Jaguars To Sign Nick Foles
This has felt like a foregone conclusion for over a week, but the Jaguars will sign free agent quarterback Nick Foles, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). And it is a huge deal, as RapSheet tweets that the former Super Bowl MVP will land a four-year, $88MM pact from Jacksonville. Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network adds that the deal maxes out at a whopping $102MM (Twitter link), but Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets that “only” $50.125MM is guaranteed.
After months of discussion as to how the Eagles would handle Foles’ contract, Philadelphia elected to not hit him with the franchise tag once he bought his way into free agency. Teams like Jacksonville who were interested in Foles did not really engage the Eagles in trade talks prior to that decision, as they never expected Philly to tag him in the first place.
The Giants were also rumored to have some interest in their former division rival, but the Jags seemed to be the clear favorites all along. Jacksonville’s quarterback situation has long been a hot topic of conversation, especially after the Blake Bortles extension predictably backfired. And in case you couldn’t hear it over all of the rejoicing in Florida, we just learned that Bortles has been cut.
Foles, 30, spent the bulk of his career as a backup, but wound up as the Super Bowl MVP following the 2017 season in one of the best feel-good stories of the century. He was once again called upon in 2018 as Carson Wentz was sidelined by injury. He went 4-1 in his five starts and completed 72.3% of his passes, his highest mark in any of his NFL seasons. He also threw for seven touchdowns against four interceptions.
He is not perfect by any means, but he should be an improvement over Bortles, and despite a recent batch of cost-cutting moves, the Jags hope that their core is strong enough to make another run at the playoffs after a disappointing 2018 campaign.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/8/19
Today’s minor moves from another busy day of action across the league:
Arizona Cardinals
- Re-signed: RB D.J. Foster
Dallas Cowboys
- Re-signed: DT Daniel Ross
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Released: LS Carson Tinker
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: K Jonathan Brown
Seattle Seahawks
- Re-signed: DB Akeem King
Jaguars Not Ready To Release Blake Bortles
Blake Bortles‘ time with the Jaguars could be coming to a close, but he won’t get his pink slip on Friday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. Before potentially releasing the quarterback, the Jaguars will likely wait to make sure they can find a quality substitute in free agency. 
[RELATED: Jaguars Release Malik Jackson, Carlos Hyde, Others]
That QB substitute, reportedly, will be Nick Foles, but nothing is final yet. Free agency does not formally begin until Thursday and the so-called “legal tampering” period does not get underway until Monday, March 11.
Only $6.5MM of Bortles’ $16.5MM contract is guaranteed for next season, so the Jaguars are expected to either release him or try to unload him in a Brock Osweiler type of trade. The former No. 3 overall pick is due a $1MM bonus on March 19, so it would be a shocker to see his situation linger beyond that date. By then, the Jaguars should either have a better signal caller in the fold or a plan to roll with Bortles plus a rookie passer.
Bortles, 27 in April, threw for only 13 touchdowns against eleven interceptions last season. In the middle of his 12 starts (which resulted in a 3-9 record), Bortles was demoted twice.
Jaguars To Release RT Jermey Parnell
The Jaguars’ spring cleaning is in full effect. The team will release right tackle Jermey Parnell, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
Parnell was due $6MM in 2019, but none of that money was guaranteed. The Jaguars now have somewhere in the neighborhood of $30MM in cap space after their litany of cuts on Friday morning.
Before Parnell’s exit, the Jaguars also released defensive tackle Malik Jackson, running back Carlos Hyde, and safety Tashaun Gipson. At this rate, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see even more key players released by the end of the business day.
Parnell, a 2009 undrafted free agent out of Mississippi, bounced around the NFL before landing with the Cowboys in 2010. The offensive tackle established himself as one of Dallas’ key backups, and he turned that experience into a starting gig with the Jaguars. The 32-year-old spent the past four years in Jacksonville, starting each of his 57 games. He appeared in 13 games last season, with Pro Football Focus ranking him 49th among 83 eligible offensive tackles at the time of his season-ending injury in December.
Jaguars Release Tashaun Gipson
It’s a bloodbath in Jacksonville. On Friday, the Jaguars released safety Tashaun Gipson, according to ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano (Twitter link). 
[RELATED: Jaguars Release Malik Jackson]
Word of Gipson’s release comes moments after the club dropped defensive tackle Malik Jackson and running back Carlos Hyde. Between the three transactions, the Jags have saved a total of $23.2MM in salary cap space for the coming year.
Heading into Friday, the Jaguars had less than $3MM in breathing room, so the trio of cuts will make a world of difference for the Jags. By the same token, the Jaguars will have to find someone to replace Gipson – a reliable starter – in the secondary.
Gipson was due upwards of $8MM in 2019 but teams still called on him prior to his release, so he figures to find a healthy market in the coming days. The 28-year-old (29 in August) started in every possible game for the Jaguars since joining the squad in 2016. In 2018, he racked up 54 tackles, one interception, and seven passes defensed playing primarily at free safety. For Gipson’s efforts last year, Pro Football Focus ranked him as the No. 37 safety in the NFL, placing him ahead of notables like T.J. McDonald, Landon Collins, and Duron Harmon.
Jaguars To Release Carlos Hyde
The Jaguars showed Malik Jackson the door, and Carlos Hyde will follow him out. The running back will be released by the Jaguars on Friday, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
The Jaguars tried to trade Jackson and Hyde, but couldn’t find a worthwhile deal. Hyde, who joined the Jaguars in a midseason trade with the Browns, had two years left on his deal but nothing in the way of guarantees. Understandably, clubs passed on trading for Hyde and taking on a $4.7MM cap hold. Hyde will now get an early crack at free agency before the market formally opens on Thursday.
Last year, Hyde ran for 189 yards and zero touchdowns in his eight games (two starts) with Jacksonville. In theory, Hyde could have returned on a lesser deal to help stopgap Leonard Fournette, but the Jags will instead look in another direction. Fournette could be backed up by T.J. Yeldon, but that would require re-signing the impending free agent.
The Jags have opened up significant cap room by dismissing Hyde and Jackson – by our calculation, they’ve gone from having $2.6MM in space to roughly $20MM by virtue of the two cuts.
Jaguars To Release Malik Jackson
The Jaguars informed defensive tackle Malik Jackson that he will be released, a source tells Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Jackson still has three years to go on the six-year, $85.5MM contract he inked in 2016, but the Jags will cut him to save $11MM against $4MM in dead money. 
Jackson didn’t missed a single game during his time with the Jaguars and earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2017. However, he took a bit of a step back in 2018, and he was ultimately benched for Taven Bryan down the stretch. He finished the season with 32 tackles and 3.5 sacks, with Pro Football Focus ranking him just 85th among 112 interior defenders.
The Jaguars tried, and failed, to find a suitable trade for Jackson. Jackson still has value, of course, but no team gave real consideration to adding the veteran at his current salary. After his release is finalized, he’ll be free to sign elsewhere, albeit at a cheaper rate than his previous deal.
After losing his starting job in December, Jackson saw the writing on the wall.
“In my mind, if I’m third or fourth on the depth chart making $14.5MM to $15MM, I don’t see too much future for me in Jacksonville,” Jackson said. “I’m not trying to be a journeyman by any means. But it’s a business and soon as you try to forget that then it’s a rude awakening for sure.”
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/7/19
Today’s minor moves:
Dallas Cowboys
- Re-signed: LB Justin March-Lillard, DB Darian Thompson
Denver Broncos
- Re-signed: LS Casey Kreiter
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Re-signed: LS Matt Overton
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: DB Harold Jones-Quartey
Teams Inquiring On Jaguars’ Tashaun Gipson
Teams have called the Jaguars to inquire about safety Tashaun Gipson, sources tell Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The belief around the league is that he is available, Rapoport adds. 
Gipson is due upwards of $8MM in 2019 and the Jaguars are in a bit of a cap crunch. On the other hand, Gipson has proven to be a reliable starter so the Jags, ideally, would like to keep him.
Gipson, 29 in August, has started in every possible game for the Jaguars since joining the squad in 2016. Last year, he racked up 54 tackles, one interception, and seven passes defensed playing primarily at free safety. In 2018, Pro Football Focus ranked Gipson as the No. 37 safety in the NFL, placing him ahead of notables like T.J. McDonald, Landon Collins, and Duron Harmon.
There are still two years to go on Gipson’s five-year, $36MM contract with cap numbers of $9.05MM and $9.3MM in each of the next two seasons. He’s scheduled to collect on a $500K roster bonus on March 17, so the Jaguars will probably aim to make something happen in the next eleven days or not trade him at all.
Mutual Interest Between Nick Foles, Jaguars
As the Combine winds down, the Jaguars are entering the final pre-free agency week as the unquestioned clubhouse leaders for Nick Foles.
Mutual interest exists between the Super Bowl LII MVP and the Jags, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes (video link). Jacksonville was not ready to trade draft capital for Foles, likely because of a limited market for the veteran quarterback, but has been viewed as the favorite since Philadelphia’s tag-and-trade scenario did not come to fruition.
With other teams not nearly as connected to the free agent-to-be, the Jags may be set to receive a discount. They are internally preparing a Foles offer, Jeff McLane of Philly.com notes, and the expectation is they will be able to sign him for a below-market deal (at least, in terms of veteran starters). However, Rapoport expects the deal to be north of what the Broncos gave to Case Keenum last year, envisioning this pact will eclipse $20MM per year.
While any starting-QB-level deal will put the Jags up against the cap, considering they hold the least cap space in the league (current $2MM-plus over the salary ceiling), the team needs a starter. The team’s Blake Bortles extension predictably backfired, and if the Jaguars cut the sixth-year passer and do not designate him as a post-June 1 release, they are going to take a $16MM-plus dead-money hit this year. If Jacksonville does make Bortles a post-June 1 departure, it cannot use any of the funds created from the transaction until June. The team may need the modest $4.5MM in cap savings a Bortles release creates to afford Foles in March.
However, the Jaguars are shopping Malik Jackson and Carlos Hyde, pointing to releases in the event no one wants to take on these contracts. Cuts of Jackson and Hyde would free up nearly $16MM in space. Marcell Dareus was a cap-casualty candidate, but the former top-five pick restructured his deal. The team also picked up Calais Campbell‘s option. This further points to Jackson being the odd man out, a scenario he expected.
Foles was paid better than Keenum as an NFC backup the past two seasons and obviously became one of the most famous backup quarterbacks in NFL history. His non-Philadelphia stays have not produced much, most notably his St. Louis stint leading to Keenum replacing him as the Rams’ starter and Foles considering retirement before joining the Chiefs. But former Eagles QBs coach John DeFilippo is now in Jacksonville as OC. That may give Foles the best opportunity to thrive outside of Philly.