Jaguars sign fifth-round selection safety Daniel Thomas

Announced today, the Jaguars have signed fifth-round selection, safety Daniel Thomas to a four-year rookie contract.

The Jaguars selected Thomas in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft with the idea of adding some depth into a unit which has a lot of unknown answers due to the departure of key defensive backs during the last calendar year.

With the potential to play plenty of special teams, Thomas, 5-foot-11, 209 pounds, looks to bolster the team’s coverage units while working in an ever-changing defensive backfield for the Jaguars this season and beyond.

In four years at Auburn, Thomas accumulated 199 tackles (124 solos), nine tackles for loss and five interceptions over 43 career games.

Following the draft, Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell spoke about what it would take for Thomas to eventually earn the starting job, and if he had the ability to do so down the line.

“At some point,” Caldwell said of Thomas’ prospects to start. “I think it’s important for these guys to learn the scheme, learn the defense and obviously it’s going to be hard for these guys to challenge right away because they’re probably likely not going to have OTA’s so they will have to come into training camp and go from there. They will be a little bit behind, but we like his skillset, we think he’s a guy that has starter traits to the rest of it is really up to him.”

The Jaguars, and all teams around the NFL, staggered their signings, partially due to travel limitations when dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. With rookies expected to report on July 21st, the signings have become more common.