Cam Robinson Signs Franchise Tender: 3 Observations on How It Impacts Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars got some expected but still significant news on Wednesday afternoon as veteran left tackle Cam Robinson signed his franchise tender.

By signing the tender, Robinson is now set to officially earn $16,662,000 in 2022 -- the largest cap hit on the roster.

Robinson has appeared in 61 games during his five-year career after being drafted No. 34 overall in 2017. Last season, Robinson started in 14 games at left tackle, with rookie left tackle Walker Little (No. 45 overall) taking the other three starts.

Per TruMedia and PFF, Robinson allowed 15 sacks, 75 pressures, and 11 quarterback hits in 30 games from 2019-2020 -- an average of 7.5 sacks, 37.5 pressures, and 5.5 quarterback hits per season. But last year, Robinson allowed one sack, 29 pressures, and nine quarterback hits. While his quarterback hits increased, his allowed sacks and pressures ultimately decreased.

Robinson signing the deal ahead of the 2022 NFL Draft means the Jaguars have their Week 1 starting left tackle now officially under contract; but what else does it mean for their offseason and the upcoming decisions facing them?

This was always the expected outcome, but does it impact the No. 1 pick?

Let us square away one thing: this was always the expected outcome. It has been theorized by fans and analysts alike in recent weeks that since Robinson had not yet signed his tender, the Jaguars could still make a move to replace him and either rescind his tag or trade him. Simply put, that was a false narrative that was more of a hypothetical pipe dream than actual reality.

With that said, does Robinson signing his tender impact the No. 1 pick? We tend to think it doesn't. The Jaguars knew they had the No. 1 pick and had a number of tackles to choose from at the top of the draft when they placed the franchise tag on Robinson, so it doesn't make much sense to assume they were playing some form of 3D chess and attempting to use loopholes to fill the left tackle spot. The Jaguars could still pick an offensive lineman at No. 1 and either start him at left guard or kick him out to right tackle, but they would have done this regardless of Robinson's signing if that was their true plan.

Expect the Jaguars to still attempt to keep Robinson around for the long-haul

The Jaguars' top decision-makers -- general manager Trent Baalke and head coach Doug Pederson -- have said time and time again they want to keep Robinson around for longer than just 2022. While Robinson has signed his tender instead of a long-term deal, the expectation should still be for the Jaguars to pursue an extension with Robinson as opposed to letting him play on a one-year deal again.

"It's hard to find really, really good left tackles in this league. And we feel like Cam is one of those good tackles and we're just fortunate to be able to, you know, franchise him, keep him here, hopefully work out a long-term deal with him so he's around more than just a year," Pederson said at the annual league meetings in March. "But keeping that and knowing his experience and knowing his expertise really made it easy for us to keep him around."

The Jaguars have until July 15 to work out a long-term deal with Robinson. If they don't, then he will play 2022 on the franchise tag and would have to be extended after the season, if at all. While the Jaguars would likely prefer to have a deal done today, they have time on their side and will assumedly use it to attempt to carve out a deal for a player they see as a core piece of the offense and locker room.

Walker Little's time as a left tackle is up for now, and likely for the long-term

The longer Cam Robinson remains in the team's short- and long-term plans, the longer it looks like Walker Little should begin his training on the right side. Little was extremely impressive in three starts as a rookie and in most cases would have been given a fair shot to start at left tackle in year two, but the Jaguars won't pay Robinson that much money to be anything but their top left tackle.

With Little having three years remaining on his deal, the only way he would move to full-time left tackle again is in the event Robinson is only with the Jaguars for 2022. If the Jaguars do reach a long-term deal with Robinson like they intend to, then Little will be forced to stick at right tackle for the long haul.

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