The Jacksonville Jaguars have been somewhat quiet to start free agency. Sure, they re-signed cornerback Montaric Brown and linebacker Dennis Gardeck. On the other hand, the Jags let running back Travis Etienne and linebacker Devin Lloyd walk. On top of that, they were one of four teams that didn't add a player from another team on Day 1 of the legal tampering period.
Some of the lack of activity may be due to the fact that Jacksonville doesn't have much space. Just before the tampering period began, the team had just $100,000. However, the top brass is quickly getting to work on Day 2, reworking the deal of center Robert Hainsey to get much-needed cap relief.
The Jaguars freed up $4 million after restructuring Robert Hainsey's contract
Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap reported that the Jags restructured Hainsey's contract to create $4 million in space. His base salary for 2026 is now $1.25 million, and he's set to have a cap hit of $4.5 milion.
Hainsey's contract runs through 2027, but following the restructure, he now has three void years on his deal. On a related note, Jacksonville created an additional $2.7 million in space when it released tight end Johnny Mundt.
A third-round pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2021, Hainsey was their starting center until 2024, when he was benched in favor of then-rookie Graham Barton. The former Notre Dame Fighting Irish became a free agent last offseason and signed a three-year, $21 million deal with the Jags, reuniting with head coach Liam Coen, who was his offensive coordinator in 2024.
Hainsey ended up starting 15 games for Jacksonville last year, giving up three sacks and 27 total pressures.
Related: Next Jags cap casualty after Johnny Mundt is painfully obvious
What next for the Jaguars after reworking Robert Hainsey's deal?
Those $4 million the Jaguars got after reworking Robert Hainsey's deal will come in handy. The same is true for the cap relief they got after releasing Johnny Mundt. Having said that, they don't have nearly enough space to sign players in free agency. That space they just got may be just enough to cover the deals of Montaric Brown and Dennis Gardeck.
This means that if the Jaguars want to join the free-agency fun, they'll need to shade space. Fortunately, they have plenty of paths to make it happen. The team's brass could rework the contracts of Josh Hines-Allen, Arik Armstead, Foyesade Oluokun, and DaVon Hamilton. Each restructure could create $5 million or more. Jacksonville could also trade left tackle Walker Little and save $15.6 million.
Simply put, if the Jaguars truly want to acquire players in free agency, they have the means to pull it off. Of course, they probably won't want to just keep pushing money to future years, but don't be surprised if they make a move nobody saw coming. Heck, they may be gearing up to make a push for one of their dream targets.