The Jaguars face tough decisions on Travis Etienne Jr.'s and Devin Lloyd's futures in Jacksonville. An insider suggests neither star will receive a franchise tag.
The NFL calendar keeps on churning. With the Super Bowl in the books, the next big decision for team to make is whether or not to use their franchise or transition tags on any pending free agents.
For the Jaguars, they have three key free agents set to this market. Of those three, two can be viewed as very potential candidates to receive the tag. Those two are running back Travis Etienne and linebacker Devin Lloyd.
That said, there is one prominent NFL insider who currently believes neither player will get tagged during the window, which runs from Feb. 17 through March 3.
According to CBSSports NFL insider Jonathan Jones, while both Etienne and Lloyd are tag candidates, the Jaguars are not expected to franchise-tag either player.
For Lloyd, a tag would mean a guaranteed salary of $28 million for one season. As well as Lloyd played this past season, the Jaguars -- given their negative available cap space -- simply cannot afford what it would take to keep Lloyd, even if for just one more season.
The highest average value for an off-ball linebacker is Fred Warner at $21 million. Jacksonville isn’t in a position to reset the market by tagging Lloyd.
As for Etienne, the franchise tag would cost about $14.5 million. Even with Etienne coming off a very respectable season in which he rushed for over 1,100 yards and totaled almost 1,400 yards and 13 touchdowns, would Jacksonville want to commit that kind of money to Etienne when they have a player like Bhayshul Tuten in the waiting?
That’s not to say Jacksonville won’t re-sign either of these players. They would have to clear some space before that. They are currently projected to be more than $9 million over the salary cap when the new league year begins in March.
It’s also key to remember that only one player can receive the tag. Jacksonville can’t use the franchise tag on one and the transition tag on the other. So unless both get new deals before March 11, at least one, if not both, will hit the open market.
For example, with Lloyd, the team would likely re-sign him for a number closer to $20 million per year. A $28 million cap hit for an inside linebacker would be a hard pill to swallow, especially for a team who is now ready to win now and contend for a Super Bowl.
Etienne’s market value, via Spotrac, is projected at $6.8 million per year. There’s very little to no chance the Jaguars will pay double that for a running back, even one as talented as Etienne.
Bottom line, the Jaguars have a chance to keep both Lloyd and Etienne going forward. They may have to get a little creative to do so. But it’s very unlikely one will be kept via the franchise tag.
ㅤ
Join the Community! Don't miss out on our ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news! It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!