Why the Jaguars Shouldn't Even Consider Not Bringing Calais Campbell Back in 2020
If it has been said once, it has been said a thousand times: the Jacksonville Jaguars need to make some moves to free up cap space this offseason. This is an inarguable fact, and certain decisions are inevitable.
According to Spotrac, the Jaguars are currently slated to have the third-fewest funds in available cap space if the roster stands as it is today, with $-5,604,246. We wrote this week about how while this isn't a positive situation, the Jaguars can free up the space they need with a few nonconsequential moves.
One move not listed, however, is potentially releasing veteran defensive lineman Calais Campbell. Due to Campbell's large cap hit during the final year of the four-year deal he signed with the Jaguars in 2017 ($17.5 million), and the amount of money the Jaguars would save if they released Campbell this offseason ($15 million).
Releasing Campbell would save the Jaguars more money than releasing players like cornerback A.J. Bouye and wide receiver Marqise Lee, so it would make financial sense. But despite this, the Jaguars would be wise to not even contemplate not bringing Campbell back in 2020.
"Both of those players – Yannick and Calais – I had chats with them after the season," Jaguars owner Shad Khan said during a conversation with jaguars.com's Ashlyn Sullivan earlier this month. "I would love for them to be back and I'm very hopeful they'll be back."
"I think he's a fabulous guy and I think his contributions … everybody understands, knows, respects," Khan continued in regards to Campbell.
Campbell, 33, will be entering his 13th season next year, so there are some obvious concerns about the stage he is at in his NFL career. But those concerns existed when Campbell signed a giant deal with Jacksonville as a 10th-year veteran in 2017, and he has thus far extinguished them. He has played in all 48 regular season games he has been in Jacksonville for, showing he is still durable despite the mileage.
In three seasons in Jacksonville, Campbell has recorded 31.5 sacks, 44 tackles for loss, and six forced fumbles. He set a career-high in sacks in his first season with the team (14.5) and then recorded the second-most sacks in a season in his career in 2018 (10.5). His sack production slipped in 2019 (6.5), but the last three years have shown that despite his advancing age, Campbell is playing just as well as he always has, if not better.
Campbell, who was voted to the Pro Bowl for the third consecutive year in 2019, plays a massive role on Jacksonville's defense. Replacing his production and snaps (818 in 2019) would create a gaping hole on a Jaguars' roster that is already filled with such gaps on the roster. Can a team that already has talent deficiency issues afford to let go of one of their best players for cap reasons? It is a hard argument to make.
In addition, the Jaguars need to win now in 2020. Khan has set on numerous occasions since the 2019 season ended that head coach Doug Marrone and general manager Dave Caldwell have been given mandates to field a winning football team next season. Another losing season would lead to the obvious result of Marrone and Caldwell landing on the chopping block.
With Marrone and Caldwell needing to win games in 2020, it makes little sense to move on from Campbell due to both his on-field and off-field impact. He is still producing at a high level, and releasing him would make the Jaguars a worse football team, though one that would be more capable of being active in free agency.
But ultimately, Campbell is the heart and soul of the team and respected immensely by Marrone, the coaching staff, and the locker room. Campbell, the 2019 winner of the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Yeard Award, is the unquestioned leader of the Jaguars, the captain of the defense, and the elder voice the younger players on the roster turn to. Releasing him would create not only a massive void on the defensive line but within the rest of the confines of TIAA Bank Field as well.
Campbell is already entering the final year of his contract, so it isn't like the Jaguars are on the hook to pay him long-term. As of now, any decision on Campbell is for 2020 and 2020 only.
While it may make financial sense to give Campbell his walking papers, it makes little sense otherwise for the Jaguars to not bring Campbell back in 2020. From his durability, to his production, to the Jaguars' win-now mode in 2020, to Campbell's leadership, there are just far too many reasons for him to stay.
