It's no secret that the Jacksonville Jaguars need to upgrade their pass rush if they want to make it past Wild Card Weekend next postseason, never mind make the playoffs in the first place.
Jacksonville doesn't have any interior pass rush threats to speak other than aging veteran Arik Armstead. There also isn't a lot of depth at defensive end behind Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker, who's entering the last year of his rookie contract.
Walker was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, and after two straight double-digit sack seasons, he had just 3.5 in 2025. The Jags have a huge decision to make on his future.
Trey Hendrickson is the obvious go-to free agent on the edge. However, he's out of Jacksonville's price range, especially since the team is over $13 million in the 2026 salary cap red right now. But one free agent pass rusher pops out as a phenomenal fit for the Jags at a far better bargain.
Dre'Mont Jones is the versatile chess piece the Jags need in the defensive trenches
Similar to John Franklin-Myers, who stands to be handsomely paid like Hendrickson, Dre'Mont Jones has the ability to line up inside at tackle or play on the edge. The latter role is what he's leaned into the last two seasons. Nevertheless, Jones can be a productive 4i or 3-technique when called upon at 6'3", 281 pounds.
Spotrac's projections have Jones' market value at $10.3 million per season. The Athletic forecasts the 29-year-old's free-agent deal at $28.5 million over three years, or an average annual value of $9.5 million. Quite different from Hendrickson's $25.4 million AAV estimate and three-year, $99 million contract prediction.
That's quite a low price for someone who just posted seven sacks and has 37.5 sacks in seven seasons. In 2025, per PFF, Jones had the 15th-most pressures (44) and tied for third in QB hits (13) in true pass sets among all defensive linemen.
Another great thing about Jones, too, is that he isn't necessarily a threat to Walker's job security, yet he's someone who can be frequently deployed in obvious passing situations.
The Jags haven't taken much advantage of Walker's speed-to-power prowess and how quick he is to kick him inside for pass rush subpackages. Jones' presence on the edge would change that for sure — and he can, of course, be the inside guy if Walker would rather stay on the edge.
In the event that Walker gets traded away, Jones is a fully capable starter. Otherwise, he's about as valuable of a third defensive end as Jacksonville could hope to find on the open market.
Oh, and Jaguars GM James Gladstone worked in the Rams' front office before landing in Duval. He saw Jones' transition from tackle to fuller-time edge as a member of the Seattle Seahawks for two years.
It's all adding up, ain't it? Dre'Mont Jones sure could help out a Jacksonville pass rush that produced the sixth-fewest sacks in the league last season, couldn't he?