NFL Free Agency: Who are the 25 best players on the market?
3. OT Jack Conklin
Conklin had a terrific 2019 campaign for the Titans, as PFF graded him No. 9 out of 81 qualified offensive tackles. Being a right tackle is not in line to reduce his pay day at all, and there’s a solid chance he tops the $18 million per year average of Philadelphia Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson.
A least two teams, the New York Jets and Cleveland Browns, have moved toward the front of the line for Conklin.
Conklin is definitely on Cleveland’s radar, and the Browns have $13 million in additional cap space from the moves they made earlier in the week. Signing Conklin and drafting a starting-caliber OT would shore up the biggest holes in an offense that still has top 10 potential https://t.co/KhsuIOxg17
— Jake Trotter (@Jake_Trotter) February 20, 2020
There are conflicting reports regarding the Jets and Conklin though, from ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
Titans’ OT Jack Conklin will have many suitors in free agency, but he is not expected to land with the offensive-line-needy Jets, per sources. Jets like him, but the competition for him will be intense and there will be many suitors.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 1, 2020
Conklin will not lack for suitors, and Schefter’s report denying he’ll sign with the Jets reeks of a call from an agent to keep all the options open.
The Titans would surely love to keep Conklin, and he may want to stay. But with two other prominent in-house free agents to decide on a tough decision to let him go may come, and Tennessee is unlikely to be able to compete on the same financial level as other teams when it comes down to it.