You have probably heard that deadlines spur action, but the Jacksonville Jaguars didn't want to wait until free agency to start re-signing their own players. Having taken care of wide receiver Jakobi Meyers in December, general manager James Gladstone turned his attention to ascending offensive lineman Cole Van Lanen.
Ahead of the season finale against theTennessee Titans, the Jags signed Van Lanen to a three-year extension worth $51 million with $34 million in guarantees. The deal is well-deserved when you take into account that the Green Bay, Wisconsin native is having a banner season. And not long after the news broke, a prominent beat writer shared key details about his new contract.
The Jaguars didn't want to use the franchise tag on Cole Van Lanen
Following the report that Jacksonville had extended Cole Van Lanen, Michael DiRocco of ESPN wrote on social media that the team wanted to get a deal done with Van Lanen and Jakobi Meyers, adding that the franchise tag was not an option.
Mia O'Brien of ESPN Radio, on the other hand, reported that the franchise tag was a possibility. But now that the Jags have locked up Meyers and Van Lanen, they can use it on another player.
You could make the case that O'Brien and DiRocco had conflicting reports, but the truth is that they don't necessarily refute each other. A plausible explanation, and based on public information, is that the Jags may not have wanted to tag Van Lanen or Meyers but wouldn't have ruled it out if they hadn't been able to reach an agreement with either one.
The good news is that the team's brass no longer has to worry about either one leaving and can now turn its attention to other pending free agents such as cornerback Montaric Brown, running back Travis Etienne, and linebacker Devin Lloyd.
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What's next for the Jaguars after re-signing Cole Van Lanen?
As noted before, the Jaguars have checked off two boxes on their to-do list, but they still have their work cut out. After extending Jakobi Meyers, they were $2.9 million over the cap. With Cole Van Lanen under contract, that amount has gone up, so the front office is currently operating in the red.
The good news is that Jacksonville can free up space by restructuring a few deals and cutting a few underachievers in free agency. But even then, they won't be able to bring everyone back. That's why the fact that they extended Van Lanen and Meyers might be a sign that the Jags are bracing themselves for the possibility of Devin Lloyd and Travis Etienne hitting the open market.
Conversely, the Jags are showing that they're not afraid to lock up their homegrown talent, so there's a chance Lloyd (or Etienne) will be next after extending Van Lanen and Meyers.
At this point, it's hard to tell just how many of their pending free agents the Jaguars will be able to bring back. But by locking up Cole Van Lanen and Jakobi Meyers, they are giving themselves a head start before the offseason begins.