Back in the 2021 draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars took a massive gamble when they selected safety Andre Cisco in Round 3. After all, he was a game-changer at Syracuse but got the dreaded injury-prone label after dealing with a handful of ailments. Surprisingly, he managed to stay healthy throughout his stint in Duval. However, he wasn't part of the new regime's plans and was allowed to walk in 2025. While the decision made sense, it could be one the Jags may come to regret.
Cisco signed a one-year deal prove-it deal with the New York Jets in free agency. This is understandable because he was underwhelming last year. However, nearly everyone struggled in defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen's scheme, so singling him out is unfair.
Having said that, Cisco missed tackles at an alarming rate and appeared to go through the motions at times. In fact, he was benched at one point. Then again, the New York, Queens native showed big-play capability in previous seasons.
Cisco got minimal playing time as a rookie and only joined the starting lineup late in 2021. Right off the bat, he showed promise. With a new coaching staff in place, the former Orangeman started next to Rayshawn Jenkins the following year and went on to register a team-high three interceptions and 10 passes defensed. He followed that up with four picks and five batted passes in 2023, proving that the skills that made him a ballhawk at the collegiate level were still there.
Moreover, Cisco put to rest the biggest question surrounding him ahead of the 2021 draft: He managed to stay relatively healthy and missed only five games in four years with the Jaguars. This was noteworthy because the safety suffered a lower-body injury and a torn ACL in his last two seasons at Syracuse. But despite his encouraging play, the Jags let him walk in the offseason.
The Jaguars could second-guess the decision to let Andre Cisco leave
Cisco signed a modest one-year deal worth $10 million with the New York Jets. He'll get a shot to rebound and cash in next year. All things considered, that's a relatively low-risk move when you take his upside into account. That's why it was a bit baffling to see the Jacksonville Jaguars not make a stronger effort to re-sign him.
Maybe Cisco wasn't a culture fit. Perhaps he wasn't a great locker room presence, but that's nothing more than conjectures from this writer. Regardless of the reason he didn't get a new deal in Jacksonville, you could make the case that the team's brass didn't properly replace him.
Sure, the Jags signed Eric Murray in free agency, and he was cheaper than Cisco. However, he isn't nearly as much of a game-changer. On the other hand, Jacksonville drafted Caleb Ransaw in April. Andrew Wingard, Darnell Savage, and Antonio Johnson could also be in the mix, but the three of them also struggled in 2024, so it's hard to get hyped up.
So far, Ransaw has earned rave reviews from the coaching staff and NFL analysts alike. However, the former Tulane Green Wave will be making the transition from cornerback to safety and will probably need time to hit his stride.
If Ransaw gets off to a slow start and Cisco makes an impact in the Big Apple, questions about the Jaguars' decision to let the latter walk out will rightly arise. Of course, there's an equal chance he'll flop and general manager James Gladstone will be validated.
Either way, it will be interesting to see how Andre Cisco fares with the Jets. Maybe he needed a clean slate, and he'll get it in New York.
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