Remember the free agency frenzy of the New England Patriots in 2021?
Well, the 2022 version of that is happening with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
With a new head coach in Doug Pederson who is a Super Bowl Champion, the 2022 Jaguars are getting down to business quickly.
The Jaguars have a slew of draft picks in 2022 including the No. 1 overall pick.
However, the goal before the 2022 NFL Draft is simple: get better and protect the 2021 No. 1 overall pick, Trevor Lawrence.
Lawrence needs and deserves a better supporting cast, and he already has some notable stars on his team by virtue of free agency.
1. Scherff’s Up
Offensive guard Brandon Scherff comes to the Jags from the Washington Commanders.
Jaguars expected to sign 5-time Pro Bowler Brandon Scherff. (via @MikeGarafolo) pic.twitter.com/zXgEZdr6FK
— NFL (@NFL) March 14, 2022
When healthy, he is an outstanding player and a five-term Pro Bowler.
The 30-year-old Scherff was a first-round draft pick at the No. 5 position by Washington in 2015.
2. A Tandem Of Wide Receivers
Christian Kirk got an astounding amount of money from the Jaguars because quite simply, they have money to spend.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter’s sources told him that Kirk was getting a four-year contract valued at $84 million.
Jaguars are giving former Cardinals WR Christian Kirk a four-year deal worth up to $84 million deal, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 14, 2022
Kirk, the former Arizona Cardinal, is 25 years old and is coming off a career-best year with 77 catches and 982 yards.
Recognizing that Kirk was not enough and Lawrence needs at least one more WR target, the Jags signed Zay Jones.
Jones, 26, comes to the Jags from the Las Vegas Raiders.
Zay Jones has caught 171 passes for 1,884 yards and 11 touchdowns in his career. He caught 48 passes for 546 yards and a touchdown last season.
— Demetrius Harvey (@Demetrius82) March 15, 2022
3. One Tight End
Evan Engram is the Jags’ free agent signing at the tight end position.
Engram, 27, is another first-round draft pick.
The New York Giants selected him with the No. 23 pick in 2017.
Former Giants’ TE Evan Engram intends to sign a one-year, fully-guaranteed 9 million deal that could go to $10 with incentives with the Jacksonville Jaguars, per me and @JFowlerESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 14, 2022
Lawrence has to be excited about the new talent surrounding him.
However, it is not all about the offense, the Jags were busy on defense also.
Defensive Free Agent Signings
Two defensive free agents were signed with long names and impressive resumes.
They are linebacker Foyesade Oluokun and defensive tackle Folorunso Fatukasi.
Oluokun is a former Atlanta Falcon who had a career year in 2021 with 102 solo tackles and 90 assisted tackles in 17 games.
Since tackles became an official stat in 1987, only one player in the #NFL has 170 tackles and 3 INT in a season
Foyesade Oluokun
He had 192 tackles and 3 INT. #Jaguars pic.twitter.com/POZUmKAXJq
— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrCBS) March 14, 2022
Fatukasi was with the New York Jets and has a reputation of being good at rushing the passer and defending against the run.
Folorunso Fatukasi was drafted with pick 180 of round 6 in the 2018 draft class. He scored a 8.57 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 158 out of 1096 DT from 1987 to 2018. https://t.co/kJ8Uh2ehpf #RAS #Jaguars pic.twitter.com/mmw3w54Mc7
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) March 14, 2022
Conclusion
The Jaguars have not been a good team for years.
Pederson is a good head coach and knows how to win.
The Patriots went from a losing record to the playoffs from 2020 to 2021 after their free-agent spending spree.
Could that happen for the Jaguars?
Anything is possible.
One thing is for sure, this is the time to build this team.
With young players on rookie contracts, spending money on offensive and defensive linemen as well as known and established offensive players can only help.
The Jaguars are off to a promising start, and there is still more free agency spending possible before the draft.
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