Baalke decided since he already got three picks at no cost to the Jaguars, it was best to avoid more risk and simply draft Harrison. Baalke could exhale.Īnother opportunity to move down again from 27 was there. Dallas kept the pick and selected Michigan defensive tackle Mazi Smith. He had to sweat out the Cowboys not taking Harrison at 26, or trading the pick to a team that might steal away Baalke’s top choice. I’m glad he got his guy with the 1.”īaalke verified Beane’s version of the story, but he didn’t feel at ease just because the Bills took Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid with the 25th pick. We’re not taking the same guy and you’re going to get. So I called him back and I’m like, ‘Trent, I’m telling you, we’re not taking the same guy. Now I’m hearing Jacksonville is on the clock. “Well, it’s like the longest two minutes and he still hasn’t called back. He goes, ‘all right, let me call you right back.’ He goes, ‘Are you taking a tight end? I said yeah. Then he goes, ‘All right, I need more.’ Then he goes, ‘big or small?’ I said medium. “So then he goes, ‘offense or defense?’ I said offense. “I was like, ‘Well, Trent, I don’t necessarily want to tell you who I’m taking.’ He’s like, ‘Well, we’re going to have to figure this out some way or the other because if I don’t know that you’re not taking my guy, I’m not moving back.’ “ is like, ‘You’re going to have to tell me who is taking,’ “ said Beane. Without mentioning any names, the Jaguars’ GM wanted assurances from Beane that the Bills didn’t intend to take Harrison, but it made for some humorous dialogue. Right after trading down with the Giants, another inquiry from Buffalo Bills GM Brandon Beane about moving from 27 to 25 led to a comical exchange with Baalke, who was nervous about pulling this trigger out of fear he could lose Harrison.īeane told the Green Light podcast with Chris Long that there were some nerve-racking moments during two phone conversations with Baalke. “Now there’s a point where you can get too cute and it could have backfired,” Baalke said. It was an easy, no-stress deal, which was far different from the Jaguars’ next two trade-down scenarios. When Schoen said defense (the Giants took cornerback Deonte Banks), Baalke immediately agreed to the trade that netted the Jaguars safety Antonio Johnson (5th round) and fullback Derek Parish (7th round). When Giants GM Joe Schoen called about moving up one spot, Baalke naturally asked him who he was taking by saying: “Offense or defense?” That’s because the Jaguars’ GM traded down twice - from 24 to 25 with the New York Giants, then 25 to 27 with the Buffalo Bills - in round one and luckily didn’t lose Harrison to the Dallas Cowboys or have somebody trading up to 26 to grab him. “You could argue it was our best round because we got four players for one ,” said Baalke. When the Jaguars celebrate their golden anniversary as a franchise in a little over two decades, it could be the 2021 draft that delivered quarterback Trevor Lawrence and running back Travis Etienne will be considered their greatest first round, albeit the duos of Tony Boselli-James Stewart (1995) and Fred Taylor-Donovan Darius (1998) are the most impactful for now.īut what Baalke did in this year’s first round, though offensive tackle Anton Harrison was the only player drafted at 27, has a chance to be plenty significant. 36 for a quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, who took San Francisco to the Super Bowl and an NFC Championship game.īut when you look at what the 59-year-old executive did last week for the Jaguars - dealing down three times in the first or second round to acquire four extra picks, and still getting the player he wanted - this draft from a trading standpoint has the potential to be a Baalke bonanza. Three years earlier, Baalke struck gold trading up nine slots to No. 56 to 63 with the Denver Broncos in 2014, landing running back Carlos Hyde after trading back up to 57th, while the Broncos whiffed on receiver Cody Latimer at 56. Every GM wins some, loses some.īaalke can claim victory trading down from No. It often takes years to figure out which team gets the better end of draft-day deals. Hilton, while the 49ers settled for decent nose tackle Quinton Dial. When it was KC’s turn at 37, the Chiefs hit the jackpot, landing four-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Chris Jones.īaalke also swapped third-round picks with the Indianapolis Colts in 2012, trading down five spots that allowed Indy to grab perennial Pro Bowl receiver T.Y. Most notably, he traded up nine spots in 2016 with the Kansas City Chiefs to get into the first round, taking guard Joshua Garnett with the 28th overall pick. Looking at his 49ers’ scoreboard, Baalke took a few more losses than wins on 20 draft-day trades over seven years of being the final authority.
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