5 things Jaguars GM Trent Baalke must accomplish this offseason

No. 2 thing Jaguars must accomplish – Re-sign their own free agents.

One of the reasons the Jags will have so much cap space this offseason is that they don’t have many difference-makers currently under contract. Most of the teams that made the playoffs last year are in a cap crunch precisely because they have their cap committed to their franchise players.

The Jaguars will have a few tough choices to make this offseason and the top two are keeping left tackle Cam Robinson and wide receiver DJ Chark Jr. Neither of them are in the upper echelon of their respective position but both of them are building blocks that could contribute in the upcoming years. However, striking the right deal with them could be tricky.

Chark is coming off a season-ending ankle fracture and applying the franchise tag may not be a realistic option. A one-year, prove-it deal makes sense but he may want to test the open market in order to try to maximize his value. Robinson on the other hand could get the franchise tag for the second year in a row but the Jaguars could be better off giving him a long-term contract.

The Jaguars haven’t given a second contract to many players over the last four years and those they’ve handed out are of the one-year variety. The front office needs to buck the trend and start getting used to keeping their homegrown talent. They have enough cap space to keep both Cam Robinson and DJ Chark.