The Jacksonville Jaguars had a good start to the regular season. Heading into Week 13, Jacksonville was 8-3 and had a playoff berth on the horizon.
Unfortunately, the team started a downward trend in Week 13 when they lost to the Cincinnati Bengals in overtime. Trevor Lawrence suffered a high-ankle sprain in that game, limiting his capabilities for the rest of the season. Lawrence also suffered a concussion and an AC joint sprain to his throwing shoulder later on.
Jacksonville lost four out of their last five games and got eliminated from playoff contention in their last regular season game.
The Jaguars will have a busy offseason as they have many free agents with a limited amount of cap. According to OverTheCap, they have around $11 million in cap space.
There is one free agent who they would like to re-sign but cannot make any promises.
The Jacksonville Jaguars hope to re-sign their leading receiver
General manager Trent Baalke wants to re-sign wide receiver Calvin Ridley but didn’t guarantee an extension. Here’s what Baalke said about Ridley’s situation:
“Calvin did some awfully good things,” Baalke said. “I love Calvin Ridley. He’s all ball. You guys and gals who were able to see us practice, he loves to practice, he loves to play, he loves the game. When you bring somebody in that hasn’t been a part of football for over a year and a half, you got to knock the rust off, and he did that, and, at times, he showed exactly who he was, who he can be.
“And the sky’s the limit. He’s only going to get better because of the way he works. When you love something as much as he loves football, you can’t help but get better. So we would love to have Calvin back. We’re going to work toward that. What that means is I don’t know right now.”
Ridley played well for sitting out for one and a half years
Despite sitting out for one and a half seasons because of personal reasons and a gambling suspension in 2022, Calvin Ridley played well and didn’t show any rust. Ridley was second on the team in targets and receptions and led the team in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
Ridley registered 76 receptions on 136 targets for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns. He averaged 59.8 yards per game, a catching percentage of 55.9%, and a 71.4 PFF Grade.
Which factors could affect his decision?
Two factors affect his decision.
The first factor is the salary cap. As mentioned before, Jacksonville will have around $11 million in salary cap, but they will likely restructure or cut players to increase their cap space.
Baalke guarantees that Josh Allen will be a Jaguar in 2024. They are working on a long-term deal. If they cannot come up with one, Allen could get franchised tagged. If Allen signs a big contract, Jacksonville will have limited cap space and might not be able to sign Ridley.
The second factor is Ridley’s desired salary. There could be a possibility that Jacksonville offers him a contract, but he declines because he wants a bigger one.
Will he be a Jaguar next year?
This offseason will be interesting, especially for the Jacksonville Jaguars. They have a lot of unrestricted free agents with limited cap space, and the team cannot afford to sign everybody. Will Calvin Ridley sign a long-term deal with the team, and if not, which team will he sign with?
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