When the Jacksonville Jaguars shot up from No. 26 to No. 8 in the first round of the 2008 draft in order to land defensive end Derrick Harvey, an obvious question arose.

Why didn’t the Jags simply do the same deal with the Chiefs for Jared Allen?

To get Allen, the Vikings invested a first-round pick and two third-rounders.  They also flip-flopped picks with the Chiefs in round six, a drop of five spots.

To get Harvey, the Jags invested a first-round pick and two third-rounders.  And a fourth-rounder.

Under either the official “old” trade chart or the unofficial “new” trade chart, the Vikings gave up more total points, since the Vikings surrendered the No. 17 overall pick in round one and the Jags sent to Baltimore the No. 26 selection. 

Based on the old chart, the Vikings sent 1,357 points to the Chiefs, and the Jags gave 1,127 to the Ravens.  Under the new chart, the Vikings gave 1,447 and the Jags gave up 1,247.

The Vikings also paid Allen a contract on par with the No. 1 overall selection, and the Jags will invest far less money in Harvey.

But here’s the difference:  Allen has shown that he can play at a very high level in the NFL.  Harvey has shown nothing but potential.  Setting aside for now the question of whether Allen can avoid the demons that caused him to drink then drive in the past, Allen presents the lower risk from a football standpoint.

Plus, Allen can hit the ground sprinting in his first year with the Vikings.  For the Jags, who are hoping to topple the Colts atop the AFC South, they’ll need an instant impact from Harvey to match what Allen can do, akin to what the Panthers got from Julius Peppers in 2002 and the Titans from Jevon Kearse in 1999.