Jahlani Tavai

LB·

Jacksonville Jaguars

Tier 8Round 2, pick 43 in 2019

Updated November 12, 2026

71.8

Model Score

Down from 79.9 last year

Trade value ·a 6th

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Jahlani Tavai is an LB for the Jacksonville Jaguars on a deal paying $1.4M a year through 2026, a $1.1M cap hit in 2026 (updated November 12, 2026).

Model Score by season

Down 8.1 from last season.

How good he is at what he is supposed to be doing, out of 100. Not a projection of what he will do next, and not a read on his contract. Median is about 70, and a 95 is rare. How it is built →

STM Take

A veteran linebacker sliding toward swing depth.

The case for

2022 tier 3 (#23) STTM peak plus the 2023 tier 4 (#25) finish confirms structural top-25 LB ceiling at peak.
Hawaii Mountain West 2nd-round origin plus seven years of NFL survival gives him real veteran market value.

The worry

Two-year regression from tier 4 (#25) in 2023 to tier 8 (#78) in 2025 confirms the structural late-career decline.
Patriots' broader defensive identity transition plus the QB rebuild compresses the structural support around Tavai.

What to watch: Whether Tavai holds tier 7 or better in 2026 with the Patriots or whether the role compresses to swing depth.

Full take and bio

2022 tier 3 (#23) STTM peak plus 2023 tier 4 (#25) finish puts Tavai in the structural mid-prime class, but the 2024-2025 decline confirms the structural late-career compression. The Hawaii Mountain West 2nd-round origin plus seven years of NFL development give him real journeyman veteran value. The 2026 question is whether Tavai holds tier 7 or better or whether the role compresses to swing depth.

Tavai came out of Hawaii as the Detroit Lions' 2nd-round pick (43rd overall) in 2019 and bounced through the Lions before signing with the New England Patriots in 2022. His STTM career runs tier 8 (#63) in 2020, tier 3 (#23) in 2022 peak, tier 4 (#25) in 2023, tier 7 (#53) in 2024, and tier 8 (#78) in 2025.

Comps

Coming out: Nick Vigil, Ben Gedeon.

Of his 20 closest coming out: 0 stars, 2 starters, 10 backups, 8 didn't stick.

Jahlani Tavai Injury StatusNot listed

Jahlani Tavai is not on the injury report as of Nov 11. Source: the official NFL injury report, refreshed daily.

Draft & College

Round 2, pick 43 to the Detroit Lions in 2019, out of Hawai'i (Mountain West). He went well ahead of consensus.

Taken#43

Consensus board113th

Our college model#36 LB

In college, 2016-2018, 40 games: 334 tackles, 36 TFL, 14.5 sacks, 2 INT. (partial record)

What this pick usually becomes. Of the 320 players taken as a second-rounder between 2012 and 2021, 63% earned a second contract and 57% became starters. The median one started 44 career games.