The Washington Commanders have a deal in place to sign Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Brandon McManus to a one-year, $3.6 million deal when he becomes a free agent Wednesday, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
McManus, 32, was scooped up by the Jaguars during the 2023 offseason shortly after he was released by the Denver Broncos. In his only season with Jacksonville, McManus made 30 of his 37 field goals, although he was perfect inside of 40 yards and five of his seven misses were from 50-plus yards.
After making 23 of his first 25 field goals on the year, McManus frustrated Jaguars coach Doug Pederson when he missed five of six kicks during a rough stretch late in the season.
While there’s been little indication that the Jaguars intended to re-sign the impending free agent, the writing on the wall for McManus became crystal clear Monday when the team agreed to terms on a deal with Denver Broncos kicker Wil Lutz. While the deal eventually fell through, Jacksonville clearly intends to move in a different direction at the kicker position.
With McManus set to join Washington, the only kicker on the roster will be Riley Patterson, the team’s 2022 kicker who was added back to the roster in February. It seems unlikely that the Jaguars envision Patterson being their starting kicker in 2024, though.
There’s a chance that the contract for McManus is rich enough to play a factor in the awarding of compensatory draft picks. Given the amount of additions the Jaguars made Monday, it appears unlikely they’ll be in position to get a 2025 pick, though.
