Jaguars Salary Cap: How Is Money Being Spent on Offense in 2022?

Few teams were as willing to spend money as the Jacksonville Jaguars this offseason. Faced with a new coaching staff, a surplus of cap space and a need to quickly raise both the floor and ceiling of a 3-14 roster, the Jaguars spent money in quite a few areas throughout March and April.

"I think this is a desirable place. I know some people don't think so. But it is, you know, there's a lot of players that wanted to be here for various reasons, each guy had his own reason," Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke said in the days following the first wave of free agency. 

"But, money does play a factor. Let's not kid ourselves. But at the same time, the energy here, the community, what's going on in this community, I think played a role. We brought a young man back that grew up in this community, so he's excited. He had other opportunities, and that's been well documented. He chose to come home. So there's a lot of reasons. The head coach, the coaching staff, the ties they had with certain players, you know, all of that factors into this."

But just how much are the Jaguars spending on each side of the ball in 2022? Who is getting paid the most, and which groups stand out compared to the rest of the NFL?

We break down the offense and defense to find the answer. First up, the offense. Who is the highest-paid player on the salary cap this season, which group has the most money tied to it, and more. All figures come from Over The Cap.

Offense

2022 spending: $105,691,258 

Highest-paid player: TE Evan Engram ($8,970,588 cap hit in 2022)

NFL rank in 2022: 18

The Jaguars are spending right around the league average on offense in 2022. Their highest cap hit this season is tight end Evan Engram, who they signed to a one-year deal in March. A big reason for this is the fact the Jaguars have a starting quarterback on a rookie deal in Trevor Lawrence, but the cap hits for several of the Jaguars' high-priced offensive players such as Christian Kirk, Cam Robinson and Brandon Scherff are lower in 2022 than in future years.

Quarterback

2022 spending: $12,696,293 

Highest-paid player: Trevor Lawrence ($8,362,156 cap hit in 2022)

NFL rank in 2022: No. 21

This one is obvious. The Jaguars are paying C.J. Beathard decent money as a backup quarterback, but ultimately the room is built on Lawrence and his rookie deal, helping the Jaguars become a team that is in the bottom-half of spending at the quarterback position entering 2022.

Running back

2022 spending: $7,299,624 

Highest-paid player: Travis Etienne ($2,931,389 cap hit in 2022)

NFL rank in 2022: No. 25

This is one position the Jaguars have some resources tied into, but not much cap space. The Jaguars spent the No. 25 overall pick on Travis Etienne in 2021 and anytime a team spends a first-round pick on a running back, there will be raised eyebrows. The Jaguars do benefit from a cheap running back room around Etienne, with James Robinson in the final year of his rookie deal and Snoop Conner in the first year of his fifth-round rookie deal.

Tight end

2022 spending: $19,457,759 

Highest-paid player: Evan Engram ($8,970,588 cap hit in 2022)

NFL rank in 2022: No. 3

Only the Dolphins and Patriots are spending more at tight end than the Jaguars this season. While some teams such as the Chiefs and 49ers have high-paid tight ends leading otherwise cheap rooms, the Jaguars have a trio of tight ends in Evan Engram, Chris Manhertz and Dan Arnold that combine to cost more than most other teams spend at tight end.

Offensive line

2022 spending: $31,868,186 

Highest-paid player: Brandon Scherff ($8,647,059 cap hit in 2022)

NFL rank in 2022: No. 22

The Jaguars gave out two big contracts this offseason to left tackle Cam Robinson and right guard Brandon Scherff, though neither has a cap hit of more than $9 million this season due to the structure of their contracts. This will change next year, though, as the Jaguars are currently projected to spend the ninth-most on the offensive line next season.

Wide receiver

2022 spending: $34,369,396 

Highest-paid player: Marvin Jones ($8,712,500 cap hit in 2022)

NFL rank in 2022: No. 4

Jacksonville's big-name contract at wide receiver is obviously Christian Kirk's four-year, $72 million deal. But for the present, the team's highest-paid receiver this year is set to once again be veteran wide receiver Marvin Jones, who signed a two-year, $14.5 million deal with the team last March. Kirk's deal and Zay Jones' deal will obviously lead the pack after 2022, but for now the inclusion of all three of them give the Jaguars a room that will only make less than the Giants, Chargers and Patriots this season.