The Jacksonville Jaguars are off to a strong start this season, with both their offense and their defense firing on all cylinders. Heck, they look like a playoff-caliber team. Sure, the Jags need to take it one game at a time, and it's too early to crown them. However, it's hard to see them regress at some point in the year.
On the other hand, the Jags have a few roster holes, and those could hinder them in their quest for a deep playoff run. The biggest one is probably the interior defensive line. While DaVon Hamilton is a stud against the run and allows his teammates to make plays, the rest of the group hasn't been overly productive.
Arik Armstead is off to a quiet start, and Matt Dickerson is reliable but not the kind of game-wrecker opposing coordinators game-plan for. Ruke Orhorhoro is also in the mix but hasn't been as dominant as Jacksonville expected when it traded for him. The good news is that the team's brass may have a chance to add reinforcements at defensive tackle before the 2026 trade deadline, based on a recent scoop.
The Jaguars need to set their sights on trade candidate Daron Payne
Dan Graziano of ESPN drew up a list of trade candidates ahead of the deadline. He included Daron Payne, noting that he's scheduled to become a free agent in 2027, and the Washington Commanders may be open to moving him if they're out of contention.
"His contract voids at the end of the season, which will make him a free agent — unless the Commanders extend him first," Graziano wrote. "If they do that, feel free to scratch him right off this list. But if they don't, and if the Commanders aren't in the NFC East race by midseason, their 2017 first-round pick could be of interest to teams looking to fill holes along their defensive lines."
Graziano continued, "If the Commanders aren't tumbling out of contention by November, they could also be the type of team that's looking to trade a veteran player for another, potentially dealing a guy who isn't part of their future for a player they believe could be."
Payne has been the subject of trade rumors dating back to the offseason precisely because he's entering a contract year. A first-round pick of the Commanders in 2018, he has spent his whole career with Washington, appearing in 133 games with 127 starts and registering 37 sacks.
Although Payne hasn't reached the 10-sack mark since 2022, he does a good job of bringing the heat from the interior and could give the Jacksonville defensive line a noticeable boost.
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The Jaguars would address an area of need with Daron Payne
You could make the case that trading for Daron Payne or help at defensive tackle is unnecessary because the Jaguars have the top-ranked defense going into Week 4. However, they shouldn't hesitate to address the larger scale roster if they can.
Sure, Payne could turn out to be a one-year rental, and the Jags would have to take the remainder of his $16.4 million salary for 2026. That said, they have the draft capital to get a deal done. The Commanders may want a third for the grizzled defensive tackle, but general manager James Gladstone could offer a fourth and a fifth. The Jags have compensatory selections in both rounds, so they can most definitely give them up.
Heck, Jacksonville could even include Arik Armstead as part of a trade instead of one of the two draft picks.
The biggest roadblock to trading for Daron Payne would be his salary, as the Jaguars would have to find creative ways to fit him in the cap. Having said that, they shouldn't pass up the chance to take care of a need they should have addressed back in the offseason.
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