The Jacksonville Jaguars made it clear in the offseason that nobody was safe when they cut ties with long-time offensive mainstays Christian Kirk and Evan Engram. More recently, they made the not-so-shocking decision to release wide receiver Gabe Davis despite the fact that his departure left a jarring $20 million in dead money. Regardless of whether you saw it coming, that could be a sign that the Jags aren't done parting ways with costly veterans before the start of the 2025 season.
Following Davis' release, the Jags will have around $13.5 million in space. When you take into account that they've yet to sign their rookie class — it will take up around $10 million — they can no longer take on big dead money hits. However, they can either move on from players who will create space or designate them as post-June 1 cuts, which would, in turn, split the hit in two and push some of the dead money to 2025.
This begs the question, who could land on the chopping block next? There are a handful of obvious candidates, but the answer is abundantly clear: Offensive lineman Ezra Cleveland.
Why Ezra Cleveland isn't safe after the Jaguars released Gabe Davis
The Jaguars had a glaring hole at left guard in 2023. Ben Bartch was expected to recover from a knee injury and start. However, they didn't have a backup plan in case he didn't make a full recovery. They had plenty of time to add insurance, but they didn't.
Once it became clear that Bartch wasn't 100 percent, then-general manager Trent Baalke traded for Ezra Cleveland at the deadline. Unfortunately, Cleveland dealt with a nagging foot injury that hampered his availability throughout the remainder of the season.
To justify the decision to trade Cleveland, Baalke doubled down and gave him a three-year deal worth $24 million. So far, the Jags haven't gotten a return on their investment. The former Boise State Bronco wasn't dreadful last season, but his production didn't warrant the salary he was making. Couple that with the fact that the team's brass drafted Wyatt Milum and Jonah Monheim, and the writing could be on the wall for Cleveland.
Releasing him now would accelerate a cap charge of $6 million and leave $11 million in dead money. That's not feasible, but the Jags could give Cleveland the post-June 1 designation and spread the dead money to 2025. It would leave $4.2 million in dead money and free up $1.1 million this year and push $7 million to 2026.
It wouldn't be ideal, but it would free up one roster spot. Heck, the Jags could even try to shop him around and see if a team is willing to give up a seventh-round selection for him. It wouldn't be much, but it would be better than just cutting ties and getting nothing in return.
The bottom line is that nobody is safe after the Gabe Davis release. The Jaguars want everyone to compete for their jobs, and that could make Ezra Cleveland a victim of the numbers game in the upcoming months.