With teams needing to make cap space as the new league year awaits, it’s that time of the year where NFL front offices explore trading who they don’t see as long-term contributors. According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, one player who could be in that boat for the Jaguars is guard Andrew Norwell, who the team asked to take a pay cut recently.
Jaguars G Andrew Norwell: Norwell is making $12 million this year (with a $15 million cap number) and $13 million next year (with a $16 million cap number), and the Jaguars went to him asking for a reduction on that. The result of that? They may wind up dealing him.
While the Jags lead the league in salary cap with over $84.6 million available, per Over the Cap, they aren’t hurting to free up space. However, as fans have seen in the past, that sometimes doesn’t stop general managers from trying to save where they can. Additionally, with several changes going on within the building, the Jags could be looking for a more athletic player at guard.
The decision to weigh the option of trading Norwell comes somewhat at an odd time, as he’s coming off arguably his best season since becoming a Jaguar. While he dealt with a forearm injury in 2020, Norwell had a 71.1 grade via Pro Football Focus before it. That ranked him second on the line only under center Brandon Linder. His pass blocking-grade of 85.6, in particular, looked to be the reason behind that overall figure.
Norwell’s situation also has odd timing because the team is projected to draft Trevor Lawrence first overall and also could let free agent left tackle Cam Robinson hit the open market. Simply put, with such an elite talent coming in at the quarterback position, too many changes up front is puzzling. Then again, maybe the Jags feel that Norwell has been underwhelming when looking at his total body of work since signing his five-year $66.5 million deal in 2018.
Jags coach Urban Meyer coached Norwell at Ohio State. The fact that conversations are occurring to trade the veteran could speak volumes about how the Jags feel about upgrading the position. It could also speak volumes about how offensive line coach George Warhop feels about the guard position, as he was one of the coaches retained from Doug Marrone’s staff.
Despite the discussions that have taken place, it’s worth noting that it’s not guaranteed that Norwell has played his last down with the team. However, this news does make things interesting as the new league year closes in.