The Jacksonville Jaguars selected Penn State tight end Brenton Strange in the second round with the No. 61 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft.
On Thursday night, the Jaguars traded down twice in the first round to acquire a trio of additional Day 3 selections. They continued that trend Friday by sliding back from No. 56 in a trade with the Chicago Bears that netted Jacksonville an additional fifth-round pick (No. 136 overall).
Strange is a 6’4, 253-pound tight end who recorded a 36-inch vertical jump and a 4.70-second 40-yard dash at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine.
Brenton Strange was drafted with pick 61 of round 2 in the 2023 draft class. He scored a 9.09 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 102 out of 1105 TE from 1987 to 2023. https://t.co/Apw5zXGmEs pic.twitter.com/sREwcpMOv5
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) April 29, 2023
In four seasons with the Penn State Nittany Lions, Strange caught 11 touchdown passes.
While Jaguars brass said drafting a tight end wasn’t a necessity, the reality is that the team’s depth chart at the position was relatively bare after allowing Chris Manhertz and Dan Arnold to both reach free agency. The team kept Evan Engram with the franchise tag, but could certainly use a second option at tight end.
Jacksonville is scheduled to pick next in the third round at No. 88 overall