Jaguars Sign Punter Logan Cooke to a Contract Extension

The first member of the 2018 draft class to re-up with the Jaguars is the team's most "special" weapon: punter Logan Cooke, who signed a contract extension on Saturday.

The Jaguars elected not to kick the can -- or the football -- down the road when it came to one of the NFL's best specialists. 

With fourth-year punter Logan Cooke entering a contract year, the Jaguars have locked up the veteran specialist with a new contract extension before he even takes a snap in his fourth season.

Since entering the NFL in 2018, Cooke’s 42.9 net punting average is the fourth-highest (min. 50 punts) in the league during that span. His 81 punts inside the 20-yard line rank seventh. He also recorded a 43.2 net punting average in 2020, which was the third-highest mark in the AFC. 

Cooke was one of the NFL's top punters in the NFL last season and was one of the team's primary Pro Bowl snubs with James Robinson and Myles Jack. Had the Jaguars performed better than 12-36 since drafting Cooke with the No. 247 overall pick in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft, perhaps Cooke would have gained more recognition for his abilities to this point. 

But the Jaguars, new head coach Urban Meyer, and new general manager Trent Baalke didn't need any more convincing. Baalke was with the Jaguars in 2020 so he knows what he can do, but Meyer and the Jaguars' special teams coaching staff were all brand new. For them to have this type of trust in Cooke before their first together speaks volumes.

Cooke is the latest Jaguars to be re-signed or given a contract extension in the past week, following Tre Herndon, Tyler Shatley, Sidney Jones, Dawuane Smoot, James O'Shaughnessy, and kicker Aldrick Rosas. The Jaguars also franchise-tagged left tackle Cam Robinson.

With the deal now official, Cooke is the first member of the Jaguars' 2018 draft class to be given a second deal by the team. Other candidates are wide receiver DJ Chark, offensive tackle Will Richardson, and linebacker Leon Jacobs. It appears highly unlikely that 2018 first-rounder Taven Bryan will be extended after the Jaguars went on a free agency splurge along the defensive line. 

Cooke has appeared in 46 games for the Jaguars, serving as the team’s primary punter and as the holder on field goals and PATs. He has punted 217 times for a 42.9 net punting average, the highest mark in franchise history.