Before the Jacksonville Jaguars focus on what players they will target in free agency, they need to re-sign their own, which means the Jags will have to make a decision on wide receiver DJ Chark Jr.
Chark has been the one lone deep threat over the last few years and should return to Jacksonville. However, he’s coming off a fractured ankle, which could complicate negotiations. Is he looking for a one-year contract to rehabilitate his stock? Or would he prefer the security a long-term deal provides?
Either way, the Jaguars may not meet Chark’s salary demands for a couple reasons. There’s a new coaching staff in place, one that didn’t draft him, and his injury may make the front office hesitate to give him a multi-year agreement. If the Jags can’t strike a deal with the 2018 second-round pick, here are five potential landing spots for him.
No. 1 landing spot for Jaguars WR DJ Chark – Baltimore Ravens.
Lamar Jackson was the league’s MVP in 2019 but hasn’t been able to maintain that level of play over the last two seasons. While he can certainly play better, the Baltimore Ravens also need to do their part and give him more weapons.
Wide receiver Marquise Brown and tight end Mark Andrews are good but the Baltimore Ravens need more firepower if they want to keep up with the rest of the AFC North and return to the postseason after not qualifying in 2021. The Cincinnati Bengals are showing the importance of having a playmaker at wide receiver and while DJ Chark is not at the level of Ja’Marr Chase, he could certainly give Baltimore’s offense a boost.
No. 2 landing spot for Jaguars WR DJ Chark – New York Jets.
There were a few similarities between the Jaguars and the New York Jets last offseason. Both teams hired a new head coach — Urban Meyer and Robert Saleh, respectively — and selected quarterbacks in the top 5 of the 2021 NFL Draft — Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson. The Jags already gave Meyer his walking papers but just like the Jets, they have one goal this offseason: Build around their young signal-callers.
Coincidentally, Jacksonville and the Jets are the two teams with the most resources in the NFL this offseason. Both clubs can sign a few big-name players in free agency and still have a chance to spare. If the Jags can’t retain DJ Chark, New York could become a potential landing spot.
The Jets will have around $44 million in cap space at their disposal, according to Spotrac. They should use some of that money to bolster their wide receiver corps. Jamison Crowder lead the Gang Green in receptions (53) last season. However, he averaged a measly 8.8 yards per catch. Their second-leading receiver, Braxton Berrios (46) wasn’t much better, getting 9.4 yards per grab.
While there’s hope 2021 second-round pick Elijah Moore can develop into a feature receiver, general manager Joe Douglas will surely be looking to add speed to the unit this offseason. Chark can provide it, and since the Jets have several roster holes to fill besides wide receiver, he would be a solid low-key addition in free agency.
No. 3 landing spot for Jaguars WR DJ Chark – Dallas Cowboys.
The Dallas Cowboys will enter the offseason on a cap crunch, meaning that they will try to trim as much fat as possible to get out of the red. Currently, they’re $21 million over the cap and wide receiver Amari Cooper and defensive end Demarcus Lawrence are seen as potential cap casualties.
Now, Cooper may not be the only wide receiver the Boys may lose this offseason. Both Cedrick Wilson and Michael Gallop are slated to become free agents (tight end Dalton Schultz too), and while Dallas might be able to retain one of them, they will most likely need to bring in to play alongside CeeDee Lamb. Chark could be an affordable alternative and one of Dallas’ best alternatives and one they can acquire on a one-year rental due to their limited cap room this offseason.
Last season, Wilson, Gallop, and Schultz combined for 191 receptions and 22 receiving touchdowns. The Cowboys will try to look for a way to recreate that production. While Lamb hauled in 79 catches for 1,102 yards with six touchdowns, opposing defenses would have no trouble game-planning for him if the Cowboys don’t get another wideout that can get deep.
The Jags could pouch one receiver from the Cowboys, so they could return the favor by luring DJ Chark to Dallas this offseason.
No. 4 landing spot for Jaguars WR DJ Chark – Kansas City Chiefs.
Who would have foreseen that the Kansas City Chiefs would lose to the Cincinnati Bengals in this year’s conference championship? The Chiefs were off to a slow start in 2021 and struggled to stop opposing offenses from scoring but once their defense tighten up, they looked like a solid bet to return to the Super Bowl for the third consecutive year. However, Cincy had other plans and defeated them in the AFC Championship.
Patrick Mahomes is wasting no time and is already in offseason mode. General manager Brett Veach must follow suit and get to work. Last offseason, he revamped the offensive line. He should turn his attention to Kansas City’s wide receiver corps this offseason. Tyreek Hill is still one of the best deep threats in the NFL and Travis Kelcy is arguably the top tight end in the league. Nevertheless, the game against the Bengals showed it wasn’t enough and need to get more weapons on offense.
Mecole Hardman made the Pro Bowl as a returner in 2019, his rookie campaign, but hasn’t truly developed into the number two wide receiver the Chiefs’ offense has sorely missed. Denard Robinson has been with the team since 2016 but has never had more than 45 receptions. You could make the case DJ Chark is better than both Hardman and Robinson and would quickly have an instant impact in Kansas City.
The Chiefs aren’t in great cap shape, as they’re set to have around $3 million in cap space. But once they get their financial books in order, they could pursue Chark.
No. 5 landing spot for Jaguars WR DJ Chark – Miami Dolphins.
The Miami Dolphins weren’t seemingly sold on quarterback Tua Tagovailoa last year. Apparently, one of the Phin’s top decision-makers wanted to take Justin Herbert, not Tua, in the 2020 NFL Draft. Also, there’s a theory making the rounds that owner Stephen Ross wanted Joe Burrow and was even willing to pay head coach Brian Flores to tank in order to secure him. Then, there was the team’s filtration with potential trading for Deshaun Watson last season. These are all reports and nothing is confirmed in the end, Tagovailoa remains as the Dolphins’ starting quarterback.
Newly hired head coach Mike McDaniel recently called the Alabama product to tell him that his job is to get the most out of him. If McDaniel wants to put Tagovailoa in a position to succeed, he will work alongside general manager Chris Grier to bolster their wide receiver corps. Rookie Jaylen Waddle led the team with 104 catches and six touchdowns in 2021 but averaged less than 10 years per grab. On the other hand, DeVante Parker had a down year, hauling in 40 receptions for 515 yards and two touchdowns.
While Waddle should improve in Year 2 and Parker needs to bounce back, the Dolphins need to re-sign tight end Mike Gesicki and add another wide receiver this offseason. That’s where Chark comes in. Miami will have the most cap space in the league and should have no trouble securing the services of the former LSU Tiger.