Report: Jaguars Expected to Franchise Tag Cam Robinson
The Jacksonville Jaguars don't appear to be moving into 2021 with a question at left tackle.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Jaguars are expected to place a franchise tag on left tackle Cam Robinson, keeping their starting left tackle in place for the first year of the Urban Meyer regime.
It is currently known what the 2021 franchise tag figures may look like since the NFL has yet to officially settle the cap. But as of now, OverTheCap.com has the franchise tag for offensive linemen projected to be around the $14,507,000 range.
According to OverTheCap's projections for the Jaguars' salary cap, this would result in the Jaguars having $70,986,714 in cap space moving forward.
Robinson was selected No. 34 overall in the second round in 2017, the second draft pick of the Tom Coughlin front office era. He started 18 games for the Jaguars at left tackle as a rookie (three postseason), helping the Jaguars have one of the NFL's most efficient offenses.
Robinson played just two games in 2018 due to a season-ending ACL injury, but he recovered in time to play in Week 3 in the following season. Since then, Robinson has started 30-of-30 games at left tackle.
Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer indicated earlier this offseason that he didn't expect to overhaul the offensive line. This makes sense considering the Jaguars are expected to use the 2021 NFL Draft's top selection on a quarterback. In short, the Jaguars aren't in the position to let a young left tackle leave without having a guaranteed replacement.
"Oh, it's all I think about 24/7. And this is a transformable decision for the Jaguars. We all know that it's a quarterback sport and obviously in the NFL," Meyer told NFL Network's Jane Slater following Lawrence's pro day last month.
"But it's also, when I was talking, our offensive line is pretty good. You know, it's not a blow up offensive line. You know, we got some other areas we got to fix. So I have a vision of what it looks like. Coach Schottenheimer and Bevell, we've had those conversations, but it's going to be built around what we have, and there's some good pieces there but we're gonna make it even better."
The Jaguars also retained offensive line coach George Warhop, who has spent the last two seasons as Jacksonville's line coach. He has a history with Robinson and the Jaguars will likely be hoping Warhop can help him take the next step in his development in 2021, potentially leading to a long-term deal for both sides.
