Can K'Lavon Chaisson become first member of Jaguars to win NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year?

The Jacksonville Jaguars' first NFL season was in 1995, and the franchise still hasn't had a player win Defensive Rookie of the Year. Might that change in 2020? Former LSU outside linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson is +2500 on the William Hill moneyline odds.

Jacksonville had two first-round picks in this year's NFL Draft and took Chiasson with the second of those at No. 20 overall. That pick was part of the payment the Los Angeles Rams sent the Jaguars in the trade for Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey in October of last year. The Jags also got a 2021 first-rounder and fourth-rounder next year.

On the CBS Sports Big Board, Chaisson was ranked as the No. 2 edge player in the class behind Ohio State's Chase Young, who went No. 2 overall to Washington and is the clear-cut +300 favorite on this prop at William Hill. Chaisson was also ranked as the No. 13 overall player, so the Jags might have gotten a steal at No. 20.

The 6-foot-3, 255-pounder had 60 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss (second in the SEC) and 6.5 sacks last season for the national champion Tigers. He was named first-team All-SEC by the league's coaches. Chaisson had missed all but one game of the 2018 season with a torn ACL. He's clearly a smart guy as a three-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll.

"He can play that [strongside] linebacker position in base downs and he can rush the quarterback. He can rush the quarterback from a two-point stance, and you could argue whether he's a better rusher out of a three-point stance," general manager Dave Caldwell said of Chaisson, who called himself the most versatile player in the draft.

While Chaisson projects as the starting strongside linebacker, he also likely will put his hand down at the line of scrimmage at times. He will play opposite excellent young defensive end Josh Allen. He got a vote for Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2019, finishing with a team-best 10.5 sacks. 

Chaisson's NFL debut should be Sept. 13 at home vs. Indianapolis, which is -6.5 on the NFL odds. 

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