JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Travon Walker’s meteoric rise is complete.
The Jaguars made it official on Thursday night, selecting Georgia edge rusher Walker with the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft to cap a rocket ride up the charts for the junior from Thomaston, Georgia. Walker opened draft season with 30-to-1 odds to be taken with the first pick.
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Now, he’s the cornerstone of a rebuilding defense and expected to join edge rusher Josh Allen as the new deputies of Sacksonville, according to News 6 partner WJXT.
With Trevor Lawrence going No. 1 overall last season and Walker following, the Jaguars are betting that an infusion of top-shelf talent begins translating into victories on the field.
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Coach Doug Pederson said last week that the team doesn’t expect to be in position to have the top pick again anytime soon. If the Jaguars can get Walker to reach his enormous potential, that can happen soon for defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell.
For long-suffering Jacksonville fans and Duval County taxpayers who will soon be asked to chip in on a revamped stadium of the future, the wins can’t come quickly enough.
Since Shad Khan purchased the team from Wayne Weaver in 2012, the Jaguars have just one playoff appearance, nine seasons under .500 and arguably the worst and most embarrassing head coaching hire in NFL history (Urban Meyer) on the ledger.
Jacksonville’s struggles with first-round picks are notable (Taven Bryan, Dante Fowler, Luke Joeckel, Leonard Fournette, CJ Henderson and K’Lavon Chaisson have all been selected since 2013) and naysayers won’t be swayed by Walker’s lack of statistics in college.
The selection of Walker was a classic case of potential — what can Jacksonville get out of a still developing player — over proven production.
Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson was viewed as a far safer choice as the top selection and had been favored by many mock drafts to be Jacksonville’s guy for months. He was the Heisman Trophy runner-up who had 14 sacks as a senior and 18.5 in his career.
But the Jaguars, and embattled general manager Trent Baalke, were drawn in by Walker’s immense upside and potential. The 6-foot-5, 272-pound Walker has played all over the defense, including mostly at tackle during his first two seasons at Georgia. His output there was decent but not otherworldly.
Walker wasn’t considered the best player on Georgia’s defense last season, his first as a starter, and was a role player as a freshman and sophomore (28 total tackles, 3.5 sacks combined) while playing mostly inside on the inside.
Walker shook things up with a spectacular performance at the NFL scouting combine, including a blistering 4.51 time in the 40-yard dash. His work in drills like the short shuttle and three-cone ranged from the 85th to 94th percentile among all participants.
On the Bulldogs’ national champion team last season, Walker shed weight, dropping from 290 to 275 pounds and was a far greater force (37 total tackles, team-best 36 QB hurries, 6 sacks) than he was when he was tethered to just the line.
Some will be put off because Walker played on an excellent defense and wasn’t even the best player on that unit. Others may appreciate the untapped potential and a new Jacksonville coaching staff’s ability to unlock it.
While Walker’s rise in the draft process has been exceptional, he was far from an unknown in high school.
Walker arrived at Georgia in the Class of 2019 out of Upson-Lee High School in Thomaston as a major national recruit. Walker was a four-star by Rivals (34th overall) and ESPN (46th in the country), and a five-star by 247 Sports Composite (22nd overall).
The Travon Walker bio
A glance at some notable things in the life of Travon Walker, the edge rusher who the Jaguars selected No. 1 overall in Thursday night’s NFL draft.
Where’s he from
Thomaston, Ga.
His name
Travon is actually his middle name. Yury is his first name.
How old is he
21
Where he played in high school
Upson-Lee.
Notable in high school
Often played at middle LB, he had 40 tackles, 8 sacks as a senior in 2018. He had 4 TD catches as a tight end and rushed for 4 TDs. … In basketball, he played center and averaged 16 points and 12 rebounds per game. Walker averaged 11.7 ppg and 10.8 rpg over his four-year career. He helped lead Upson-Lee to back-to-back state titles in 2016-17, a period where his team won 75 consecutive games.
He did what?
Walker grew up playing the trombone, telling GeorgiaDogs.com in an interview that he learned to read music when was in the band and started playing the trombone because he thought it would be an easy class to take.
At Georgia
Walker was a one-year starter (2021).
He played all over the defense. According to the NFL Network, Walker logged 381 snaps at defensive end, 105 at tackle, 98 at linebacker, 11 at nose guard and one at cornerback.
His pass-rush win rate in one-on-one situations in 2021 was 12%, according to Pro Football Focus. For comparison, Aidan Hutchinson’s was 31%.