Jaguars' 2021 draft report: Opportunities few for rookie defensive tackle Jay Tufele

Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Jay Tufele did not fulfill projections this past season that was expected when the Jaguars drafted him 106th overall in the fourth round last April.

General manager Trent Baalke and former coach Urban Meyer both thought Tufele would show enough promise to become a reliable rotational player as a rookie.

But it did not turn out that way because Tufele experienced injury problems and did not flash enough ability in practice to move up the depth chart, forcing him to spend most of his rookie season watching instead of playing.

And Tufele could still have difficulty drawing substantial playing time with a new head coach and coaching staff because he remains behind in development. He is quick off the ball but needs to develop better hand techniques besides the swim move to get off blocks and provide more interior pressure on the quarterback.

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This past fall was Tufele's first season playing since 2019 because he opted out in 2020 at the University of Southern Cal because several family members tested positive for COVID-19.

Tufele appeared to struggle to catch on quickly to defensive coordinator's Joe Cullen's 3-4 system because the missed time contributed to injuries.

Tufele, 6-foot-3, 311 pounds, was a healthy scratch for the first four games. In Week 6 against the Miami Dolphins, he broke his hand during pregame warmups and ended up missing five games after going on injured reserve. Tufele ended the season with two tackles after drawing just 54 defense snaps in four games.

"Like anything, when you draft those guys, the guys that were ahead of them were better, they were more mentally ready for the NFL, they were better at their position," Cullen said. "They just have to continue to get better. It’s just a matter of those guys getting stronger, having a full season of an offseason, and getting to understand and know the scheme. Those guys are going to be fine in time."

Trevor Lawrence, Tyson Campbell head class

Other than quarterback Trevor Lawrence and Tyson Campbell, the Jaguars 2021 rookie class did not have enough impactful contributors.

Running back Travis Etienne, the 26th overall pick, missed the entire regular season after suffering a Lisfranc injury during the preseason that required surgery to repair.

Offensive tackle Walker Little, the 45th overall pick in the second round, showed promise in three starts, but he spent the majority of the season as the backup left tackle behind starter Cam Robinson.

Safety Andre Cisco, a third-round pick, finished the season with 26 tackles and forced two fumbles, but he couldn't beat out Andrew Wingard for the starting free safety job.

In the fourth round, the Jaguars traded up nine spots to select defensive end Jordan Smith. Smith did not play his first game until Week 17 against the New England Patriots. He played the final two games to end the season with one tackle.

Tight end Luke Farrell played in 15 games and made seven catches for 56 yards and no touchdowns.

''I would say we all kind of felt the same way in terms of we were going through one of the hardest things you can see in the league, coaching changes and a losing streak and things like that,'' Cisco said of the obstacles the rookie class experienced this season.

''So, we kind of understood, this is one of the worst things we’ll see in our time, but we’re getting it in our first year, so we’re getting it out of the way. We kind of all bonded in that sense.''

Four Jaguars assistants take new college jobs

Jaguars cornerbacks coach Tim Walton became the fourth assistant from the 2021 staff to accept a college assistant job. Ohio State coach Ryan Day hired Walton as his new secondary/cornerbacks coach. Walton had been with the Jaguars since 2019.

Since the regular-season ended on Jan. 9, Jaguars defensive line coach Tosh Lupoi was hired by the University of Oregon head coach Bryan McClendon to become their new defensive coordinator; assistant defensive line coach Sterling Lucas has joined the University of South Carolina to serve as the Gamecocks defensive line/outside linebackers coach and tight ends coach Tyler Bowen is the new offensive coordinator/tight ends coach at Virginia Tech.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars' 2021 draft report: DT Jay Tufele was unable to meet expectations