Jaguars better off passing on S Jayron Kearse in 2022 free agency

If the Jacksonville Jaguars choose to, they can go into a shopping spree in this year’s free agency period due to the amount of cap space they will have at their disposal. There are several positional groups that need their attention but safety isn’t one of them. Nevertheless, the Jags were recently linked to Dallas Cowboys safety Jayron Kearse in 2022.

Brad Spielberger drew up a list of best fits for defensive free agents that raised their stock last year and he sees Jacksonville as one of three potential landing spot for Kearse. Spielberger believes the safety could follow Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn to the Denver Broncos if he becomes their head coach. On the other hand, he thinks the Jags should be interested in his services. Here’s what Spielberger had to say about Kearse.

"Kearse had a breakout 2021 campaign as a full-time starter for the first time in his career, putting all the pieces together and delivering in every facet of safety play. Kearse’s 69.7 run defense grade — generally a strong suit — was his lowest, but he also recorded a 90.0 tackling grade, 79.1 pass-rush grade and 76.2 coverage grade on over 1,000 total snaps this season. Kearse accrued 11 quarterback pressures from just 39 pass-rush snaps — more pressures than in his first five seasons combined."

A seventh-round selection by the Minnesota Vikings in 2016, Kearse was mostly relegated to special teams duties through most of his two NFL seasons. Starting in 2018, he saw his playing time on defense increase steadily. The former Clemson Tiger signed with the Detroit Lions in 2020 and joined Big D last year, where he started 15 games and played 1,014 defensive snaps, both career highs. He will test the free-agency waters once again but he will now be able to cash in after having a breakout season in 2021.

The Jaguars are set at safety, don’t need Jayron Kearse in 2022.

There’s no doubt Kearse could help a team and he should have a decent market for his services in free agency. However, the Jaguars don’t need him due to the surplus they have at safety. Last season, they signed Rayshawn Jenkins in free agency. They also have Andre Cisco and Daniel Thomas on the roster. Andrew Wingard, who made 15 starts in 2021, is a restricted free agent but it won’t be cost-prohibitive to re-sign him.

Cisco played well towards the end of the season and should hold one of the Jaguars’ safety spots next season. Jenkins, who suffered a broken ankle late in the 2021 campaign could partake in a three-way competition with Thomas and Wingard for the other starting job. It doesn’t make sense financially to move on from any of these players only to accommodate Kearse.

Even if the Jaguars chose to bring Kearse, his presence could hinder the development of Cisco. Also, Kearse may not be interested in a backup role and it’s hard to justify keeping Jenkins or Thomas on the sidelines, so it may not be in the Jags’ best interest to pursue him in free agency.

The Jaguars have a rather solid (and crowded) safety room. It doesn’t make to add another player to the group. Instead, they need to turn their attention to their wide receiver corps, their tight end room, and the offensive line.