The Jacksonville Jaguars are navigating a tight salary cap this offseason, and it's clear why. Despite a subdued free agency period, they find themselves with just $5.98 million in cap space, placing them among the bottom five in the league.
So, where's all that cap space tied up? The answer lies in dead cap money.
This is essentially funds already paid to players but not yet accounted for against the cap. Even if a player is released or traded, those financial obligations don't just disappear-they still impact the team's budget.
According to Over the Cap, of the Jaguars' $301.2 million salary cap this season, a hefty $53.34 million is dead cap. That ranks seventh-highest in the NFL, a significant chunk that can't be utilized for current roster moves.
This situation stems from the extensive roster changes made last season under GM James Gladstone, who was in his first year steering the ship. The financial repercussions of those moves are being felt now, but the bright side is that these obligations will clear up heading into 2027.
Here's a breakdown of the Jaguars' dead money for 2026:
- CB Tyson Campbell: $19.5M
- WR Gabe Davis: $14.6M
- CB Greg Newsome: $7.05M
- S Darnell Savage: $6.2M
- WR Dyami Brown: $1.92M
- IDL Khalen Saunders: $1.86M
- TE Johnny Mundt: $500,000
- OL Javon Foster: $398,532
- IDL Jordan Jefferson: $391,538
- RB Tank Bigsby: $230,530
- IDL Tyler Lacy: $171,780
- CB Deantre Prince: $166,114
- RB Keilan Robinson: $140,978
Gladstone recently spoke about the team's reserved free agency strategy, emphasizing the importance of preserving projected compensatory picks for 2027. However, the limited cap space certainly plays a role in this conservative approach.
The Jaguars are clearly playing the long game, absorbing the financial hits now with an eye toward more flexibility and opportunity in the future.