Fansided

5 teams that should sign Olivier Vernon

By Nathaniel Reeves

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have agreed to a massive seven-year, nearly $100 million contract extension with Gerald McCoy.. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have agreed to a massive seven-year, nearly $100 million contract extension with Gerald McCoy.. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 7, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Denver Broncos defensive tackle Malik Jackson (97) against the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 at Levi
Feb 7, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Denver Broncos defensive tackle Malik Jackson (97) against the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 at Levi /

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars have already had a productive free agency period by adding Jackson on a massive deal, but they aren’t close to done yet. Jacksonville still has tons of money to spend and holes all over the defense, so it has nothing much to lose by at least making a run at Vernon.

Despite some development from their young talent on offense, the Jaguars still finished at 5-11. The reason was a poor defense, which allowed 28 points per game, beating out only the woeful New Orleans Saints for 31st in the NFL.

While Jacksonville’s biggest area of concern is probably the secondary, the defensive line is not far behind, even with Jackson around. The Jaguars were in the bottom third of the NFL with 36 team sacks in 2015, and have already lost their top two edge rushers in Andre Branch and Chris Clemons.

Having Vernon on the same unit as the versatile Jackson could instantly give the Jaguars a very dynamic defensive line unit. Dante Fowler Jr., the No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 draft, also hopes to be back after missing his rookie season with a torn ACL, while Jared Odrick was also productive last season.

With all the young talent on offense, the Jaguars are not all that far off from contending if they can hit on a couple of defensive free agents. Jacksonville still has an incredible $71 million of cap space to work with, so they could still add Vernon while improving their secondary in free agency.

Next: New York Giants

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