The Jacksonville Jaguars will hold several position battles in training camp, and there's chatter that Walker Little will have to compete for his job despite the fact that he's generally played well. That's probably because the new regime wants to see how he fares before they trust him to protect Trevor Lawrence's blindside job. If past performance and his place in a recent ranking are of any indication, though, the fifth-year offensive tackle should have no trouble coming out on top.
Zoltan Buday of Pro Football Focus ranked the top 32 offensive tackles in the NFL and listed Little at No. 32, pointing out that he was among the best tackles in the league in the second half of the 2024 season.
"Jacksonville thrust Little into the starting lineup following Cam Robinson's mid-season departure, and he held his ground. Prior to his season being cut short due to an injury, he was among the better left tackles in the league."
"Between Weeks 10 and 15, Little earned an 80.2 PFF overall grade, which ranked 15th at the position. His 832.0 PFF pass-blocking grade over that period placed 11th among 74 qualifying offensive tackles."
A second-round pick in the 2021 draft, Little was stuck behind Cam Robinson for three years. He flashed whenever he played, but it wasn't until Robinson got traded in 2024 that he got the chance to start full-time. In fact, the former Stanford Cardinal was given a three-year deal worth $45 million not long after being promoted.
However, there have been rumblings that Little may need to fend off free-agent acquisition Fred Johnson to start at left tackle next season. On the one hand, iron sharpens iron, and players can benefit from having to compete for their jobs. On the other hand, it's fair to wonder if there's any upside in Little going against the team's second-team defensive line when he's routinely shown that he can hold his own.
Either way, Little is better than Johnson, but if he got outplayed in training camp, he wouldn't deserve to start.
Walker Little gives the Jaguars an answer at left tackle
For his first three NFL seasons, it seemed like the Jacksonville Jaguars didn't know what to do with Walker Little. They drafted him after slapping Cam Robinson with the franchise tag in 2021. After giving the latter a three-year deal in 2022, they had the sophomore compete with Jawan Taylor for the right tackle job.
Then, 2023 came, and Little started six games while Robinson served a suspension. He held his own, but was once again relegated to the bench once Robinson returned. He returned to the starting lineup, now at guard, when the injury bug struck.
It's possible that the past regime wasn't sold on Little. Maybe he didn't practice well, perhaps it's an attitude issue. But regardless of the reasons, if the rumors that he needs to compete for his job are true, things haven't changed much. Working in the Texas native favor is that he's getting a clean slate and a chance to prove that he does deserve to start.
The talent has always been there. Walker Little was an early-round pick for a reason. Now, he'll get a chance to prove his spot in Pro Footbal Focus ranking wasn't a mistake.
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