JACKSONVILLE – They stayed put and got better at the same time.
The Jaguars on Friday selected four players – two on offense, two on defense – on a busy, important Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft. By night's end, they were bigger, tougher and stronger.
Friday was a productive day – and a physical one, too.
"It was an exciting evening," Jaguars General Manager James Gladstone said.
The Jaguars, after not having a Round 1 selection Thursday, selected the following four players Friday on Day 2 of the '26 draft:
- Nate Boerkircher, tight end, Texas A&M (No. 56 overall, Round 2).
- Albert Regis, defensive tackle, Texas A&M (No. 81 overall, Round 3).
- Emmanuel Pregnon, guard, Oregon (No. 88 overall, Round 3).
- Jalen Huskey, safety, Maryland (No. 100 overall, Round 3).
"We definitely got tougher tonight," Jaguars Head Coach Liam Coen said. "The type of player, the type of person we're trying to hunt up here … attitude, toughness, mentally and physically tough."
Added Gladstone, "All these guys, they can have the talent. But the differentiator is the mindset and that's a lot of what we focused on in these decisions. As we labeled the guys we really wanted to target throughout the course of it, we ended up with four guys who fit the bill for exactly what we're hunting up.
"We feel like we were able to level up in a few different areas that going into 2026 we were really excited about addressing."
Gladstone, too, said the Jaguars considered trading up from No. 56. They instead stayed there, made the selection and did not execute a trade on either of the draft's first two days.
"We did make a couple of calls toward the early portion of the night," Gladstone said. "But nothing that obviously came to fruition."
Boerkircher (6-feet-5, 245) played 2020-2024 at Nebraska and 2025 at Texas A&M. He caught 38 career passes for 417 yards and four touchdowns, including 19 for 198 yards and three touchdowns in 2025.
Coen said he had a "vision" before the draft that the team would select Boerkircher.
"I don't remember where it was at, or what pick," Coen said. "But he was somebody we've had a lot of like for for a long time."
Gladstone said a leaguewide emphasis this offseason on tight ends factored into timing of the Boerkircher selection. The Jaguars made Boerkircher the third tight end selection in the '26 draft, with six more tight ends selected before the end of Round 3.
"That was rooted in our own internal sentiment and understanding that the trend in the NFL is that heavier tight end sets was going to be something that got prioritized," Gladstone said. "We felt certainly a heavier tight end run throughout the course of the back end of the second and into the third. Typically, that's a window where the wide receiver run is really occurring. That certainly showed itself.
"But he was the one we were hunting up. We weren't going to allow that to ever be something we missed."
Regis (6-feet-1, 295 pounds) played 2021-2025 at Texas A&M. He registered 3.5 career sacks with 11 tackles for loss, including two sacks in 2025 and three tackles for loss. He also had 10 pass breakups, nine over the last two seasons.
Coen late Friday lauded Regis' "football intelligence, the football IQ" and said there was a "a ton" of "buy in" around the Jaguars for the selection.
"Somebody who's going to play his tail off and compete, that's exactly what we were hunting up," Coen said.
"Pregnon (6-feet-4, 314 pounds) played 2025 at Oregon, 2023-2024 at Southern California and 2020-2022 at Wyoming. He was a first-team All-America selection and a first-team All-Big 10 selection in 2025 and a second-team All-Big 10 selection in 2024. He was a freshman All-America selection in 2022.
"He's the type of player who adds mass inside," Coen said.
"That's something we've been continuously evaluating – getting bigger, faster, stronger and tougher. That's something he does for us. You look at in the pass protection and in the run game, getting bigger … I like that."
Huskey (6-feet-1, 192 pounds) played 2024-2025 at Maryland and 2022-2023 at Bowling Green. He finished his collegiate career with 11 interceptions and 10 passes defensed, including four interceptions and three passes defensed in 2025.
Huskey played corner early in his collegiate career.
"We've talked about bigger personnel groupings becoming a trend," Gladstone said. "To combat that, you're getting hybrid safeties/corners and bigger bodies at the position who can help match that a little bit more effectively.
"Something we prioritize not only on the defensive back end but across the entire roster is versatility. He certainly offers that, but at the same time, his play style is one that is extremely aggressive and tough and physical. That really captured our attention and our hearts."
