The preseason is finally over, and before the games begin, there’s one last event that takes place: the deadline to get to a 53-man roster. A lot of players will be released and waived by their teams in the coming days, and with the new roster cut-down rules, there are no longer incremental cuts to get down to 53 players. Instead, on the Tuesday following the last preseason game, all teams must cut down to 53 players.

Before those roster cuts happen, I provide my 53-man roster predictions heading into the 2023 NFL season.

53-Man Roster Predictions: Offense

Quarterback – 2 Players

  • Trevor Lawrence
  • C.J. Beathard

Even with the new rule of adding a third quarterback to game-day rosters, Nathan Rourke is still a long shot to make the final 53-man roster. There’s a lot that goes into deciding whether to have a third quarterback, and the frequency in which it occurs isn’t high, leading towards there being less of a need for a third quarterback. It’s incredibly frustrating to let Nathan Rourke go after a great preseason. But the Jaguars are loaded with talent elsewhere that is a lot more challenging to let go. Trevor Lawrence and C.J. Beathard will be the only two quarterbacks on the 53-man roster.

Running Back – 3 Players (5 Total)

  • Travis Etienne Jr.
  • Tank Bigsby
  • D’Ernest Johnson

Etienne and Bigsby are two obvious inclusions, and with the play from D’Ernest Johnson throughout preseason impressing the coaches and fans, his spot was solidified as a quality third running back.

Jacksonville Jaguars RB D'Ernest Johnson (25) - Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union

Jaguars RB D’Ernest Johnson (25) – Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union

The fourth spot at running back was up for grabs, with Snoop Conner and JaMycal Hasty fighting for the last spot. But even with a solid performance in the last preseason game, Hasty loses out on the final roster spot. Hasty and Snoop Conner could return on the practice squad, but if they don’t there are plenty of solid running backs available to fill in the fourth running back spot.

Leaving Hasty off was a tough call, but between the tough battles at other positions and the devaluation of the running back position, keeping only three running backs seemed like the best call to create this 53-man roster prediction.

Tight End – 4 Players (9 Total)

  • Evan Engram
  • Brenton Strange
  • Luke Farrell
  • Garrett Prince

Engram, Strange, and Farrell are easy additions to the 53-man roster. Prince, on the other hand, might be on the boundary, but his special teams ability should be enough to warrant him making the 53-man roster.

Wide Receiver – 7 Players (16 Total)

  • Calvin Ridley
  • Christian Kirk
  • Zay Jones
  • Jamal Agnew
  • Tim Jones
  • Parker Washington
  • Seth Williams

With the addition of a third quarterback and a fourth tight end, along with a fourth running back, the seventh receiver spot doesn’t stay open. Tim Jones has shown enough special teams skill to earn a roster spot, and Parker Washington is someone the Jaguars can’t afford to cut with his upside.

Jacksonville Jaguars WR Elijah Cooks (84) - Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union

Jaguars WR Elijah Cooks (84) – Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union

There are a few players who are on the fringe of the final 53-man roster, and the two that stand out are Elijah Cooks and Seth Williams. Between the two, Williams and Cooks have shown quality receiving prowess during the preseason. Seth Williams and Elijah Cooks have shown impressive receiving skills. Both have seven receptions in the preseason, while Cooks has 146 yards and Seth Williams has 109 yards.

But, when it comes to adding a seventh receiver, they need to provide special teams value. Seth Williams just beats out Cooks in this scenario. While Cooks had larger yardage, his special teams skills didn’t show out as well as Williams, but his receiving skills will warrant attention on waivers.

Offensive Line – 9 Players (25 Total)

There’s a solid group of offensive linemen present for the Jaguars to choose from when it comes to those last few roster spots. Shatley has been trending up with his health, while Cooper Hodges seems more likely to make the 53-man roster thanks to improved health. Cole Van Lanen has had a good preseason and might have the edge over Wells overall, but with Hodges possibly going on IR once he makes the 53-man roster, Cole Van Lanen could return as a backup while Hodges and Robinson are out for injury and suspension, respectively.

53-Man Roster Predictions: Defense

Defensive Line – 6 Players (31 Total)

  • DaVon Hamilton
  • Roy Robertson-Harris
  • Adam Gotsis
  • Tyler Lacy
  • Folorunso Fatukasi
  • Jeremiah Ledbetter
  • Dawuane Smoot – Won’t count against the 53-man roster while he is on the PUP list.

This position group is in a weird spot, with Hamilton being injured and Dawuane Smoot on the PUP list. Outside of the two injuries causing some hindrance to this group, the rest of the group are players I can confidently add to my 53-man roster prediction.

Linebacker – 8 Players (39 Total)

  • Josh Allen
  • Yasir Abdullah
  • Travon Walker
  • K’Lavon Chaisson
  • Foyesade Oluokun
  • Shaquille Quarterman
  • Devin Lloyd
  • Chad Muma

A very deep group at linebacker, and there’s a lot to be excited about with this group heading into the 2023 season. However, the depth causes some tough cuts, and there seem to be a few players on the cusp who will just miss out.

The first 7 linebackers are fairly confident additions to this 53-man roster prediction, with Jordan Smith, Caleb Johnson, and Shaquille Quarterman fighting for that last spot. The injury to Ventrell Miller, who would’ve made that last spot, puts Quarterman and Johnson against each other for that last spot, with Jordan Smith just missing out (barring a trade of K’Lavon Chaisson).

While the two players are incredibly close to one another, I give the slight edge to Shaquille Quarterman, who would stay with the Jaguars for his third NFL season. Quarterman and Johnson are close, and it could go either way, but the familiarity and the injury to Miller set up Shaquille Quarterman with the last spot at linebacker.

The Ventrell Miller injury is incredibly tough, and for the rookie to miss the entirety of his rookie season with an Achilles injury is devastating. He should return in 2024, and if he showed what he did in the preseason, he will most assuredly make the roster.

One of the more polarizing players of this group is K’Lavon Chaisson, and whether he remains with the Jaguars heading into 2023. There’s a real possibility that the former first-rounder is shipped off to another team. But, in the meantime, for my 53-man roster predictions, I think putting Chaisson on another team might be premature, and with the Jaguars already being thin at pass rusher, there’s a good chance they hope Chaisson can put together a solid season in 2023.

Cornerback – 6 Players (45 Total)

  • Tyson Campbell
  • Darious Williams
  • Tre Herndon
  • Christian Braswell
  • Gregory Junior
  • Erick Hallett
Jacksonville Jaguars CB Erick Hallett (40) - Kam Nedd/Jacksonville Jaguars 53-man roster predictions

Jaguars CB Erick Hallett (40) – Kam Nedd/Jacksonville Jaguars

The cornerback room is an intriguing one, with a blend of rookies and veterans vying for the 53-man roster. But, there’s a lot of upside with the rookies Christian Braswell and Erick Hallett, so Chris Claybrooks and Montaric Brown just miss the cut, though both players would probably be welcomed back to the practice squad if possible.

Safety – 5 Players (50 Total)

  • Rayshawn Jenkins
  • Andre Cisco
  • Andrew Wingard
  • Antonio Johnson
  • Daniel Thomas

The safety room is incredibly underrated, and with Johnson doing enough to make the roster, according to Doug Pederson, and Daniel Thomas having high-quality special teams play, the backup safeties are easy choices to make the final 53-man roster.

Special Teams – 3 Players (53 Total)

  • Brandon McManus
  • Logan Cooke
  • Ross Matiscik

The final three players for this 53-man roster prediction are the typical special teamers, with the only question being if Ross Matiscik will be healthy come week one. Regardless, he will still make the roster.

After a lot of difficult cuts and some potential roster moves to free up some roster space, the Jaguars are well set up with depth at a lot of positions and have what could be the best roster in franchise history from top to bottom.