There’s no doubt that this upcoming offseason will be one of the most crucial in recent memory for the Jacksonville Jaguars. After firing former Head Coach Urban Meyer, who notched a 2-11 record, the team needs to nail their next Head Coaching Hire. In addition to this, the club will also need to decide who they should resign during the Free Agency period this offseason. Adding as much talent to both sides of the ball will be crucial in getting Jacksonville back into the playoffs. The Jaguars are projected to have $70.2 million in Salary Cap Space (Third-Most in the NFL) to spend in a talented Free Agency class. With this being said, here are all of Jacksonville’s most relevant Free Agents they can choose to re-sign this offseason.
Left Tackle Cam Robinson
As a former second-round pick by Jacksonville in the 2017 Draft, Robinson has produced mixed results so far in Duval. Prior to this season, Robinson’s future with Jacksonville was in question, as Robinson has recorded more than 30 blown blocks and has committed five or more penalties in every season except 2018 (played only two games). Robinson’s struggles with penalties has been a common occurrence; he has committed 31 penalties, which resulted in a whopping 207 yards. Fortunately for Robinson, he’s miraculously turned around his blocking struggles, as he’s become one of Jacksonville’s most reliable offensive linemen this season. In addition to starting and playing in every game except one, Robinson has protected Trevor Lawrence’s blindside well, allowing just one sack all season. With Pro Football Focus ranking Jacksonville’s Offensive Line as the NFL’s ninth-worst, it’s crucial that the Jaguars retain Robinson in Free Agency.
Cornerback Tre Herndon
Despite the massive overhaul of secondary help by the Jaguars in Free Agency and the Draft, their secondary has remained among the NFL’s worst, in large part to Herndon. A former Undrafted Free Agent out of Vanderbilt, Herndon was signed by Jacksonville to help fill the void at CB after trading Jalen Ramsey to Los Angeles. While Herndon has shown flashes, injuries and inconsistent play has made him expendable. Herndon has notched just 11 Solo Tackles while giving up 18 receptions so far this season, earning him a 30.6 Overall Grade by PFF. The Jaguars have seem to lost all faith in Herndon, as they favor playing Rudy Ford in the Nickel, which is Herndon’s primary assignment. Jacksonville should have no business in resigning Herndon this offseason.
Kicker Matthew Wright
Despite serving as the number two option behind former Pro-Bowl Kicker Josh Lambo, Wright would soon get his chance to become the outright number one in Jacksonville. During Jacksonville’s game against Miami in London on October 17th, Wright helped break the Jaguars’ 20-game losing streak by converting the game-winning 53-yard Field Goal. From that point on, Wright has remained the Jaguars’ starting kicker after the release of Lambo. Up until Week 16, Wright has made 10-of 12 Extra Point Attempts and 13-of-16 Field Goal Attempts. Wright’s kicking accuracy hasn’t suffered because of long attempts, either. The former UCF graduate is 4-of-6 on Field Goal Attempts from 50 or more yards. There’s no doubt that Jacksonville should invest in retaining Wright, who’s quickly become one of the promising Kickers in the NFL.
The Best of the Rest
In addition to Robinson, Herndon, and Wright, here are some of the other Jaguars that will be looking for new contracts this offseason:
- WR Tavon Austin: Austin is on the older side of 30, but still has the deep-threat ability and explosiveness to spark any offense.
- WR/PR Jaydon Mickens: Mickens is a bridge Punt Returner to Jacksonville’s Future Punt Returner.
- TE Jacob Hollister: Hollister provides TE Depth behind Dan Arnold and has championship experience from New England’s Super Bowl comeback against Atlanta.
- TE James O’Shaughnessy: O’Shaughnessy proved to be a reliable and cheap Security Blanket for Lawrence to throw to when Dan Arnold went to Injured Reserve
- C Tyler Shatley: Shatley filled in nicely on the offensive line for when A.J. Cann and Brandon Linder went down with injuries.
- DE Adam Gotsis: Gotsis has managed two sacks and twelve tackles in 13 games, albeit in limited time.
- OLB Damien Wilson: Wilson’s play as a Pash-Rush Linebacker has yielded good results, with 94 tackles and two sacks.
- CB Nevin Lawson: Lawson is an average third CB to have behind Shaquill Griffin and Tyson Campbell.
(Featured image by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)