Report: Jaguars ‘Were Believed To Be on the Verge of a Deal’ for Danielle Hunter This Offseason

The Jacksonville Jaguars' reported interest in Minnesota Vikings pass-rusher Danielle Hunter has been long documented. But according to one report, a potential deal was close to being struck months ago.

According to ESPN's Dan Graziano, the Jaguars were "believed to be on the verge of a deal" for Hunter this past offseason.

"The reason I was going to say Hunter is because the Vikings were having serious conversations about trading him last offseason before they reworked his contract to get him into camp," Graziano said. "They had multiple teams interested and at one point, according to sources, the Jaguars were believed to be on the verge of a deal to get him. That deal and all of their other Hunter conversations fell apart, and they threw him an extra $11.5 million to keep him happy."

It isn't a surprise to see the Jaguars were deep in talks for Hunter at one point. The Jaguars had plenty of questions about their pass-rush entering the 2023 season, with the departure of Arden Key and Dawuane Smoot's Achilles injury playing big factors.

Since then, the Jaguars have seen Smoot return to the field and have seen Josh Allen become one of the NFL's best pass-rushers with a team-leading seven sacks. The Jaguars are also expected to get starting interior defensive lineman DaVon Hamilton back within the next two games, which could complicate matters further.

"That’s not my area. We’ll talk about it as a staff, but right now, we’re comfortable with the guys we have and we’re getting the guys back that can play a major role in the growth of this team last year and going forward," Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell said earlier this month when asked if Smoot and Hamilton have enough time to show something by the deadline.

Hunter leads the NFL in sacks with nine this season, though the chances of him being traded have dwindled significantly as the Vikings have picked up back-to-back wins.

"He has performed well, but while the Vikings' season appeared a couple of weeks ago to be in bad shape and he might or might not be in their plans for next year, I think they're focused on staying in this thing," Graziano said.

"They have a $15.1 million dead-money cap charge for Hunter in 2024 whether he's on the team or not. He turns 29 on Sunday, and Minnesota looks like it might be a rebuilding project in 2024 and beyond. So if you can get something of value for him now, it kind of makes sense. But this is an example of why the NFL trade deadline is too early. Not enough teams are out of it yet."