2024 Free Agency: ‘Multiple Teams Expected To Be Willing To Pay’ No. 1 WR Money to Calvin Ridley
The chances of the Jacksonville Jaguars being priced out on the Calvin Ridley market continue to rise.
The first major domino for Ridley's free agency market dropped on Monday when Mike Evans re-signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, leaving Ridley as the top projected wideout to hit free agency.
The second came on Tuesday, when news of Josh Allen's franchise tag arrived. No long-term deal for Allen by the 4 p.m. deadline would mean the Jaguars can't use the tag on Ridley.
With Ridley now eligible to hear other offers on March 11 if the Jaguars don't sign him by then, the chances continue to increase of jaw-dropping contracts being sent his way.
According to NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe, "Calvin Ridley is trending toward reaching free agency and he would be the No. 1 wide receiver on several teams’ FA board, per sources, with multiple teams expected to be willing to pay Ridley WR1 money."
What would No. 1 WR money for Ridley look like? The five highest-paid receivers by average annual value are as follows:
- Tyreek Hill: $30 million
- Davante Adams: $28 million
- Cooper Kupp: $26.7 million
- A.J. Brown: $25 million
- Stefon Diggs/D.K. Metcalf: $24 million
If the Jaguars sign Ridley to a contract extension before March 13, they will owe the Atlanta Falcons a second-round pick as opposed to a third-round selection. In a deep draft where No. 48 overall could be an immensely valuable resource, this seems unlikely.
“Well, we’re not real concerned with that, whether it’s a second or third round. We’re just going to work with the player and see if we can come to an agreement whether that’s before that compensation changes or not, that remains to be the same. We’re more focused on the player," Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke said at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday.
“Yeah, we’re going to continue to have conversations with all of it. We’ve got a lot of work to do this offseason. I had a meeting with Calvin [Ridley] the other day in my office. I had a great talk with Calvin, I know exactly where he’s at and he knows exactly where we’re at. We’re just going to continue to work with all of these players and try to come to some form of compromise, some form of resolution as the weeks go on.”
Ridley recorded the second 1,000-yard season in his career in 2023, catching 76 passes for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns. He also made it through the entire season healthy, starting all 17 games after serving a season-long suspension in 2022 and missing most of the 2021 season.
