By Hays Carlyon
Arguably the wildest offseason in franchise history is over.
New leadership.
A massive free-agent class. Followed by a legacy-defining draft.
So, how does the team look? This is our stab at the 53-man roster as we await the start of training camp on July 22.
OFFENSE (25 players)
QUARTERBACK (2)
Who: Trevor Lawrence and Nick Mullens.
Tough cuts: None.
Why: Lawrence and Mullens are all this roster needs. Keeping two allows for more room elsewhere at a more competitive position.
RUNNING BACK (4)
Who: Bhayshul Tuten, Travis Etienne, Tank Bigsby and LeQuint Allen.
Tough cuts: None.
Why: The Jaguars should keep four backs. Tuten and Allen look like good picks early in the process.
RECEIVER (6)
Who: Brian Thomas Jr., Travis Hunter, Dyami Brown, Parker Washington, Josh Cephus and Eli Pancol.
Tough cuts: None.
Why: We will count Hunter as a receiver. The fifth and sixth spots are totally up for grabs among several unheralded options. I’ll give the nod to Cephus and Pancol based on the combo of receiver and special teams play. There’s a noticeable lack of depth. Louis Rees-Zammit is the international player that doesn’t count against the 53, but he will never be a contributor here.
TIGHT END (3)
Who: Brenton Strange, Hunter Long and Johnny Mundt.
Tough cuts: None.
Why: They will probably keep four by Week 1, but as of now it is hard to find a suitable fourth option. I’d rather keep three and go heavier elsewhere.
OFFENSIVE LINE (10)
Who: Walker Little, Wyatt Milum, Robert Hainsey, Patrick Mekari, Anton Harrison, Ezra Cleveland, Chuma Edoga, Fred Johnson, Jonah Monheim and Cole Van Lanen.
Tough cuts: Luke Fortner and Javon Foster.
Why: Fortner and Foster are still on rookie contracts as recent draft picks, but I expect both will be released. It’s amazing how much turnover there has been in this offense and especially the offensive line. Only four of the 10 here were on last year’s team. Of the 25 offensive players I have making the 53, 14 are in their first year with the Jaguars.
DEFENSE (25 players)
DEFENSIVE TACKLE (5)
Who: Arik Armstead, Maason Smith, DaVon Hamilton, Jordan Jefferson and Tyler Lacy.
Tough cuts: None.
Why: This seems nearly locked in heading into training camp.
DEFENSIVE END (4)
Who: Josh Hines-Allen, Travon Walker, Emmanuel Ogbah and Dawuane Smoot.
Tough cuts: Myles Cole and Yasir Abdullah.
Why: Cole and Abdullah will need good camps to make the 53 and I say they don’t make it.
LINEBACKER (6)
Who: Foye Oluokun, Devin Lloyd, Jack Kiser, Ventrell Miller, James Gardeck and Jalen McLeod.
Tough cuts: Chad Muma.
Why: Gardeck and McLeod can also help at defensive end in passing situations. Muma will need a strong camp to have a chance and my bet is he doesn’t make it.
CORNERBACK (5)
Who: Tyson Campbell, Jourdan Lewis, Montaric Brown, Jarrian Jones and Deantre Prince.
Tough cut: Christian Braswell.
Why: The battle for the final corner spot will be heated throughout camp. Might be the closest race on the roster.
SAFETY (5)
Who: Eric Murray, Caleb Ransaw, Andrew Wingard, Rayuan Lane and Daniel Thomas.
Tough cut: Darnell Savage and Antonio Johnson.
Why: This is a competitive position and one that carries a heavy special teams responsibility. Cutting Savage isn’t ideal financially. His cap number is $4.6 million and the Jags would carry a $10.2 million dead money hit to release him. My guess is the Jags will find a trade partner in late August willing to give up a late-round pick in 2027. Johnson struggled last season. He still has upside but will probably need a dynamic camp to make the team.
SEPCIALISTS (3)
Who: Cam Little (kicker), Logan Cooke (punter) and Ross Matiscik (long snapper).
Tough cuts: None.
Why: Three elite players.
CONCLUSION
The roster turnover under the new regime of coach Liam Coen, general manager James Gladstone and executive vice president of football operations Tony Boselli is evident.
Twenty three of the players here are first-year Jaguars. If you remove the three specialists, its 23 of the 50 players: Nearly half.
I do think they will keep all the rookie draft class and free agents signed this offseason.
Positions of depth are running back, offensive line, defensive line, linebacker and safety.
Cornerback and tight end appear to be the weakest positions. Obviously, Hunter could change things at corner.
The team will be better equipped to handle attrition on the defensive side of the ball. It gets ugly quick on the offensive side if a few main cogs get injured. Yes, you can say that about any offense but it seems heightened here.
Still, these are exciting times and there is certainly enough talent here for a run at the AFC South title.
(You can email Hays at [email protected] and follow him on X/Twitter @HaysCarlyon).
