Here are the Jags’ 22 pending free agents for 2020

The Jacksonville Jaguars have over 20 players who will be free agents, but Yannick Ngakoue is obviously the top name.

With Tom Coughlin now gone and a new power structure in place, Jacksonville Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell and the organization’s front office will now only have to answer to Shad Khan, which is how they did things early in Caldwell’s tenure. While that may make things less complicated, Caldwell still has his work cut out for him with the upcoming free agency period for 2020 as the Jags are projected to be over the cap by $972,783. That’s a total that would put them at 30th in the league.

The Jags are scheduled to have 22 free agents hit the market this spring, but luckily, there is only one pending restricted free agent and starter who the Jags can’t lose — and that’s edge rusher Yannick Ngakoue. However, to do that, they will need to decide on some players with high cap figures like Calais Campbell, A.J. Bouye, Marcell Dareus, Marqise Lee, Jake Ryan, and Geoff Swaim just to name a few.

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There are also some reserves who will be pending free agents that the Jags may want to consider keeping, too. Tight ends Seth DeValve and Nick O’Leary could be solid backup tight ends. Keelan Cole, who will be a restricted free agent, should be likely to come back as the argument could be made that he played better than Dede Westbrook in 2019.

On defense, the Jags have a few depth pieces at linebacker who should be under consideration to return. Donald Payne (restricted), Najee Goode and Austin Calitro all received a lot of snaps with Myles Jack and Quincy Williams going on injured reserve, and their experience gained in 2019 could make them perfect for spot duties if the Jags need players who could temporarily start a game or two.

Here’s the list of all 22 of the Jags’ pending free agents with expiring contracts, per Over the Cap:

Note: Players are listed by snap count. Also, Alfred Blue was cut by the Jags earlier in October of 2019.

 

NFL projects 2020 salary cap to climb as high as $201.2M, Saints to benefit

The New Orleans Saints will have room to spend when the NFL reveals its salary cap for the 2020 fiscal year, with projections reaching high.

The New Orleans Saints and every other NFL team learned Tuesday that the league projects the 2020 salary cap to be set as high as $201.2 million, with conservative estimates coming in around $196.8 million. That would mean a big increase over the 2019 salary cap, which was established at $188.2 million.

The analysts at Over The Cap project the Saints to be on the hook for a little over $180.4 million in salary cap commitments when the NFL’s new fiscal year begins, which accounts for dead money payments to quarterbacks Drew Brees and Teddy Bridgewater, who are each scheduled to test unrestricted free agency next March. Depending on where the NFL and NFLPA agree to set next year’s salary cap, the Saints would go into the offseason with between $16.4 and $20.8 million to spend.

That’s slight work for Saints general manager Mickey Loomis and his financial team, which includes salary cap wunderkind Khai Hartley. They’ve proven able to manipulate contracts and structure salary cap commitments with ease, and shouldn’t face significant hurdles from it next season.

The real challenge is going to be retaining so many valuable free agents. Beyond the quarterbacks situation (Brees, Bridgewater, and Taysom Hill are each going to see their current deals expire), New Orleans must navigate contract situations with key contributors like safety Vonn Bell, cornerback Eli Apple, defensive tackle David Onyemata, linebacker A.J. Klein, and left guard Andrus Peat, to name just a few. The clock will also start ticking on new contracts for big-time playmakers including running Alvin Kamara and safety Marcus Williams, with fifth-year options in play for cornerback Marshon Lattimore and right tackle Ryan Ramczyk. This could be a year where the Saints keep most of their investments in-house and remain quiet on bidding in the open market.

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Future of Saints QB situation graded as too complicated to covet

The New Orleans Saints might have the NFL’s best quarterback situation in 2019, but free agency looms for Drew Brees and Teddy Bridgewater.

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The New Orleans Saints quarterbacks depth chart is one that should be the envy of the NFL. Drew Brees is a Hall of Fame-bound passer, sitting comfortably on top. Teddy Bridgewater proved his worth as a backup who can win games in this league. And Taysom Hill is a dynamic reserve who can fill in at almost any position, up to and including quarterback.

But according to our friends over at Touchdown Wire, that short-term strength comes with a price. All three of those quarterbacks are going to be free agents after this season, and the Saints have a tough decision to make on whether to keep Brees or Bridgewater. It’s possible they’re able to re-sign both of them, but Bridgewater will have earned far more opportunities — and much bigger contract demands — than what he was offered in the last signing cycle. And that potential instability ranks New Orleans’ outlook at the position low among the league; at No. 24, to be exact:

If this ranking pertained only to this season, the Saints might be No. 1. They have a future Hall of Famer in Drew Brees and, when he missed five games with a thumb injury, backup Teddy Bridgewater went 5-0. The Saints should have a deep playoff run this year. But, after that, things get cloudy in a hurry. Brees will turn 41 in January. He’s still going strong. It’s difficult to imagine the Saints choosing to keep Bridgewater as the starter over Brees because coach Sean Payton and Brees have such a close working relationship. It’s also difficult to imagine Bridgewater choosing to stay in New Orleans as a backup when he could likely get a starting job in free agency. Third-stringer Taysom Hill never will rise to the starting role. He’s a multipurpose threat and is used mostly on gimmick plays. Unless the Saints find a magical way to keep Bridgewater, it will be time to start looking for an eventual replacement for Brees. “Don’t be surprised if the Saints find a way to keep Bridgewater,” a panelist said. “(General manager Mickey) Loomis and Payton can be very charming. The smart move is to keep Teddy, even if he’s your backup for another year or two until Brees retires. They’ll be willing to throw good cash at him.”

To put a more optimistic spin on it: the Saints have at least two NFL quarterbacks in the building they can put faith in, and they’ll probably have their pick of them in the spring. Bridgewater will be able to command a starting quarterback’s salary in the range of $20 million or better per year, which is close to the decreased salary Brees agreed to accept the last time his contract ran out.

The Saints can afford to keep one of them, but they’ll be hard-pressed to recruit Bridgewater if Brees is determined to continue playing. At least Hill can return on a low-cost restricted free agent tender, at least for one more year.

Fortunately, the Saints have plenty of time to figure this situation out. Hopefully they’ll be able to do so with everyone crowded around the Lombardi Trophy after winning Super Bowl LIV.

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