DL Travon Walker's injury concerns and declining stats clash with his immense potential. Will the Jacksonville Jaguars risk a high price tag or wait for a healthier, proven performer?
Defensive end Travon Walker, the former No. 1 overall draft pick in 2022, is entering the final season of his rookie deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars, beckoning the question: "What's next?"
Battling through injuries last year, Walker recorded his lowest sack total (3.5) since his rookie year and posted a career-low in tackles.
But Walker has proven himself as one of the brightest up-and-coming edges in the NFL, recording back-to-back seasons with 10 or more sacks in 2023 and 2024. The former Georgia standout also ranked within the top 25 for total pressures among all edge rushers for both seasons.
ESPN's Matt Bowen recently released a compliation of the top free agents available at each position in 2027, and Walker is the lone Jaguar on that list. Bowen noted Walker's lingering wrist injury that he suffered last season, while endorsing him as a difference-maker when healthy.
"If Walker can stay healthy in 2026, the former No. 1 overall pick could be a problem off the edges," Bowen wrote.
Currently, Walker will play out the 2026 season on a fifth-year option, which general manager James Gladstone exercised last April. He should be a primary candidate for an extension, which would keep him in Jacksonville and prevent him from hitting the market as an unrestricted free agent next offseason.
However, there's been no indication the Jaguars are negotiating to extend Walker.
Walker's 2026 season will earn him a fully guaranteed $14.75 million, according to Over the Cap, but an extension will cost the Jags considerably more.
Although Walker has not produced at the same level as Detroit Lions edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who followed Walker as the No. 2 pick in 2022, he should be looking at a deal comparable to Hutchinson's recent extension.
In late October of last season, the Lions locked down their edge rusher on a four-year, $180 million deal, his $141 million in guaranteed money the highest ever for a non-quarterback.
As we have seen with other big-time positions like receiver and quarterback, the timing for these deals can be huge as players look for top-tier money at their position.
Take New York Jets receiver Garrett Wilson as an example. Wilson signed a four-year, $130 million extension in July 2025, making him one of the highest-paid receivers in the NFL.
Sure enough, the Seattle Seahawks recently blew this deal out of the water, extending superstar wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba for four years and $168.6 million, making him the NFL's highest-paid receiver at $42.15 million annually, almost $10 million more per year than Wilson.
Had the Jets waited to re-sign Wilson, they may have been looking at a much larger price tag than the already-lucrative $130 million extension.
Signing Walker sooner rather than later could save the Jaguars a significant amount of money, but perhaps a wait-and-see approach could be wise. Jacksonville can pull the trigger on an extension for Walker at any point during this season, providing them flexibility and giving them time to see how Walker performs in his fifth NFL season.
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