Why Franchise Tagging Devin Lloyd Can't Be an Option for Jaguars

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars are facomg a bit of a crossroads when it comes to one key free agent.

Top free agent lists will be littered over the next month-plus with Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd's name near the very top.

And while the Jaguars certainly have options on hand -- such as opting to extend Lloyd or let him hit free agency -- there is one option the Jaguars clearly do not have: the franchise tag.

Lloyd and the Franchise Tag

devin lloyd — 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

The franchise tag has long made little sense in terms of how it is constructed. Due to the NFL's foolish handling of how it defines positions, the tag for a linebacker in 2026 is projected to cost $28,197,000. For context, that is a bigger cap hit than both Trevor Lawrence and Josh Hines-Allen, the two highest-paid players in the entire history of the Jaguars as a franchise.

"Linebackers" to be tagged in the last 10 years: Von Miller, Shaquill Barrett, Matthew Judon, Justin Houston, Melvin Ingram, Chandler Jones, technically Josh Hines-Allen and Brian Burns. The last true off-ball linebacker franchise tagged was Chad Greenway in 2011, which came in around $9.68 million before he and the Vikings agreed to an extension for five years for $41 million ($8.2 million a year).

Simply put, these are numbers the Jaguars can not, should not, and almost positively will not consider when it comes to Lloyd. This is not his fault or the Jaguars' fault. It is the fault of the NFL for determining that Lloyd's franchise tag cost is impacted by Micah Parsons and Myles Garrett. It makes little sense on a good day, and it is likely the biggest reason why Lloyd is likely to depart in free agency.

If the NFL actually made off-ball linebacker a position that got its own franchise tag label, that amount would be just over $18 million. That is a lot for one year of play, sure, but it is a totally different world than the current linebacker tag. That kind of tag would make plenty of sense for the Jaguars.

But this is the world we live in. Lloyd deserves an absolutely massive pay-day after the elite season he had in 2026. It is unfortunate for the Jaguars in terms of timing that he may have priced himself out of their range. But it is solely the NFL's own doing that will keep him from being franchise tagged.

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