The draft is the foundation for improvement in the NFL, so it’s now wonder that the Jacksonville Jaguars have been doing so bad for so long, looking at the example of not having a single player from their 2011 crop remain on the team.

The Jaguars used the 10th overall pick in that draft to take quarterback Blaine Gabbert. The future of the franchise? One of only two players (Jake Locker) in that draft’s top 10 to miss out on making the Pro Bowl (so far), Gabbert started 27 times for Jacksonville before being shown the way out, now backing up Colin Kaepernick, another player from that draft.

The next pick for the Jaguars was Will Rackley from Lehigh, a guard who started 25 times for the Jaguars. He was with the Baltimore Ravens last season but didn’t play a single game. Injuries and being mediocre at his best meant he wasn’t the foundation for the offensive line the general manager thought he’d be. Rackley was a third round pick.

The 114th overall pick was Cecil Shorts, who just now joined the Houston Texans. Shorts seems to be the best of the bunch in this draft class, catching 55 passes for 979 yards in 2012, his best season. He was the longest tenured players on the Jags from that draft class in 2014, but now he’s gone as well.

After Shorts came Chris Prosinski, a safety out of Wyoming taken as the 121st overall pick. As Luke Sims of Black & Teal described him, he cause no fear in ball carriers during his short time with the team, last season playing for the Philadelphia Eagles.

The last pick of that draft was Rod Isaac out of Middle Tennessee State, a cornerback, taken in the 5th round with the 147th overall pick. He lasted just one season in the NFL.

The general manager making those picks, Gene Smith, is no longer making decisions for the Jaguars. When you do this poorly with almost every possible decision, you’re not going to hold on to an NFL job for too long.

Image: Source