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Takeaways: Jaguars' Pederson, Baalke talk contracts, prospects and more at NFL Combine
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- Takeaways: Jaguars' Pederson, Baalke talk contracts, prospects and more at NFL Combine
INDIANAPOLIS — Both Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson and general manager Trent Baalke held court for around 45 minutes at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine, addressing plenty of questions surrounding the team's late-season collapse, impending free agents and the upcoming NFL Draft.
The team will have a lot of work to do this offseason, including retaining their own and adding players in free agency and the NFL Draft to get the team back on track after a disappointing end to the season in 2023.
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2024 NFL Scouting Combine primer: What to know and 5 players Jaguars could take a look at
While both Pederson and Baalke expressed disappointment about how the season ended, they did give off an optimistic tone when talking about the team's issues and how to resolve them.
Here are our takeaways.
Jaguars working to re-sign their own, will talk with several agents this week including Josh Allen 's
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Josh Allen (41) celebrates with teammates after setting the Jaguars single season record for sacks during second quarter action. The Jacksonville Jaguars hosted the Carolina Panthers at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, FL Sunday, December 31, 2023. The Jaguars went in at the half with a 9 to 0 lead.
Much was made about Baalke not speaking with outside linebacker Josh Allen's representation before his end-of-season press conference in late January.
That's changed a lot.
Over the last several weeks, Baalke has spent time working with the representatives of the team's impending free agents, including Allen. That'll continue this week, too, Baalke said.
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"That's an ongoing discussion that we're having with his agent. In fact, later today, I'm gonna have another meeting with him as well, so it's ongoing," Baalke said when asked directly about Allen's contract situation.
The Jaguars have until a March 5 franchise-tag deadline to come to a long-term deal with Allen or risk losing him in free agency.
Still, Baalke did not want to speculate on a potential franchise tag for the 26-year-old pass rusher.
"I don't want to speculate on that. We got a week, a little over a week to work with here. We're gonna work diligently with his agent to try to come to a resolution on this thing. So, that's our focus," he said.
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Baalke mentioned meetings with receiver Calvin Ridley 's agent and Ezra Cleveland 's agent this week at the Combine as well. He met with Ridley recently in Jacksonville to discuss his situation, too.
"We're gonna continue to work with all these players and try to come to some form of compromise, some form of resolution as the weeks go on," he said.
As far as Ridley is concerned, Baalke said the team is not worried about whether they'll have to send over a second or third-round pick to the Falcons as per the trade agreement in 2022. If the Jaguars sign Ridley to a contract extension before the new league year begins on March 13, they'll owe the Falcons a second-round pick. All else, the team will owe Atlanta a third-round pick.
It should be noted, too, that the Jaguars will not owe a second-round pick if Ridley is franchise-tagged, it will still be a third. That's important.
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When asked specifically about Cleveland, it seemed obvious that Baalke would like him back after the team traded a sixth-round pick for him last year.
"We'll sit down and talk, we traded for him for a reason and we think he's an awfully good football player. We'd like him back. We'd like all of our players back," said Baalke. "That's the way we roll. Unfortunately, you can't get them all back. We'll work hard, talk with Ron, his agent, and we'll talk with Ezra a little bit and see if we can come to an agreement."
Jaguars want Cam Robinson back in 2024, no ambiguity about it
Jacksonville Jaguars offensive tackle Cam Robinson (74) runs onto the field before an NFL football matchup Sunday, Oct. 15, 2023 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jacksonville Jaguars defeated the Indianapolis Colts 37-20. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]
When Baalke was asked about Cam Robinson's status with the team in 2024 at his end-of-season presser in January, the general manager said that he did not want to "commit to anything right now."
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That's seemingly changed completely as Baalke endorsed Robinson at Tuesday's press conference in Indy.
"I don't know where the ambiguity was," said Baalke.
"[Robinson's] under contract and the expectation is that he will be back. We've had a lot of discussions over the last two weeks. We obviously got a lot of moves we gotta do. There's a lot of players that hit free agency, there's a bunch of guys that we're working on potential extensions for, so we've got a lot of balls in the air right now and we're just gonna try to play them one by one."
Pederson noted Robinson was under contract and was complimentary of what Robinson brought to the table and that he "hopes" he's back, but did say the left tackle needs to be available.
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"Cam brings an edge. Cam brings some physicality to the offensive line," said Pederson. "He has to — he's like Trevor — he understands that his role is to help this team win and can't put the team, can't put the players, can't put us in situations that he did last year."
Robinson was suspended for the first four games of the season last year and was injured late in the season, missing a total of eight games in 2023. Pederson said the injuries are out of everyone's control, but Robinson has to be better in regards to the suspension.
"It's about being a pro. These are conversations that we've had. I definitely like having him on the team. He's fun to be around, brings a lot of energy out there and makes us better," he said.
Jaguars cornerback position will be addressed, Baalke impressed by group at Combine
After Jaguars defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen got the job in Jacksonville and finished his introductory press conference, much of the outside opinion has been centered around the team bringing in additional help at cornerback.
Jacksonville Jaguars DC Ryan Nielsen meets with the media during his introductory press conference on Feb. 15, 2024
Baalke confirmed those suspicions Tuesday, noting that the team is aware of the cornerback situation and that they'll look to add to it.
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"We've got to add to that group, I think Coach Nielsen spoke on it, Coach Pederson probably spoke on it. Now, I'm speaking on it. It's a group we need to address," Baalke said.
"We feel good about the group we have, we feel like we've got some good, young guys to work with. We've got some veterans in there, but we're definitely going to look to add to that group."
Jaguars 2023 starting nickel cornerback Tre Herndon is set to hit free agency in March, while both outside corners, Darious Williams and Tyson Campbell , are entering the final year of their deals.
Though the position group is likely addressed to some degree in the next few weeks in free agency, Baalke is bullish on this year's crop of players in Indianapolis this week.
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"I think the draft at the corner position is going to be strong. I think it's a good group," Baalke said. "I think there's going to be good players at the top end of the market and good players all the way through in the developmental range. I think it's going to be a pretty good group of players in that specific position group."
Among those thought to be the top corners participating this week includes Alabama's Kool-Aid McKinstry who could be selected higher based on name alone.
No question: Trevor Lawrence is the man for the job, says Pederson
Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson talks with Trevor Lawrence (16) during the third quarter of a regular season NFL football matchup Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Baltimore Ravens defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 23-7. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]
Perhaps to throw him off, Pederson was asked whether or not he felt Trevor Lawrence was the right quarterback for the Jaguars organization.
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Pederson handled the question in stride with an emphatic affirmation.
"We do have the right quarterback. I'm excited for the future with Trevor, he's excited based on the conversations we've had since the season [ended]," said Pederson. "I just know that our guy is the right guy, he's got the right demeanor, he's got the right leadership. It's our job as coaches now to make sure he takes that next step."
The answer was obvious, but the follow-up answer on what Lawrence needed to do to take the next step brought some intrigue. Pederson mentioned that needing Trevor's voice heard is part of the equation.
"Really, still put more of an impact to his voice on our offense. He's the one out there executing and calling the plays, so I want him to speak up and really take ownership in that with us," said Pederson.
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"The situational part of football too, just understanding game situations, managing the game in a certain way at certain times throughout the course of the game. Those are all areas that we can continue as a staff to assist him and help him get to where he wants to be."
It will be interesting to see what direction the team takes with Lawrence this season and just how much of an impact he can have on what the team does offensively. That part of the equation will start this summer.
Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82 .
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: NFL Combine: Jaguars' Pederson, Baalke talk Josh Allen, Cam Robinson
