Just days before free agency began, the Jacksonville Jaguars were $15.9 million over the cap. However, they've wasted no time making a handful of moves to get out of the red just in time to join the fun.
Just one day after restructuring the deals of offensive guard Patrick Mekari and safety Eric Murray, the Jags have done the same with cornerback Jourdan Lewis.
The Jaguars are cap compliant after reworking Jourdan Lewis' contract
Aaron Wilson of KCR2 reported that the Jaguars converted $7.7 million of Jourdan Lewis' salary for 2026 into a signing bonus, lowering his salary to $1.3 million and cap figure to $6.599 million. They also added voidable years to his contract from 2028 to 2030.
Not long after, Michael Ginnitti of Spotrac confirmed the news and added that the restructuring created $6.1 million in space.
Lewis was set to have a base salary of $9 million, so those $6.1 million will get them out of the red. Now, Jacksonville has around $1.0 million of space. Of course, the team's brass will need to keep making moves. The good news is that there are plenty of options.
Trading Walker Little would free up an additional $7 million. Similarly, the Jaguars could restructure Josh Hines-Allen's and Arik Armstead's contracts to free up around $17 million. They could also release offensive lineman Chuma Edoga and tight end Hunter Long to create $ 4 million more.
Once general manager James Gladstone creates enough space, the Jags can begin to make moves.
The Jaguars can now re-sign their own players and be active in free agency
For the sake of the argument, let's say the Jaguars manage to get around $30 million in space. That's not much, but it's more than enough to make a few signings. Of course, they need to start with their own players.
Running back Travis Etienne, cornerback Montaric Brown, and linebacker Devin Lloyd are Jacksonville's top pending free agents. The front office could lock up at least one and possibly two of them. Cornerback Greg Newsome and linebacker Dennis Gardeck could also earn consideration.
Once the Jags decide which players they'll re-sign, they can turn to free agency to address the larger scale roster. Cornerback (if Brown doesn't return), the pass rush, and defensive tackle are the most pressing needs. Adding reinforcements at linebacker if Lloyd walks. Similarly, it would be a good idea to bring in a running back if Jacksonville moves on from Etienne.
If the Jaguars want to sign a defensive tackle, John Franklin-Myers will be the best of the bunch. Moreover, he would be an enticing option because of his ties to James Gladstone. Conversely, free agency will have plenty of intriguing options to bolster the pass rush. Jacksonville could pursue Trey Hendrickson and land him with some creative accounting, but K'Lavon Chaisson and Arnold Ebiketie will be more affordable options.
On the other hand, the Jags could sign Nakobe Dean or reunite Quay Walker with defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile if Lloyd leaves. Regarding the running back position, Emmanuel Wilson or Sean Tucker, who's previously played for head coach Liam Coen, made sense.
The bottom line is that the Jaguars are getting ready to be active in free agency, and it will be interesting to see what path they'll take.