With the 119th pick in the 2026 NFL draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars traded up to select Duke defensive end Wesley Williams.
Here is a full breakdown with everything you need to know.
Profile
- Height: 6-036
- Weight: 256
- Age: 21
Quick breakdown
Williams has been a productive pass rusher the last two seasons, totaling 43 pressures in 2024 and 46 pressures in 2025, along with 13 total sacks. He was also one of PFF’s highest graded run defenders at the defensive end position. Out of 100 eligible defensive ends last season, Williams ranked 28th in total pressures and 46th in pass rush win rate.
Wesley Williams’ athletic profile
Wesley Williams is a DE prospect in the 2026 draft class. He scored a 7.49 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 564 out of 2239 DE from 1987 to 2026.https://t.co/KWQPdGvNVIpic.twitter.com/sRc93U4Fcn
— RAS.football (@MathBomb) April 4, 2026
Scouting report on Wesley Williams
“Williams plays every snap with a white-hot motor and intensity that opponents found hard to match in 2025. He’s a natural knee bender, using his leverage to blow up blocks and dart into gaps to disrupt play development in the run game. However, he’s hindered by a lack of length and explosiveness that will make it much tougher for him to create pressure as a pro. His sack production was bolstered by secondary rush effort, so it would make sense to slide him inside on passing downs. Rushing from the interior would allow him to use his cross-chop and edge-to-edge movements against guards instead of tackles. Overall, Williams projects as a rotational base end.” – Lance Zierlein, NFL.com
They said it
GM James Gladstone: “I mean, that dude gets after it. He’s got the makeup that aligns with everything that we covet. And the fact that he’s able to disrupt both the run and the pass is really a helpful piece to our cause because we don’t want to be too one-dimensional defensively, and in particular we want to stop the run, and knowing that he can do his part to disrupt while at the same time maintain fundamentals and techniques.”
Wesley Williams’ fit with the Jaguars
He will have the opportunity to earn snaps as one of the top options behind Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker. His well-rounded skill set can make Williams a three-down defender. Williams will be competing with Zach Durfee, BJ Green, and Danny Striggow for that playing time. We could also see Williams on special teams as well.
Wesley Williams’ highlights
This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: 2026 NFL draft: Full breakdown of new Jaguars’ DE Wesley Williams