4 overrated free agents still available Jacksonville Jaguars must avoid

3. Xavien Howard, CB, Dolphins

You have to tip your hat to Xavien Howard, who twice earned the distinction of being the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL. He first got a top-market deal in 2019 and he got another massive pay bump in 2022. Teams have no qualms about releasing players in an effort to save money. For that reason, players shouldn't be criticized for getting as much money as they can while they can.

In Howard's case, he was released two years after signing his market-setting deal. He wasn't pleased with his release and he said returning to the Miami Dolphins was unlikely. Then again, his departure made sense when you take into account that he wasn't nearly as effective as he was three or four years ago.

And that's the thing, cornerbacks age quickly but because of name recognition, they can still get a couple paydays before they hang up the cleats. Patrick Peterson has managed to hang around for a few years despite the fact that he's no longer the shutdown cornerback he was with the Arizona Cardinals. Howard is three years younger than Peterson, so he could follow a similar career path.

The Jags, for one, could use help at cornerback, but they should look at other options before considering going after Howard. They just signed Ronald Darby but he may be more of a stopgap solution rather than the long-term answer. Moreover, they need depth at the position, with Tre Herndon and Chris Claybrooks leaving in free agency.

Make no mistake, Howard is still a starting-level cornerback in the league but his potential contract demands may not be proportional to his current on-field performance.