Jaguars expected to place franchise tag on TE Evan Engram
The second of this year’s franchise tags is coming out. After the Commanders cuffed Daron Payne, the Jaguars intend to tag Evan Engram, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
This is a logical choice, with the tight end tag being the third-lowest figure this year. It will cost the Jags $11.35M to give Engram the one-year tender/placeholder. Engram has said he wants to stay in Jacksonville, and the Jaguars are optimistic they will be able to hammer out a deal. This move buys them time.
Jacksonville had until March 7 to fire off this transaction. Although GM Trent Baalke said right tackle Jawaan Taylor was also a tag candidate, that move never added up compared to the Engram call. It would have cost the Jags $18.2M to tag Taylor. Considering Cam Robinson is signed to a top-eight left tackle contract, putting that number on the payroll would have been challenging for the team.
For Engram, this cements a mid-career breakthrough effort. Having languished on mostly poor Giants offenses during his first five seasons, Engram signed a one-year, $9M pact with the Jags in March 2022. The “prove it” deal paid off for both parties. Engram ended the season with a Jags tight end-record 766 receiving yards last season, and he continued his production in the playoffs to help the team to the divisional round.
While a host of players have been tagged in the season following their fifth-year option campaign, Engram is the rare player to be tagged two years after his option year. The 2017 first-rounder played out his option year in New York. This tag, which could well lead to a long-term deal, will mean the Ole Miss product will have collected more than $26M over the past three seasons. Not bad for a tight end who has battled injuries and inconsistency.
It would behoove the Jags to work out a long-term accord with Engram. Their pass catcher payroll is filling up. They now have an Engram tag and Calvin Ridley‘s fifth-year option ($10.9M) on the books. Both Christian Kirk and Zay Jones are on veteran contracts — $18M and $8M per year, respectively — though the Jags restructuring both helped create enough cap space to unholster this Engram tag. This locks in an intriguing quartet ahead of Trevor Lawrence‘s third season. The Jags are still waiting on Ridley’s reinstatement from his gambling suspension, but that is expected to take place.
Thursday’s Jags decision also stands to benefit two tight ends tagged last year. Unless the Cowboys tag Dalton Schultz, his free agency prospects look a bit better. Ditto Mike Gesicki, whom the Dolphins tagged ahead of an ill-fitting season in Mike McDaniel‘s offense. Both are eligible for unrestricted free agency March 15. Gesicki and Schultz are expected to relocate soon after.
