The Jacksonville Jaguars have a long to-do list offseason. Already, they had several needs ahead of free agency, and they got yet another one when veteran center Mitch Morse announced that he's retiring. Now, the front office will be tasked with finding his replacement. Fortunately, there will be a pretty good one available in free agency.
Drew Dalman is slated to hit the open market when the new league year begins on March 12. Once he does, he'll be the best center available. The former Stanford Cardinal has appeared in 57 games with 50 starts since the Atlanta Falcons made him a fourth-round pick in 2021. He gave up just two sacks and 10 total pressures last year and was equally adept at run blocking, posting a Pro Football Focus grade of 79.8 in that department.
Just recently, Dan Graziano of ESPN reported that the Falcons are bracing themselves for the possibility of losing Dalman, pointing out that they would like him to return but are aware that he's going to have a robust market in free agency.
"The Falcons are prepared to lose center Drew Dalman in free agency. They'd like to have him back but are concerned he can get more money elsewhere. They feel good, though, about tendering restricted free agent center Ryan Neuzil and making him the Dalman replacement, which he was during the 2024 season when Dalman missed time due to injury."
Compounding the issue is that Atlanta has poured a significant amount of resources into the offensive trenches, having given big contracts to left tackle Jake Matthews, right guard Chris Lindstrom, and right tackle Kaleb McGary. Simply put, paying Dalman doesn't fit their current budget.
Dalman is the No. 1 center in PFF's list of top center (and No. 26 overall player) slated to become a free agent. The advanced statistics site argues that he can still improve as a pass-blocker but is a heck of a run-blocker.
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Can the Jaguars afford Drew Dalman?
Spotrac expects Drew Dalman to get a three-year contract that pays him an annual salary of $6.8 million, but there's a chance that he'll command a significantly higher amount. In fact, don't be surprised if he ends up getting an average of $15 million per year or even more. This begs the question, should the Jacksonville Jaguars make a run for him?
Given that Mitch Morse is 33 and had one year left on his contract, the Jags would've needed to address the center position sooner rather than later. With him out of the equation, they can do it now and can sign Dalman to check off that box.
Heading into free agency, Jacksonville had around $38 million in space but will get an additional $10 million once the Christian Kirk release becomes official. The team's brass also has to add a cornerback and safety. That would be three immediate needs to take care of.
Aside from Kirk, the Jaguars can release other players to get even more cap space, but regardless of the final amount, they should have enough space to lock up Dalman and sign a top safety or cornerback. They'l probably have to wait until the second wave of free agency to address the remaining need. Either way, finding a replacement for Morse is feasible.
Of course, the Jaguars could always wait until the draft to address the center position, but shouldn't rule out the possibility of signing Drew Dalman in free agency.
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