Can Anton Harrison Be the Jaguars' Franchise Left Tackle?

Counter to the prevailing expectation, the Jacksonville Jaguars selected an offensive tackle in Round 1, taking Oklahoma’s Anton Harrison with the 27th overall pick. Was Harrison worth the selection, and can he be Jacksonville’s franchise left tackle?

Jacksonville Jaguars Thinking Ahead at the Tackle Position

Heading into the 2023 NFL Draft, offensive tackle wasn’t viewed as a primary need for the Jaguars by the consensus. It was believed that Jacksonville might address the position in the early rounds, but on paper, they had the framework to keep stability in 2023.

Cam Robinson was set to return at left tackle, with a contract that runs through 2024. And while the Jaguars had a void to fill with right tackle Jawaan Taylor leaving for the Chiefs, they did have Walker Little waiting in the wings, who showed promise in three regular season and two playoff starts in 2022.

But beneath the surface, OT was a bigger need for the Jaguars than initially assumed. On the day of the NFL Draft, Robinson was faced with a multi-game suspension for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drug policy. That suspension could be as long as six or eight games, depending on the specific substance involved.

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That is a short-term aberration in Jacksonville’s tackle plans, but it’s another wrinkle in the long-term picture. Both Robinson and Little will be free agents in 2025. Robinson, in particular, could soon be out the door. There’s an out in his contract in 2024 with just a $5 million dead cap, which at that point, he’ll be 28 years old.

It wasn’t a necessity for the Jaguars to move on from Robinson, but there was room to upgrade, get younger, and get cheaper. They might’ve done all of those things by adding Oklahoma’s Harrison in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Anton Harrison Brings Similar Physical Ability to Robinson

Robinson never made a Pro Bowl or received All-Pro votes in his time as Jacksonville’s starting LT, but he did carve out a career as one of the NFL’s quietly solid bookend blockers. In six years, he started all 75 games played in the regular season.

If Harrison provides Jacksonville with that kind of stability, then that in and of itself is a win. But there’s reason to believe Harrison could bring even more than his predecessor, who was selected No. 34 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft.

In the most basic ways, the Jaguars are following the blueprint they did with Robinson. They want size and athletic ability on the edge. With Harrison, they’re getting both. In a recent press conference, head coach Doug Pederson mentioned those qualities when discussing Harrison’s appeal.

“There’s a lot of consistency in his game,” Pederson said. “You love everything about his length and athleticism, how he moves, his strength, all things as Trent [Baalke] mentioned that will fit us. We’re just excited for Anton and just getting in that offensive line room, getting around the other guys in that room, getting to work.”

The Jaguars have long valued those traits. Coming out in the 2017 cycle, Robinson was 6’6″, 322 pounds, with 35 1/2″ arms. He ran a 5.15 40-yard dash with a 1.78 10-yard split and had a 26″ vertical. Functional athleticism — both in pass protection and in the running game — has been a calling card for Robinson, but Harrison arguably brings even more.

Harrison is a notch smaller than Robinson, at 6’5″, 315 pounds, with near-35” arms. But at that size, he’s a rangy athlete in the running game, with elite explosiveness and mobility in space. As evidenced by his 4.98 40-yard dash and 1.71 10-yard split, he gets off the line extremely quickly, but also has the corrective mobility and foot speed to maintain positioning as a pass protector.

Harrison’s Operational Ability Could Set Him Apart

Harrison has all the physical tools that separate him as a first-round talent. Yet, his operational ability, on top of his talent, is what might set him apart — not just from Robinson, but also from other top-end tackles in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Harrison’s tools, of course, set an excellent foundation to build off of. With his length and frame density, he has overwhelming torque at contact when exerting power. He also has the strength to absorb and stymy rushes.

Furthermore, Harrison is a physical finisher. All this being said, his operational ability — at just 21 years old — is the fusing agent of his game.

In the running game, Harrison has great angle awareness and finishing ability in space. The latter trait, in particular, was a central part of Robinson’s game. In Jacksonville, particularly, where Trevor Lawrence is the man dropping back, pass protection is paramount for Harrison, and that’s where some of his most exciting reps come.

For his size, Harrison is incredibly well-leveraged. He does occasionally play too far upright, but he brings great knee bend and flexibility, and his footwork is superb. He not only has the corrective foot speed to recover ground, but he also mirrors and matches rushers to the apex while maintaining his center of gravity.

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The footwork is where it starts with Harrison, and his hand usage is how he capitalizes on that positioning. This quote, from my 2023 NFL Draft scouting report on Harrison, details how he wins reps in pass protection with his hands:

“Harrison employs lightning-fast hand replacement to re-establish anchors on blocks and lock out defenders. He’s extremely proactive with his hand usage and consistently uses successive extensions to contain defenders powerfully.

“The Oklahoma OT can quickly break anchors with violent swipes, then immediately re-exert and displace. Furthermore, Harrison can use fast, independent hands to gather rushers, then latch and anchor in rapid succession.

“With his independent hand usage, Harrison displays a strong inside hand — something that helps him control reps. He bats down attempted rips with his inside hand, then drives imbalanced rushers into the turf. He also flashes precision with his hands.

“The Oklahoma OT can react quickly, then target and nullify opposing extensions. Expanding on that point, Harrison has a great sense of timing. He can swat down clubs, then violently rotate his hips at the apex and extend to lock out rushers.”

Harrison isn’t flawless with his hand usage or footwork — an unsurprising revelation for a 21-year-old. He can be baited into extending too early, or set his hands too wide. Additionally, his feet sometimes cross when recovering against rushers from wider alignments.

But for his age, Harrison is much farther along than the average prospect, and he has the physical talent to set in motion an even greater ascent.