Christian Kirk and 4 Jaguars whose time in Jacksonville is coming to an end

The Jacksonville Jaguars will most likely be making wholesome changes to the coaching staff and the roster regardless of how their season end. Doug Pederson will try to finish strong and make a case to stay beyond 2024. However, the Jags should clean house, and once they dismiss their head coach and general manager, they'll need to turn their attention to several position groups in need of help.

Make no mistake, Jacksonville has several foundational pieces in place. Whether it's Trevor Lawrence, and Brian Thomas Jr. on offense or cornerback Tyson Campbell, and Josh Hines-Allen on defense, the Jags have lots of talent on both sides of the ball... but not nearly enough to win many football games.

Part of it stems from the fact that the team's brass expected a handful of players to step up in 2024, but they instead came up short. In particular, these five have failed to have an impact and could be playing their last season in Jacksonville.

Christian Kirk, wide receiver

There's no denying Christian Kirk was an integral piece of the Jacksonville offense and one of Trevor Lawrence's most trusted targets the past two years. On the other hand, he's suffered season-ending injuries in consecutive years. In 2024, it was a collarbone injury, and he's slated to make $24.3 million in 2025.

The Jags could release Kirk and free up $10.7 million in space with $13 million in dead money. Barring a pay cut, this looks like a reasonable scenario when you take into account that they were playing to trade him to the Pittsburgh Steelers before he got hurt.

Ronald Darby, cornerback

The Jaguars released Darious Williams in a cap-saving move earlier this year. This makes sense when you consider that they got nearly $11 million in space. They then proceeded to sign veteran Ronald Darby to replace him.

At the move looked good on paper. After all, Darby had been dependable throughout his career and he was cheaper than Williams. However, Jacksonville got what they paid for: A downgrade in the secondary. The former Florida State Seminole has struggled this season and is one of the reasons the secondary is one of the worst in the league.

Like Christian Kirk, Darby could be a cap casualty next year. Releasing him would create $2.250 million in space with a reasonable $2.7 million in dead money.

Mac Jones, quarterback

When the Jaguars traded for Mac Jones, it looked like they had acquired premium insurance for Trevor Lawrence in case he missed time. It hasn't turned out that way.

Jones, a first-round pick in 2021, has struggled in relief of Lawrence, throwing three interceptions and mustering just 13 points on offense. Looking back, it's fair to say that his Pro Bowl nod as a rookie was an outlier and his last two underwhelming seasons with the New England Patriots are the norm.

Given that Jones is set to become a free agent in 2025, the Jaguars will need to shop around for another backup or take one in the draft.

D'Ernest Johnson, running back

The Jaguars have a talented running back tandem in Travis Etienne and Tank Bigsby. The latter has shown out in 2024, which has led to speculation about the former's future. For the sake of the argument, let's say both stay in Jacksonville next year. The same cannot be said about D'Ernest Johnson.

While Johnson has been a solid No. 3, he hasn't particularly stood out. He's averaged less than 4.0 yards per carry in his two seasons with the Jaguars, and he's making a bit over $1.1 million. The team could be better off letting him walk in 2025 and find a young running back prospect in the draft. This is a reasonable course of action when you consider that Jacksonville will have no shortage of picks next year.

Andre Cisco, safety

Having logged seven interceptions and 15 passes defensed the past two years, safety Andre Cisco seemed like an ascending star ahead of 2024. However, he's been underwhelming. Granted, he hasn't been dreadful, but he hasn't been great either, which was the expectation.

Cisco is now in a contract year and would have benefitted from posting a breakout season. Instead, he's on track to hit the open market, and he probably won't get a contract like the one Kyle Dugger or Antoine Winfield Jr. signed this past offseason.

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