Report: Jaguars Set to Trade Cornerback A.J. Bouye to Denver for 4th-Round Pick
The Jacksonville Jaguars' roster continues to churn as another key veteran appears to be on his way out. Adam Schefter of ESPN was the first to report Tuesday that the Jaguars had agreed to trade cornerback A.J. Bouye to the Denver Broncos for a fourth-round draft selection in 2020.
According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, the fourth-rounder is the same pick the Broncos acquired from the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders in 2019, meaning the pick is likely near the bottom of the fourth-round.
The trade, which will not be official until the new league year begins later in March. Bouye, 28, has two years and over $27 million in non-guaranteed money left on his deal.
With the trade, the Jaguars and general manager Dave Caldwell now have 10 draft picks to work with in the 2020 NFL Draft, including six in the first four rounds.
Bouye had been a key member of the Jaguars' defense since he signed a massive five-year, $67.5 million contract with the team in 2017, but he was never a likely candidate to be on the roster in 2020 due to his $15.5 million cap hit. In trading Bouye, the Jaguars will save $11,437,500 on the cap in 2020, according to OverTheCap. This would give the Jaguars about $33.7 million in cap space, though most of that will go toward defensive end Yannick Ngakoue's franchise tag. The franchise tag is set to cost $19.3 million for defensive ends in 2020.
Bouye's career with the Jaguars started off strong. In the teams 10-6 season in 2017, he was a centerpiece to the Jaguars advancing to the AFC Championship thanks to his six interceptions and Pro Bowl performance opposite Jalen Ramsey. Bouye's production slipped over the last two years, however, and he has only recorded two interceptions since.
"A.J. had a nice year last year, and we will explore all options with him. He still has a lot of football left in him and another player that we really like here as a person and as a guy," Caldwell said last Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine. "Obviously, you all know the salary restrictions and all that stuff. Realistically, it is not as bad when you put him in line with the rest of the corners in the league.”
Jacksonville is now left with D.J. Hayden and Tre Herndon as their returning starters at cornerback, and the team is expected to target the position early in the draft.
