Jacksonville’s front office was quietly testing the waters for interior defensive line help anyway, but Sunday’s crushing news on DaVon Hamilton stripped away all luxury of time.
With their nose tackle anchor lost to a season-ending quad tear, the Jaguars have zero choice left but to aggressively shop for a replacement before the trade deadline strikes. If they were simply window shopping before, they need to do some serious shopping now.
Jaguars On SI’s John Shipley says that GM James Gladstone has no option but to make a trade.
DaVon Hamilton Injury Forces Jaguars to Make Trade
“Simply put, the Hamilton injury has changed everything for a Jaguars team that already needed some help along the defensive line. Jacksonville was likely already in the market for a pocket-pushing three-technique who could make an impact on passing downs next to Josh Hines-Allen, Travon Walker, Arik Armstead, and Ruke Orhorhoro. That is still a need, too. But now so is nose tackle.”
Hamilton was crucial to the Jaguars’ defense.
Losing a guy like DaVon Hamilton ruins an entire front seven because this defense is built around having a massive body in the middle.
At 335 pounds, Hamilton was the anchor, eating up double-teams so linebackers could run free and edge rushers could pin their ears back. Without him, the Jaguars have no choice but to ask rotational guys to play heavy, primary-snap football. That instantly exposes their run defense on early downs and completely wipes out any pocket collapse on third-and-longs.
Until they find that replacement for Hamilton, the majority of the workload falls onto Josh-Hines Allen and Travon Walker. Hines-Allen knows this too well, and that’s why he made it a point to say that they need to “step up.”
“We’re going to have guys that need to step up. We know what type of role D-Ham plays on our defense, and so the next person up has big shoes to fill, but there’s no disbelief that they can’t get the job done. We just have to keep going,” Hines-Allen said after the game.
“This means the Jaguars very well could have to look to the trade deadline. They already needed to add a defensive tackle, but now the urgency has been ramped up and the need has changed. The Jaguars don’t just need a quality pass-rusher. They need someone they can trust in the middle of the defense to command double-teams,” Shipley added.
Names to Watch
Shipley also mentioned some pass-rushers in the mix that the Jaguars front office could make a call for.
“There are certainly names to watch, such as Roy Lopez in Arizona, Vita Vea and A’Shawn Robinson in Tampa Bay, Moro Ojomo in Philadelphia, Dalvin Tomlinson in Los Angeles, and so on and so forth,” Shipley explained.
Some of these teams have maintained that their players are not for trade, but it all comes down to how much draft capital GM James Gladstone is ready to throw around to get their Hamilton replacement.
Since the Jaguars are now looking like a solid playoff team, they need to fill this gap. It directly affects their playoff chances, because that’s how important Hamilton was in carrying the defense.
“But the Jaguars went from a notable need at defensive tackle to a season-changing one. Even if the Jaguars had Hamilton, they needed some help. Now they need to find someone who can help replace their best defensive tackle.”
DaVon Hamilton Injury Expected to Change Jaguars Trade Stance Before Deadline