The Jacksonville Jaguars did a pretty good job of replenishing their roster in free agency, adding players that should go on to have key roles. Moreover, they will have a chance to continue hoarding talent in the 2022 NFL Draft.
The Jaguars should be able to fill their remaining holes in the draft but if they want to, they could still sign a few free agents. They currently have around $6.8 million in cap space and still need to sign their rookie class. However, with some creative accounting, they could acquire any of these four players.
No. 1 free agent the Jaguars can still sign – Billy Price, OG.
Brandon Scherff, who signed a three-year deal worth $49.5 million, will play right guard in Jacksonville. This doesn’t come as a surprise though, as that’s where he’s lined up throughout most of his career. There’s no doubt the Jags’ offensive line will get a boost thanks to his addition but the team’s brass needs to fill the void left by Andrew Norwell’s departure in free agency.
Ben Bartch will most likely get the chance to replace Norwell but the Jags could bring in some competition to ensure they have the best player available at left guard. Billy Price hasn’t found a team yet and he could contribute right out of the gate, having made 15 starts for the New York Giants last season.
A former first-round pick, Price hasn’t lived up to expectations in his young career but he could come to Jacksonville and compete with Bartch for the left guard job.
No. 1 free agent the Jaguars can still sign – Sony Michel, RB.
It’s a bit surprising to see Sony Michel remain available in the open market even though less accomplished running backs such as Marlon Mack have already signed this offseason. With Melvin Gordon talking to the Baltimore Ravens about a contract, Michel soon could be the best running back without a team.
A first-round pick by the New England Patriots in the 2018 NFL Draft, Michel racked up a productive 535 carries for 2,295 yards with four touchdowns in his first three NFL seasons. He was traded to the Los Angeles Rams last offseason following an injury to Cam Akers. Michel went on play all 17 games and carry the ball 208 times for 845 yards with four touchdowns. The Jaguars could use that kind of production at the running back position in 2022, especially when you take into account that Travis Etienne and James Robinson are both coming off serious injuries.
Etienne sustained a Lisfranc injury last preseason and had to sit out his rookie campaign. Doug Pederson recently said that the former Clemson Tiger should be back for offseason activities but Robinson is still recovering from a torn ACL he suffered near the end of the 2021 season. It might be a while before he can resume football activities and he may not be ready for the start of the 2022 campaign, so the team’s brass should err on the side of caution and add another running back. Michel would most likely be the best option.
No. 2 free agent the Jaguars can still sign – J.C. Tretter, C.
After spending eight years in the gridiron, all of them with the Jaguars, center Brandon Linder decided to call it quits. But do you blame him? Injuries were taking a toll on him and he wanted to spend more time with his family. Keep in mind that he hadn’t hung up his cleats, Jacksonville would have released him and it’s easy to see why. The 2014 third-round pick had a cap hit of $10 million in 2022 and had missed 28 games over the last four years. The fact that he had no guaranteed money left on his contract would have made it easy for the Jags to move on from him.
Before Linder announced his retirement, the Jaguars gave interior offensive lineman Tyler Shatley a two-year deal. He’s made 18 starts over the last two seasons and should be the first in line to take over the center position. While there’s a noticeable dropoff from Linder to Shatley, the latter has proven to be durable, and in a game in which availability is the best ability, that’s a plus.
Having said that, Shatley is not the long-term answer at center in Jacksonville and the Jaguars’ brass should explore any potential alternatives. While they could take a draft in the second or third round of this year’s draft, they could also target J.C. Tretter, who was a mainstay of the Cleveland Brown’s offensive line the past five years. In that span, the Cornell graduate started 80 games. Last season, he posted a Pro Football Focus overall grade of 78.7 and gave up just one sack.
While it may make sense for the Jags to wait until the draft to acquire a center, Tretter could come in and be a Week 1 starter.
No. 4 free agent the Jaguars can still sign – Jadeveon Clowney, DE.
The Jaguars currently have the first overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. Even though general manager Trent Baalke said at the NFL Scouting Combine that the team was willing to listen to offers, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media recently said that there hasn’t been much interest from other clubs, meaning that the Jags will most likely keep the selection.
Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson is the favorite to go No. 1 overall but if (and it’s a big if) the Jaguars end up throwing a curveball at everyone and take either Alabama’s Evan Neal or North Carolina State’s Ikem Ekwou, they would be in need of a pass rusher. That’s where former Cleveland Browns defensive end Jadeveon Clowney comes in.
Clowney signed a one-year deal with the Brows last season and went on to make 14 starts and log nine sacks. While the Jags would be better off taking Hutchinson with the top pick in the draft, Clowney would give their pass rush a boost and would allow them to take either Neal or Ekwonu. His deal with Cleveland was worth $8 million, so he could be looking for that or a better amount this time around. While Jacksonville currently has a budget crunch, they could restructure a few contracts in order to make space for Clowney.
Again, this would only be feasible if the Jaguars opt not to draft Hutchinson. Otherwise, Clowney would be an unnecessary luxury.