceiling Karlaftis is a fair comp for this kid. Similar solid strength at the point, shorter arms, almost exact same shuttle time and similar above average 10 split and 3 cone. Both also have arms in the 32 range.

Gillotte was better in college though. And he’s got an elite 10 split as well as a below 7 second 3 cone. His pass rush moves are better than George had as a prospect and I wonder if working with George in the offseason helped this kid.

Karlaftis wins a lot with effort and sometimes pure talent. It feels like Gillette can and will win with pure talent more often and can possibly be a guy who doesn’t rely on having multiple other ass kickers on the DL to put him in 1v1 situations for success.

[Tribal Warfare]

Originally Posted by Kiimo

Pretty bold prediction not sure I agree though.


This draft is great but it's A+ vs C+ depending on Simmons imo

Very similar to last season's with Kingsley.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by RunKC

“Juiced up Danna” seems to be this kids comp and I don’t think that’s fair. Danna is pure effort on the edge bc his lateral agility and pass rush moves are average at best.

I feel like higher ceiling Karlaftis is a fair comp for this kid. Similar solid strength at the point, shorter arms, almost exact same shuttle time and similar above average 10 split and 3 cone. Both also have arms in the 32 range.

Gillotte was better in college though. And he’s got an elite 10 split as well as a below 7 second 3 cone. His pass rush moves are better than George had as a prospect and I wonder if working with George in the offseason helped this kid.

Karlaftis wins a lot with effort and sometimes pure talent. It feels like Gillette can and will win with pure talent more often and can possibly be a guy who doesn’t rely on having multiple other ass kickers on the DL to put him in 1v1 situations for success.

Keysor broke him down and kind of concluded he has the best traits of each guy. Effort. Leverage (Danna). Athleticism and power (Karlaftis). With better bend than Karlaftis.

[JPH83]

Originally Posted by RunKC

“Juiced up Danna” seems to be this kids comp and I don’t think that’s fair. Danna is pure effort on the edge bc his lateral agility and pass rush moves are average at best.

I feel like higher ceiling Karlaftis is a fair comp for this kid. Similar solid strength at the point, shorter arms, almost exact same shuttle time and similar above average 10 split and 3 cone. Both also have arms in the 32 range.

Gillotte was better in college though. And he’s got an elite 10 split as well as a below 7 second 3 cone. His pass rush moves are better than George had as a prospect and I wonder if working with George in the offseason helped this kid.

Karlaftis wins a lot with effort and sometimes pure talent. It feels like Gillette can and will win with pure talent more often and can possibly be a guy who doesn’t rely on having multiple other ass kickers on the DL to put him in 1v1 situations for success.

I'm honestly happy to be ripped for this prediction, but I think he'll be better than Karlaftis for the exact reasons mentioned. Less length, sure, but he's more powerful, especially in the lower half, and his bend is imo definitely better.