The Jacksonville Jaguars have a chance to form a potent defensive duo this offseason, and The Athletic’s Alec Lewis has an intriguing idea.
In his article last week, Lewis listed the Jacksonville Jaguars as a potential landing spot for Danielle Hunter, who is going to hit free agency this offseason, as well as the Chicago Bears and the Arizona Cardinals.
“And then there are the Jaguars, who have expressed interest in Hunter in the past year. They do not have endless cap space for 2024, but they could creatively structure Hunter’s deal to fit their current timeline,” wrote Lewis.
“Jacksonville’s fourth-year GM Trent Baalke will be charged with fielding a playoff team. If he doesn’t he’d likely reach the end of the road, which is another reason to think the Jaguars will target Hunter,” he added.
Why joining the Jacksonville Jaguars makes sense for Danielle Hunter
One of the main reasons why the Jacksonville Jaguars barely missed the playoffs last season was the lack of a consistent pass rush outside of Josh Allen and Travon Walker since no other player on the team has recorded four sacks.
Well, Danielle Hunter is coming off a career year in 2023, recording 83 combined tackles (54 solo), 23 of which were for a loss, 16.5 sacks, two passes defended, and four forced fumbles. He also won NFC Defensive Player of the Month in November.
Overall, the four-time Pro Bowler has tallied five double-digit sacks in four of his last five NFL seasons and is currently sixth in the Minnesota Vikings’ all-time sacks list.
Pairing Hunter with someone like Josh Allen is a scary proposition for opposing offenses, especially with Ryan Nielsen being their new defensive coordinator.
Getting Danielle Hunter is easier said than done for the Jacksonville Jaguars
To get Danielle Hunter, the Jacksonville Jaguars have to shell out at least $20 million in annual salary for him (as calculated by Spotrac). At the same time, the ball is on the Minnesota Vikings’ hands whether they’ll keep him beyond March 13 or not.
Also, keeping Josh Allen is the main priority for the Jacksonville Jaguars this offseason, and they will do so by either giving him the franchise tag or giving him a major salary bump.