Jaguar Report

What Jaguars' Devin Lloyd Has to Face Before Free Agency Decisions

Watch to see what Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd had to say at locker room cleanout day.
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd (0) looks on from the sideline during the fourth quarter of an NFL football matchup at EverBank Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jaguars defeated the Titans 41-7, capturing the AFC South title. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd (0) looks on from the sideline during the fourth quarter of an NFL football matchup at EverBank Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jaguars defeated the Titans 41-7, capturing the AFC South title. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd has a lot of big decisions to make this offseason.

But before Lloyd makes any of them, he made it clear this week that there is one thing taking precedent and occupying his thoughts instead.

Watch Lloyd Discuss Below

Speaking from the Jaguars' locker room earlier this week after the Jaguars were eliminated by the Buffalo Bills in a 27-24 loss in the Wild Card, Lloyd made it clear that thoughts of free agency and his likely strong market are not what he is focusing on.

"I mean, you know, these are all questions, like, I'm still trying to process, you know, just everything that's happening right now with this team," Lloyd said. "And, yeah, I mean, I wasn't expecting for us to be done playing right now, so not really thinking about it right now."

The Jaguars saw Lloyd have an absolutely resurgent season under first-year defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile. Lloyd made game-changing plays in massive wins over the San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs and the Indianapolis Colts as he turned in the best year of his career to this point.

That is the risk the Jaguars had to weigh when they opted not to pick up Lloyd's fifth-year option last offseason, and they will now have to ponder whether they want to re-sign him to a hefty deal or let him test the free agency market in March.

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Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd (0) celebrates a fumble recovery with cornerback Montaric Brown (30) during the second quarter of an NFL football AFC Wild Card playoff matchup, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"How cool was that, right? Such an impactful season. What he meant to our end result was certainly notable. The way in which he operated on a daily, weekly basis was really cool to watch and observe. He committed himself to being the best version. The connection between him, the coaching staff was real. He was being deployed in the right ways," Jaguars general manager James Gladstone said this week.

"He felt confident the ways he was doing it from both defense and special teams. Talking about a guy playing at an all-pro level on defense but is running it down on kickoff every time we score and making plays for us.

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Jan 11, 2026; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd (0) runs on the field before an AFC Wild Card Round game against the Buffalo Bills at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

"Extremely happy for Devin and his production this season and finding real footing in a way that aligned with what he knew he could be. Look forward to working through the offseason process with our coaching staff and everyone else to determine what's best for everybody and seeing if there's something to be done. But nonetheless, the role that he had in what we did this season was real and I think it was very vivid for all to see."

But for Lloyd, none of those decisions mattered this week. Instead, the only thing he appeared to be focused on as how to move past an emotional loss.

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Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd (0) enters the stadium before an NFL football game at EverBank Stadium, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union] | Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"I mean, this one, it was almost surprising, in a sense, like, I mean, I'm honest, like, I wasn't really expecting to be done playing right now, so I'm still trying to comprehend it. I think there's a level of like, you know, just disappointment in the fact that, you know, we couldn't close the game out."Lloyd said.

"And now you look around and everybody's packing the locker room, and it all just happened so fast. So yeah, I mean, it's gonna linger, especially knowing that we don't have another week to, you know, make it right, but same time you got to get over it and get your body right. And, you know, just look back on all the good things that we did this year."

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Dec 7, 2025; Jacksonville, Florida, USA;Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd (0) stands on the field during pregame warmups against the Indianapolis Colts at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Travis Register-Imagn Images | Travis Register-Imagn Images

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John Shipley
JOHN SHIPLEY

John Shipley has been covering the Jacksonville Jaguars as a beat reporter and publisher of Jaguar Report since 2019. Previously, he covered UCF's undefeated season as a beat reporter for NSM.Today, covered high school prep sports in Central Florida, and covered local sports and news for the Palatka Daily News. Follow John Shipley on Twitter at @_john_shipley.

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