According to ESPN’s Field Yates, Jacksonville defensive tackle Marcell Dareus is restructuring his contract with the team to free up around $5 million in cap space, which means they will be retaining one of their most dominant defenders in the trenches.
With them being just over the cap by $1.3 million, the Jaguars had several ways to get in the positive and did just that by decreasing Dareus’ base salary of $8.335 million to $2.835 million. Due to Dareus’ initially high deal, fans had concerns about his return, but due to him liking his situation with Jacksonville it appears he met them in the middle.
In addition to his restructured contract, Dareus will be receiving a $5 million bonus up front, which eliminates the final year on his contract. The new bonus and contract replace a $2 million bonus that was due by March 15 and a non-guaranteed $8.335 million base salary.
The two-time Pro Bowler played in Buffalo from 2011-2017 before getting traded to the Jaguars for a 2018 sixth-round draft pick. During his time in Jacksonville, Dareus has 52 total tackles with 41 of them being solo and 3 counting for a loss.
