Talking head offers compelling reason for Jaguars to trade LT Cam Robinson

The Jacksonville Jaguars have several left tackles in place and could afford to trade one of them if they wanted to. So far, they've chosen to stay put but Tom McManus of 1010 XL makes the case for the Jags to shop Cam Robinson.

McManus said on Catching up with Tommy Mac that he expects the Jaguars to trade either Robinson or Walker Little but argues that the former makes more sense from a financial standpoint.

"Are either Cam Robinson or Walk Little expendable to a trade? Depends on how Javon Foster plays, right? That's the caveat," McManus said. "But what if you're like, 'This kid's got it, I'm willing to roll with them at one of the tackle positions?' Whatever it may be, we still got one of the other, Cam or Walker. I think salary-wise, Cam's probably more expendable than Walker, but you really got to believe that Walker can be your left tackle. Now, up until this date, he's never taken it. You got to take it, right?"

McManus continued, "You got to take it. He's never taken it. Doesn't mean he can't be a really good player this year. I heard his offseason is good, which means what he's been working out. He's been attending. Great. That to me, that's like eating your dinner at night. You get dessert. You don't get extra credit for working out. Everyone should be working out. You know?"

"Well, he was at everything they asked him to be at. Great. He's a professional football player; he's supposed to be at everything they asked him to be at, especially if you're trying to maintain your position and maybe take over. So the question is, do you expect anything to happen? Potentially, I do."

McManus goes on to say that he doesn't know what's going on but points out that trading Robinson would "take money off the books."

A second-round pick by the Jags in 2017, Robinson got the franchise tag in 2021. He got a three-year deal worth $54 million the following offseason. While he's never been a top-10 tackle in the league, the Alabama product has established himself as a leader on the offensive line in Jacksonville.

Robinson earned a four-game suspension to start 2023 for violating the league's Performance Enhancing Drug Policy. It also wiped out the guarantees on his deal. This is why the front office could trade him or release him and create $17 million in space.

Little, a second-round pick in 2021, was seen as Robinson's potential heir apparent. However, he's not been able to seize a starting role the past three years. He competed with Jawaan Taylor for the right tackle job in 2022 but lost. He's currently the swing tackle but would probably be the first in line to replace Robinson. Here's McManus making the case for trading the veteran left tackle. It starts at the 22:06 mark.

Jaguars OT Walker Little must step up to make a trade possible

The Jacksonville Jaguars have likely kept Cam Robinson around because Walker Little hasn't shown enough to make them think he's the answer at left tackle. As Tom McManus noted, the Texas native has what it takes to succeed but hasn't been able to put it all together for some reason.

Back at Stanford, Little was seen as a potential top-10 pick in the draft. However, a torn ACL and his decision to opt out of the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic made him slide to the second round. Still, he's performed well in a limited sample.

Another reason the Jaguars haven't traded Robinson is that they may not have gotten an offer they liked. Perhaps the top brass said that they expect him to stay in 2024 to drive up his price. On the other hand, Walker Little could be a more appealing option for teams in need of help on the edges.

Not only is Little set to have a manageable base salary of $1.5 million next season but he can line up on either side of the offensive line. Either way, the Jags have options, and if they won't probably pass up the chance to acquire additional draft picks if the opportunity arises.

Ultimately, the Jaguars may opt to keep both Cam Robinson and Walker Little. After dealing with injuries at left tackle last year, that would be the best course of action. That said, a trade shouldn't be ruled out just yet.

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