After winning the AFC South and making the playoffs last year, the Jacksonville Jaguars had to make some tough choices in the offseason. Without much cap space, they couldn't make any splash signings in free agency nor keep all their players from hitting the open market.
In the end, the Jags managed to fortify their roster and bring back several players that filled key roles last year. Although most of the moves the team's brass made won't get the spotlight, Jacksonville is in good shape ahead of training camp, so which were the best decisions the Jaguars made in the offseason? Here are the most important three:
3. The Jacksonville Jaguars give DaVon Hamilton a 3-year deal worth $34.5 million
The Jags went on a spending spree last year but it paid off because most of the free agents they signed went on to have a huge impact. This year, they took a different approach, opting to re-sign as many of their own players as possible.
Among the players Jacksonville brought back in the early stages of free agency were defensive end Roy Robertson-Harris, safety Andrew Wingard, running back JaMycal Hasty, cornerback Tre Herndon and defensive end Adam Gotsis.
Once it looked like the Jaguars were done re-signing players, they gave defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton a three-year deal worth $34.5 million just a few days before the 2023 NFL Draft. The timing of the move might have caught everyone off guard but not the signing itself.
Hamilton, a third-round pick in the 2020 draft, flashed potential as a rookie before a knee injury cut his season short. He's progressively got better over the last two years and went on to post career numbers in 2022.
Despite the fact that Hamilton's numbers won't pop off the stat sheet, his role is paramount to the Jaguars' ability to create pressure up front, so choosing to keep him around seems like a smart move.
2. The Jacksonville Jaguars stand firm, don't give a long-term deal to Evan Engram
This might be a bit of a controversial take but the truth is that the Jaguars, general manager Trent Baalke in particular, deserve credit for setting a budget and holding their ground in negotiations with tight end Evan Engram.
Make no mistake, Engram deserves a new contract, and given a player's limited window to maximize their career earnings, he's right for trying to get as much money as possible. In fact, he's right for skipping offseason workouts, as he would otherwise run the risk of getting injured and not getting the deal he wants.
The 5 highest-paid tight ends in the NFL right now are getting an average of $14 million per year or more. Engram might want a salary in that range, and rightfully so, after breaking several team records and setting new personal bests for catches and receiving yards.
Working against Engram is that there wasn't a big demand for tight ends this offseason. Mike Gesicki and Dalton Schultz had to settle for one-year deals and neither of them will cross the $10 million mark.
When you take into account that the Jaguars' brass might need to write several big checks next year -- Trevor Lawrence, receiver Calvin Ridley and edge rusher Josh Allen -- waiting to give Engram a long-term deal right now might be the best course of action.
The bottom line is that Engram deserves a big contract but he might need until next offseason to get it. While there's still time to get a deal done, it's hard to see the Jaguars and their star tight end finding common ground before the July 15 deadline.
1. The Jacksonville Jaguars let RT Jawaan Taylor walk in free agency
Right tackle Jawaan Taylor, a second-round pick in 2019, struggled early in his career but managed to put it all together in 2022. This isn't surprising though. Some players simply need more time than others to hit their stride and the former Florida Gator is a prime example.
Although the Jags would have liked to re-sign Taylor in free agency, they had just given Cam Robinson a long-term deal last year and didn't have much cap space left. The good news is that they had a plan in place and things ended up working out just fine for both the team and Taylor.
The Kansas City Chiefs gave Taylor a four-year deal worth $80 million while Jacksonville drafted Oklahoma offensive tackle Anton Harrison with the 27th overall pick. You could point out that Taylor was a proven commodity and keeping him would have given stability to the offensive line.
On the other hand, the team's brass would have needed to invest a significant amount of money in Taylor to retain him. And if they had done it, they wouldn't have been able to re-sign Roy Robertson-Harris and DaVon Hamilton.
It's also worth noting that Taylor was good but not a core player and that's the thing. Good things consistently let good players walk and build around their franchise building blocks. That's precisely the approach the Jaguars are taking with Trevor Lawrence and if that means letting Taylor walk away, so they can pay their star players, so be it.