Cameron Sutton named Jacksonville Jaguars realistic dream signing in NFL Free Agency

The Jacksonville Jaguars will need to replenish their cornerback room after moving on from Shaquill Griffin. They could address the position with the 24th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft but if they don’t want to wait or would rather allocate the selection to another unit, they could then pursue a cornerback in the open market. And Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report thinks Cameron Sutton would be a solid fit.

Ballentine recently identify every NFL team’s dream target in free agency and believes the Jaguars would be an ideal destination for Sutton. He argues that they could sign Sutton with the cap space they acquired when they released Griffin.

"They would be smart to take that money directly to Cameron Sutton and apply it towards a contract for the corner. Sutton has spent the first six years of his career playing in the Steelers’ secondary, first as a slot defender before moving to the outside over the last two seasons. He’s proved he’s capable of being a high-end CB2."

Ballentine then points out that Sutton gave up a solid 47.9 percent completion rate and a passer rating of 65.3. A third-round pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2017 NFL Draft, the former Tennessee Vol will be one of the top cornerbacks potentially available in the open market.

This isn’t the first time Sutton has been brought up as a dream target for the Jaguars though. The Black & Teal previously talked about why it would make sense for Jacksonville to make a run for him in free agency. He would give the Jags a slot corner that could move to the boundaries in case either Tyson Campbell or Darious Williams had to miss time. Moreover, he would be a solid alternative to James Bradberry, who wants to join a contender but “won’t play for cheap“.

The Jacksonville Jaguars might have a hard time signing Cameron Sutton

Sutton signed a two-year deal worth $9 million in 2021 but should get a pay bump after showing the capability to line up either inside or outside. Brad Spielberger of Pro Football Focus projects him to get a three-year, $25.5 million contract, which is considerably less money than what Bradberry will probably get.

The issue is that even though Sutton will be more affordable than Bradberry, the Jaguar might not have enough cap space to sign him. Even after releasing Griffin, they found themselves in a cap crunch because they just applied the franchise tag on Evan Engram and activated wide receiver Calvin Ridley following his reinstatement.

Maybe the team’s brass could keep restructuring a few contracts to fit Sutton in this year’s budget. But the problem of pushing cap money into future years will limit Jacksonville’s ability to pay players and potentially add free agents next offseason.

The most likely path to address the need at corner is that the Jacksonville Jaguars will add one — maybe two — in the 2023 NFL Draft but there’s no doubt Sutton would give them a dynamic cornerback trio.