5 prominent Jacksonville Jaguars players who might not be back next year

The Jacksonville Jaguars did a good job of keeping most of the core that made it possible to earn a playoff berth and win a division title last year . However, it will be considerably more difficult to repeat the feat in 2023, when many of their star players are set to hit the open market.

While the Jags could end up locking up those players, there's an equal chance they could walk in free agency next offseason. So who could potentially leave in 2024? Here are five candidates.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars player who could leave in 2024: Jamal Agnew, KR

You will be hard-pressed to find many positives from Urban Meyer's stint as the head coach of the Jaguars but there are a few. And one of them was putting an emphasis on special teams. Although he went overboard when he reportedly kicked Josh Lambo to incentivize him to play better, he recognized the value of bringing in a return specialist.

Right off the bat, Agnew showed his worth, taking a missed field goal and later kickoff return to the house. The former San Diego Torero proved valuable on offense, breaking off a 66-yard touchdown run. Unfortunately, a hip injury cut his 2021 short but he bounced back last year and once again played a key role on both offense and special teams, tallying 1,025 all-purpose yards. On a side note, here's one of his returns from 2021. Enjoy:

The Jaguars could have freed up $4.71 million in cap space with $1.16 million in dead money if they had moved on from Agnew in the offseason but it looks like they plan to keep him around for at least one more year. Having said that, the California native is entering a lame-duck year and it's fair to wonder if the team's brass is willing to spend a premium on a return specialist, regardless of how good he is.

The Jags could end up striking a multi-year deal with Agnew in the upcoming months but there's an equal chance he will walk next season.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars player who could leave in 2024: Cam Robinson, LT

If you had told someone in 2020 that the Jaguars would give left tackle Cam Robinson a top-market deal two years later, you would have gotten a blank stare. After all, the Alabama standout had given up 40 or more total pressures in three of his four NFL seasons. The one year when he didn't allow as many pressures was in 2018, when a torn ACL limited him to just two contests.

However, the Jaguars still believed in Robinson and applied the franchise tag on him in 2021. The decision paid off as he rewarded them with his best season as a pro. Pleased with his growth both — on and off the field — Jacksonville gave him a three-year deal worth $54.5 million last offseason.

Robinson did a good job of keeping Trevor Lawrence's jersey clean and became a leader on the offensive line. However, he let his team down when he was caught violating the league's performance-enhancing policy and will serve a suspension during the regular season.

Walker Little will step in at left tackle during Robinson's absence and with Anton Harrison taking over at right tackle, Robinson might remain on the sidelines in 2023 barring injury. As of this writing, the NFL hasn't announced how long his suspension will be but he'll miss $88,888 for every contest he misses.

Robinson is set to have a massive hit of $22.75 million next year but cutting ties with him would create $17.75 million in space with $5 million in dead money. The fact the Jags will be in need of lots of room to sign other players could make Robinson a potential cap casualty.

3. Jacksonville Jaguars player who could leave in 2024: Evan Engram, TE

Players often take one-year deals because they lack better options but that wasn't tight end Evan Engram's case last offseason. Even though the Jaguars' brass made a push for a long-term deal, the former Ole Miss Rebel chose to bet on himself, which was a smart move in retrospect.

Engram set career highs for catches and receiving yards. He also broke several team records, many of them previously held by Kyle Brady. And late in the 2022 season, he said that he was open to returning to Jacksonville and the team expressed a mutual interest.

Earlier this year, it seemed like Engram and the Jags were close to reaching a deal but they ultimately couldn't get it done, so they used the franchise tag on him to prevent him from becoming a free agent. From the outside, it's hard to tell what made negotiations stall but it's possible that they didn't agree on the amount he would get paid.

While the Jaguars need to be fiscally responsible, Evan Engram is probably aiming at a contract that pays him an annual salary of $14, or somewhere around that range. However, there wasn't a huge market for tight ends in the offseason and both Dalton Schultz and Mike Gesicki had to settle for one-year, prove-it deals.

The demand for tight ends could go up in 2024 and if that's the case, Engram will get the contract he's looking for, especially if he has another productive campaign. Having said that, he may need to leave the Jags in order to cash in big.

2. Jacksonville Jaguars player who could leave in 2024: Calvin Ridley, WR

Wait! Wide receiver Calvin Ridley hasn't played a snap for the Jaguars and you're already shipping him out? While the Jaguars would surely like to keep the Alabama product for years to come, they find themselves facing an interesting conundrum.

The Jags traded a conditional pick that can be as high as a second-rounder if Ridley signs a contract extension. The team's brass won't probably mind giving up that selection and throwing bags of cash to the Florida native if they make a deep playoff run or even the Super Bowl as he expects.

The issue is that the front office will probably be working with a finite amount of cap space and won't be able to bring back most of their star players. Trevor Lawrence will be eligible for a contract extension after 2023 and the longer Jacksonville waits, the higher the price tag will be. In fact, don't be surprised if the former Clemson Tiger becomes the first $55 million quarterback in the NFL.

Ridley is set to count $11.11 million against the cap in the last year of his rookie deal. The Jags could use the franchise tag if they want to retain him beyond 2023 but giving him a long-term deal and pushing some of the guarantees into the latter years might be the best course of action, as they would have a bit of leeway to sign other players.

It's true that Ridley hasn't played football for more than a year but all signs point toward him having a comeback season in 2023. If he does, teams will line up to pay him in free agency, which is why the Jags should get ahead of the curve and pay him, or else run the risk of losing him next offseason.

1. Jacksonville Jaguars player who could leave in 2024: Josh Allen, OLB

Turnover isn't just expected but inevitable in the NFL due to salary cap rules but good teams always find ways to keep their stars from leaving. The Jaguars, for one, have started to do a better job of retaining their own players but one look at their current roster and their 2019 counterpart shows how many changes they've undergone over the last four years.

Back in 2019, many of the players that helped the Jaguars reached the AFC Championship two years prior were still on the roster. Heck, they even have a few Pro Bowlers and seemed poised to be even better in 2020 due to the rise of Gardner Minshew but they instead ended up going 1-15.

One reason the Jags regressed in 2020 was that then-general manager Dave Caldwell seemed more interested in hoarding draft picks than rewarding his own players. Between 2019 and 2020, defensive end Calais Campbell, cornerback A.J. Bouye, defensive end Calais Campbell and cornerback Jalen Ramsey were shipped out of town.

Out of that 2019 defensive core, only former first-round pick Josh Allen remains and he was a rookie that year. The former Kentucky Wildcat logged 10.5 sacks and made the Pro Bowl in his first NFL season but he hasn't logged more than 7.5 in a season ever since.

While sacks aren't the only way to measure a pass rusher's success, they're still an important metric, one in which Allen's been lagging. Maybe that's a reason why the Jaguars haven't given him a multi-year extension and are comfortable taking a wait-and-see approach.

On the other hand, Allen is the team's best pass rusher and a valuable piece on the Jaguars' front seven. On top of that, he racked up pressures at the fourth-best rate in the league last year and his presence allows his teammates to make plays. This is why losing him next offseason would be a big blow to the pass-rush rotation.

Travon Walker could lessen the impact of Allen's potential departure but the Jaguars don't have many other proven options. As it is, the Jaguars' pass rush needs a boost, and losing Allen in 2024 could make things even worse.

In the end, it may come down to the kind of contract Allen is seeking and the amount of money the Jaguars will be willing to spend. But if they can't strike a deal, Allen will be wearing another uniform in 2024.