Earlier this week we took a look at a few free agents the Jacksonville Jaguars should let walk this offseason as they’ll have 23 pending free agents set to hit the market this April, most of whom will be unrestricted free agents. They’ve already re-signed the two biggest names on the list in kicker Josh Lambo and safety Jarrod Wilson, and here are a few other unrestricted names we’d like to see join the two soon:
TE James O’Shaughnessy
The Jags need a great deal of help at the tight end position even with their current group, and the fact that their top-2 tight ends, James O’Shaughnessy and Austin Seferian-Jenkins, are currently set to be unrestricted free agents only could make matters worse. With Seferian-Jenkins insinuating that he’ll be leaving due to the Jags not picking up his contract option, the Jags would be wise to keep one of their top-2 options and O’Shaughnessy makes sense. After retaining him maybe the Jags could progress forward and find a No. 1 tight end to pair with him in the draft or free agency.
OT Ereck Flowers
Who ever would’ve thought we’d see the day where a case could be made to retain Flowers? Well, the fact of the matter is his Pro Football Focus grade of 65.1 categorized him as an “above average” player, according to the database’s standards. And while he certainly wasn’t flawless, Flowers proved to be serviceable enough to retain as a backup in 2019, especially when considering how hard injuries hit the Jags’ offensive line last season.
When looking at his tenure in the league, Flowers has started in a total of 55 games, which is as many as you’ll find from any backup. That said, I could see the team keeping him on a cheap one year contract for depth as he may want to continue to learn from coach Doug Marrone, who took him in as a project throughout 2018.
OL Tyler Shatley
Shatley is the Jags most experience homegrown interior backup and should be kept as a reserve for a lot of the same reasons Flowers should. With Brandon Linder’s struggles to stay in the starting lineup over time, Shatley especially should be a priority for the team as he’s played in a total of 15 games, most of which came at center. Considering this, a cheap short-term deal shouldn’t be hard to come to, but then again, some team may see starter potential in him.
OG Patrick Omameh
Continuing on the subject of offensive line depth, Omameh knows the Jags’ system just as well as Shatley does and is very experienced with 56 career starts to his name. That’s exactly why they brought him back out of free agency after his brief tenure with the New York Giants in 2018. Additionally, he has the versatility to play offensive tackle, too, which is big if an emergency comes up.
RB Corey Grant (if healthy)
The key with Grant will be his recovery from the Lisfranc injury he sustained early in 2018. It’s an injury that some have come back from like Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell, while others have struggled with a return. That said, if the Jags like how Grant’s rehab is going with the injury, he must be re-signed.
With the Jags already lacking weapons on the offensive end, Grant is a player John DeFilippo could utilize for mismatches much like he’s seen Darren Sproles used while in Philadelphia. When considering his comrade T.J. Yeldon is likely heading to the open market this offseason, it would especially be wise for the Jags to bring back Grant who can fill the void as a pass catcher out of the backfield.
