Jaguars OL Andrew Norwell Reworks Contract
Andrew Norwell has reworked his deal. ESPN’s Field Yates reports (via Twitter) that the Jaguars agreed to a renegotiated contracts with the offensive lineman.
Previously, Norwell was on the books for $11.5MM in non-guaranteed money next season. Now, the offensive guard will earn $9MM guaranteed, and he has an additional $2.5M in realistic incentives. The 28-year-old gets the security he’s presumably seeking, while the Jaguars have the opportunity to save a chunk of cash.
Norwell joined Jacksonville back in 2018, signing a five-year, $66.5MM contract ($30MM guaranteed). His $13.3MM average annual value currently ranks fifth among offensive guards, although he led the position when he initially signed his contract.
The veteran was limited to 11 games in 2018 as he dealt with an ankle injury. He returned fully healthy in 2019 and managed to start all 16 games for the Jaguars.
Jaguars Sign 18 UDFAs; Cut 5 Players
The Jaguars made a slew of UDFA signings on Monday and released five players to make room for them. Here’s the full rundown, per the club’s press release.
Signed:
- Luq Barcoo, CB (San Diego State)
- Doug Cotsin, DL (Miami of Ohio)
- Nathan Cottrell, RB (Georgia Tech)
- Ben Ellefson, TE (North Dakota State)
- Nate Evans, LB (Central Florida)
- Josh Hammond, WR (Florida)
- Amari Henderson, CB (Wake Forest)
- Tavien Feaster, RB (South Carolina)
- Ross Matiscik, LS (Baylor)
- Steven Nielson, OL (Eastern Michigan)
- Austen Pleasants, OL (Ohio)
- J.R. Reed, S (Georgia)
- James Robinson, RB (Illinois State)
- Marvelle Ross, WR (Notre Dame College of Ohio)
- Connor Slomka, FB (Army)
- Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms, OL (Missouri)
- Kobe Williams, CB (Arizona State)
- Brandon Wright, K (Georgia State)
Feaster, who spent most of his collegiate career with Clemson before transferring to South Carolina, is one of the more notable names on their UDFA list. Last year, he led the Gamecocks in rushing with 672 yards and scored five touchdowns via the ground. Meanwhile, Barcoo scored a whopping $160K guarantee (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle), which may be the highest ever for an undrafted free agent in the NFL. Barcoo was one of four undrafted Aztecs to score deals this week. He’ll look to bulk up on his thin 175-pound frame as he pursues his lifelong dream.
Released:
- K Jonathan Brown
- LB Austin Calitro
- OL Donnell Greene
- WR Charone Peake
- DB Jayson Stanley
Peake showed promise as a seventh-round rookie in 2016, catching 19 passes with Gang Green. After that, he wasn’t able to keep his footing with the Jets and he’ll have to find a new NFL home now that the Jaguars have dropped him.
Jags, Bucs Discussed Leonard Fournette Trade
The Jaguars, who have been trying to trade RB Leonard Fournette, contacted the Bucs about a potential deal, per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Tampa Bay, however, added a running back via the draft when it selected Ke’Shawn Vaughn in the third round on Friday night. The Bucs also picked up Raymond Calais in the seventh round.
Fournette would have made some sense in Tampa Bay, as the club was said to be seeking a pass-catching back to complement Ronald Jones, and Fournette did haul in 76 passes for 522 yards in 2019. But the Bucs opted to go with younger (and cheaper) options in Vaughn and Calais.
The Jags, meanwhile, did not add an RB of their own with any of their 12 picks, so Fournette remains on the club as the undisputed RB1. He was drawing tepid interest on the trade market, and it remains to be seen if the team will continue seeking a trade now that the draft is over.
The LSU product is set to earn $4MM+ in 2020 with a fifth-year option for 2021, priced at more than $10MM. The Jaguars have until early May to exercise that option, which is guaranteed for injury only since Fournette was selected in the 2017 draft.
Jacksonville also discussed a deal with the Dolphins, but Miami acquired Matt Breida from the 49ers for this year’s No. 153 overall pick.
Jaguars Take WR Laviska Shenault At No. 42
A pre-draft injury helped Laviska Shenault tumble out of the first round, but he did not fall too far. The Jaguars used their No. 42 overall pick on the Colorado wideout.
The third wide receiver taken in Friday’s second round, Shenault was long expected to be a first-round talent. But as the Combine revealed a deep wideout class, Shenault’s core muscle injury resulted in a drop into Round 2.
Shenault will join a Jaguars team that houses 2018 second-rounder D.J. Chark as its top wide receiver. At Colorado, Shenault totaled 1,011 yards in just nine games as a sophomore in 2018. The 227-pound talent will be expected to play a key role in helping the Jags determine if Gardner Minshew is a long-term answer at quarterback.
At first, Shenault’s groin issue was not believed to require surgery. However, a slower-than-expected 40-yard dash time preceded the talented prospect undergoing a procedure.
Bengals Listening To Offers For No. 33 Pick
The Bengals have one pick in each of the draft’s final six rounds. It appears they would like to change that. They are listening to offers for the first pick in the second round, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.
Cincinnati received interest at No. 1 but did not appear to seriously consider them before taking Joe Burrow. A report earlier Friday indicated the Bengals were considering both wide receiver Denzel Mims and defensive tackle Ross Blacklock at No. 33, but the team may now want to add some draft capital to help fortify their roster after a 2-14 season.
Although the Bengals were uncharacteristically aggressive in free agency, adding D.J. Reader and Trae Waynes to their defense on high-priced deals, they still have several holes on their roster after their worst season in more than 15 years. Trading down from tonight’s top pick would create more chances for Cincinnati to add starter- or rotational-level talent.
It is not certain how far the Bengals are willing to move down, but teams like the Jaguars (No. 42), Broncos (No. 46) and Falcons (No. 47) have made calls about moving up, per Albert Breer of SI.com. The virtual draft’s second round begins at 6pm CT.
NFL Draft Rumors: Vikings, Jags, Redskins
The Vikings have “done a lot of work on” Boise State offensive tackle Ezra Cleveland, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (Twitter link), but Minnesota may have to move up in Round 2 in order to land him. Per Wolfson, the Vikings may need to get ahead of the Jaguars at No. 42 if they want to grab Cleveland. Minnesota’s second-round pick doesn’t come until No. 58 overall, so general manager Rick Spielman would need to work some magic in order to move up. Luckily, the Vikings have 12 picks remaining in the draft that could be used as trade ammunition.
Here’s more on the 2020 draft:
- Speaking of the Vikings and offensive tackles, the ideas of Minnesota acquiring Redskins tackle Trent Williams and moving up in Round 2 aren’t mutually exclusive, as Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune tweets. Washington wants draft capital it can use this year, and while the club has been asking for a second-round pick, the Redskins could also accept a combination of selections that add up to the value of a second-rounder, per John Keim of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Minnesota could use any number of those aforementioned 12 remaining picks in order to patch together an offer for Williams.
- Two clubs were attempting to move into the Buccaneers‘ No. 14 slot in order to land Iowa tackle Tristan Wirfs, which prompted Tampa Bay to move up one spot into No. 13 and take Wirfs for themselves, reports Jenna Laine of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Presumably, the Bucs figured teams moving to No. 14 would also be trying to move to No. 13, which was held by San Francisco. Instead, Tampa Bay shipped a fourth-round pick to the 49ers and added Tom Brady‘s new right tackle.
- When the Raiders‘ first came on the clock at No. 12, the club’s initial discussions involved offensive tackles, tweets Josina Anderson of ESPN.com. Oakland’s interest in tackles is a little puzzling, as it already has 2018 first-rounder Kolton Miller on the left side and the high-priced Trent Brown on the right. Eventually, the Raiders settled on Alabama wideout Henry Ruggs.
Bengals Eyeing Mims, Blacklock At No. 33?
The Bengals, who hold the first pick in the second round, are high on wide receiver Denzel Mims and defensive tackle Ross Blacklock, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears.
Rapoport also notes several teams looking to move up/down in the order. The Jets, Jaguars, and Falcons are among the clubs interested in making a leap. Potential trade partners include the Colts (No. 34) and Dolphins (No. 39), who are willing to listen on offers to move back.
Cincinnati doesn’t necessarily need any immediate help at wide receiver, as the club boasts A.J. Green, Tyler Boyd, and John Ross as its top three options. However, Green and Ross haven’t been able to stay healthy, and each has just one year remaining on his respective contract (the Bengals hold a 2021 option on Ross that they’ve yet to exercise). Mims would add an explosive option for new quarterback Joe Burrow, and give Cincinnati a long-term asset.
Blacklock, meanwhile, was a draft riser in recent months and was viewed as a potential Day 1 pick. Instead, he’s likely to come off the board at the top of Round 2. The Bengals already have Geno Atkins and free agent acquisition D.J. Reader on the interior of their defensive line, but Blacklock would give them ample depth.
Jaguars Received No Offers For Yannick Ngakoue
The Jaguars did not receive any offers for Yannick Ngakoue, GM Dave Caldwell says (via ESPN.com’s Mike DiRocco). With that, they’re planning to have him on the roster in 2020, though the defensive end won’t be happy about that. 
“I think his options are very limited at this point in time,” Caldwell said. “We’ll welcome him back with open arms when he’s ready to come back, and we look forward to it.”
The Jags discussed a deal with the Raiders earlier this week, but those talks didn’t go anywhere and they fizzled well before the draft started on Thursday night. Also this week, Ngakoue and owner Tony Khan took their battle to Twitter. The two traded barbs as Ngakoue pushed the Jaguars to hurry up and trade him.
“He is a tremendous player, tremendous person,” Caldwell said. “He’s always been first class in everything he’s done here, in the locker room and through his time here, the first four years of his contract. Obviously, he feels like things have not gone the way he wanted. In some aspects, he may have a point. But we put our best foot forward not once but twice, and I hope he sees the light that Jacksonville is a good spot, and it could at the end of the day be his only option.”
Ngakoue has yet to sign his non-exclusive tender for 2020, which would pay him $17.8MM. What he wants is a deal that would be worth roughly $20MM per season – but he doesn’t want it in Jacksonville.
Jaguars Eyeing Tua Tagovailoa, Talking Trade With Lions
Could Jacksonville move up the board? ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets that Jaguars’ general manager Dave Caldwell “just” called Lions’ general manager Bob Quinn about tonight’s pick.
Jacksonville is currently in possession of picks No. 9 and No. 20, although that might not be enough to get Detroit to sacrifice the No. 3 pick. We heard earlier today that the Lions would only surrender the third-overall pick if they received a top-five pick in return.
Regardless of compensation, it appears that the Jaguars’ trade inquiries are part of an effort to select Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Talks of the signal-caller getting selected by the Jaguars continue to “linger,” writes ProFootballTalk.com’s Mike Florio. The reporter notes that Jacksonville has been mentioned as a suitor for the quarterback for several days.
Of course, it’s uncertain if the Jaguars would really select a player at that position before fully evaluating whether Gardner Minshew can be their franchise quarterback. On the flip side, as Florio notes, the organization passed on both Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson because of the presence of Blake Bortles. Ownership may be looking to avoid that mistake a second time.
If the Jaguars have their way, this might not be the only trade they pull off today. The organization has been shopping running back Leonard Fournette or defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, but they’ve yet to find a favorable trade.
Vikings, Jaguars Interested In Ezra Cleveland
A few weeks ago, Boise State tackle Ezra Cleveland seemed ticketed for the second or third round. Now, it’s sounding more and more like he’ll hear his name called tonight. The Jaguars and Vikings are both showing serious interest in Cleveland, Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network hears.
The Browns have reportedly been enthralled with Cleveland, too, and not just because of his name. He has the potential to feature at four different offensive line spots (every one but center), plus enough bulk at 300+ pounds to hold his ground. Recently, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo adds that the Boise State tackle is a “mortal lock” to be chosen in Round 1.
The Vikings have been exploring tackle options lately, even though Riley Reiff remains an option. If they drafted Cleveland, they slot the youngster at right tackle and kick Reiff inside. The Jaguars, meanwhile, will return every featured OL from last year, except for Cedric Ogbuehi, but they’re looking to bulk up the unit further.
The No. 10 pick would be too early for the Browns to take Cleveland, but they could trade down for him or fill a different need there and trade back into the first round later.