The Jacksonville Jaguars are locking in a key, young piece of their defense for the long-term, giving Myles Jack a four-year contract extension.
You can’t have Jacksonville without the Jack.
Just hours after the Jadeveon Clowney trade provided an opening to the top of the AFC South, the Jacksonville Jaguars made a move to lock up a key part of their defense for the long-term.
As first reported by ESPN‘s Adam Schefter on Saturday, the Jags have agreed to a four-year, $57 million contract extension with linebacker Myles Jack. The deal is guaranteed for $33 million, and will keep him in Jacksonville for the next five seasons.
As Schefter notes, this extension makes Jack the league’s third-highest paid inside linebacker, behind Bobby Wagner of the Seattle Seahawks and C.J. Mosely of the New York Jets. Jack will also become the highest-paid linebacker without a Pro Bowl appearance, as NFL insider Ian Rapoport points out.
This deal represents sweet vindication for Jack, who came out of UCLA looking like an absolute stud. Unfortunately, questions about his knees caused him to drop to the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft, where the Jags scooped him up with the 36th overall pick. Much like Jaylon Smith, who dealt with injury questions heading into the draft and was selected two spots earlier, Jack is receiving a nice payday in a feel-good story.
In three years in the pros, Jack has proven he can stay healthy, playing in 16 games in each season. During that time, he’s recorded 219 tackles, 11 quarterback hits, five sacks, one interception and one defensive touchdown. His production has soared since being named a full-time starter two seasons ago, including last year, when he recorded 107 tackles and 2.5 sacks. As he approaches his 24th birthday on Tuesday, his best football is still ahead of him.
It remains to be seen what this means for Yannick Ngakoue and his contract situation, since this may be a slight overpay considering his NFL ranks since entering the league. Jalen Ramsey’s contract situation will also demand attention soon enough, though it was already known by both parties that an extension wouldn’t be coming this summer.