The Jacksonville Jaguars had a strong season in Liam Coen‘s first year as head coach. The Jaguars went 13-4 and won the AFC South.

Despite their successful regular season, Jacksonville was one-and-done in the playoffs, falling to the Buffalo Bills in the Wildcard. So what are their next steps? They have -$9 million in cap space and are losing key players to free agency. How do we give the Jaguars an offseason that sets them up for success?

For this simulated offseason, we’ll be utilizing StickToTheModel, a new general manager-like simulation that tries to depict the NFL offseason accurately.

Who to Cut?

As mentioned before, Jacksonville has a bit of a cap problem. To negate this, we’ll have to cut some players and restructure the contracts of others.

Unfortunately, the Jaguars don’t have any players they can cut that would immediately fix the cap issue. We first start by cutting tackle Chuma Edoga to save $2.9 million. Wide receiver Tim Jones and tight end Johnny Mundt are next, saving us a combined $3.7 million.

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Defensive tackle Austin Johnson is our first on defense to get cut, but then there comes a hard decision. Cutting safety Antonio Johnson would save us $3.6 million, but the third-year safety was too big an impact player to warrant the move.

Who to Resign?

Who do we resign to? With what cap? We won’t be bringing any pending free agents back. Losing names like Travis Etienne, Greg Newsome II, and Devin Lloyd isn’t easy, but we don’t have the cap flexibility to fit them in.

We do, however, make additional moves with players already on the roster to clear up more cap space.

Restructure

We have to get busy restructuring players. Doing so will open up cap space but also guarantee the Jaguars will be paying these players down the road.

First is wide receiver Jakobi Meyers. Altering Meyers’ contract saves us $3.6 million this offseason. We also agree to restructures with Jourdan Lewis, Walker Little, and Foyesade Oluokun. Agreeing to restructures with these three players saves us another $14 million in cap.

The final restructure is defensive end Josh Hines-Allen. Hines-Allen’s restructure alone saves us $4.6 million.

Extensions

We aren’t able to get much done in the extension market either. We agree to a three-year extension with tight end Brenton Strange, but that won’t save us any cap space this season.

Free Agency

With the moves we made, we are able to muster up around $28 million in cap space to spend in free agency. While not a lot, there’s enough room to add valuable pieces.

Our big signing of free agency was getting offensive lineman Tyler Linderbaum. We agreed to a three-year deal worth $48 million with the Pro Bowl offensive lineman. Adding Linderbaum immediately beefs up the trenches, and we got him on a pretty good deal.

On the other side of the ball, we make two additions. We first signed DaQuan Jones to a one-year deal worth $6.5 million. More than what we wanted to spend, but it adds a solid presence to the interior of the defensive line. We also agree to a one-year deal with cornerback Jeff Okudah for depth.

The Draft

On top of their cap situation, Jacksonville doesn’t have a first-round pick in 2026. They traded it away during last year’s draft to move up for Travis Hunter. While Hunter may have warranted the trade-up, his hefty price tag leaves us struggling to find ways to add to the team.

2.56 S A.J. Haulcy

Building on our defense is a necessity, and LSU’s A.J. Haulcy immediately adds versatility. The 6-foot safety combines elite ball skills with a large and dense frame, making him viable against the pass and as a run defender.

3.81 CB Malik Muhammad

Continuing to add to our secondary, we add Texas cornerback Malik Muhammad. The 6-foot cornerback is a flexible defender and could play in various packages, but has the capable size to play on the boundary. Muhammad has incredible football instincts and can play man coverage comfortably.

3.88 OL Gennings Dunker

Taking a break from defensive additions, we add Gennings Dunker. Despite playing tackle in college, Dunker’s limited athleticism will see him play in the interior in the NFL. The 6-foot-5 offensive lineman has a massive frame and plays aggressively. While Dunker doesn’t make the biggest impact on the run game immediately, his outstanding size could develop into a great pass protector.

3.100 EDGE Caden Curry

Finally addressing the edge, we add Ohio State’s Caden Curry. The 6-foot-3 edge rusher logged 11 sacks in 2025 and 16.5 tackles for loss. His play needs to be cleaned up, but his significant production, while underdeveloped, makes him an eye-catching prospect.

Recap

Additions

• OL Tyler Linderbaum
• IDL DaQuan Jones
• CB Jeff Okudah
• S A.J. Haulcy
• CB Malik Muhammad
• G Gennings Dunker
• EDGE Caden Curry

Losses

• T Chuma Edoga
• WR Tim Jones
• DT Austin Johnson
• TE Johnny Mundt
• RB Travis Etienne
• CB Greg Newsome II
• LB Devin Lloyd

There’s not a lot of room for additions for this Jaguars team. They have a cap space problem that isn’t easily fixable, and they are without a first-round draft pick. Despite this, we’re able to make enough room for a big-ticket free agent in Linderbaum and use our four Day 2 draft picks to add falling prospects at good value.