Wednesday morning word broke that multiple teams had been reaching out to the Jacksonville Jaguars to potentially trade for safety Tashaun Gipson, which has led many to speculate that he may not be suiting up with the team next year. However, if that happens, Jags fans should fear not because the 2019 free agency class will be strong at the safety position.
Among those names could be former Baltimore Ravens veteran Eric Weddle, who was released this week and would be a good fit in Jacksonville for many reasons. Here are three of them if he decides not to retire and is looking for a new home:
He’s probably an upgrade over Tashaun Gipson
While Gipson is a very underrated player for the Jags, Weddle is in a class of his own — and by that I mean in the elite class. Dating back to 2016 when both players first joined their respective teams, Weddle graded as the league’s top safety twice per Pro Football Focus (2016–17) with a grade of 92.4 both seasons and also had a better grade than Gipson (70.7) in 2018 (80.7 grade for Weddle). Simply put, that probably means Weddle would represent an upgrade in 2019 at the safety position despite being older than Gipson at 34 years of age.
He’s the type of bargain free agent the Jags need with Nick Foles potentially coming in
If the Jaguars trade Gipson, it’s safe to say it will be to save cap space more than anything although it could partly have to do with him questioning the team’s scheme in 2017. He’s set to be a $9 million-plus cap hit for the Jags per Spotrac, and at Weddle’s age, it’s a given he’d come cheaper.
If the Jags are truly going to sign Nick Foles, they may be limited to the amount of moves they can make outside of that acquisition and may have to aim for some bargain deals on the market. Though they need more offensive help, Weddle would be just that for the Jags as he’d probably be looking for a short-term deal being that he’s considering retirement.
He’d be great for the defensive backs group and would be a great veteran for the locker room
It was clear as day that the Jags needed more leaders like Calais Campbell in their locker room last season as the team dealt with fights on the field — and reportedly some in the locker room, too. Some fans tend to think those issues were mostly due to not having the veteran presence of former veterans Paul Posluszny and Marcedes Lewis, which just may be right.
Weddle is a player who has been a part of multiple locker rooms including the Ravens’, which many would say is one of the best in the league. He also was a part of a San Diego Chargers locker room which consisted of the legendary LaDainian Tomlinson and future Hall-of-Famer Philip Rivers. From that perspective, there may not be a more suitable player to join the Jags’ locker room and that’s something Tom Coughlin and the front office would definitely value.
Weddle’s leadership would also be very beneficial to the Jags’ defensive backs unit, which will feature young ascending talents like Jalen Ramsey and Ronnie Harrison, who hasn’t played a full year of football yet. Having Weddle for a year or two could help both transition into the future leaders the Jags need them to be because 2018 certainly wasn’t a good look for the locker room.
