What Should Joe Douglas Do Now?

There has been a flurry of roster moves and opt outs lately that has unleashed a deluge of emotions. First we trade away our best player for a king’s ransom, then our 2nd best player opts out for the 2020 season to take care of his family and “find that flame again.” On top of that, JD decided to cut loose from 2 of our most tenured players within 24 hours of each other. The roster is dwindling, but the cap space is booming. All of this begs the question. What should JD do next?

To simplify the choices presented before JD, I have whittled them down to 3. He can play it safe, he can make shrewd/sensical move or he can swing for the fences. Let’s start with the play it safe option. There is a monsoon of uncertainty swirling around the 2020 season. A betting man would put money on the season not finishing or being disrupted. In JD’s case, his best bet might be to sit on his treasure chest. All of that cap carries over to next year where we are already slated to have a good chunk of change freed up. The Johnsons don’t seem like they are too interested in spending a lot this year, so this move could have a small cheering section in ownership. It’s safe, it’s boring, but it might be the best move long-term.

Let’s move on to the shrewd/sensical option. Now that we have all these greenbacks burning a hole in JD’s pocket, signing a guy like Jadeveon Clowney would make sense for a few reasons. He might cost us a pretty penny for a one year contract, but he fills a need. When Adams was sent packing, we lost our best asset in the pass rush. I don’t just mean in pass rushing stats either. His ability to rush from any position (especially EDGE) at anytime, played a major factor in how teams set their protections to account for him. To put it mildly, we need help. Gregg Williams is a magician, but this might be too tall an order. Clowney, although not much more productive than Jordan Jenkins, will offer some stability at the other EDGE position. He will also fill a void to some degree in run defense. Another aspect to this move could potentially mean a comp pick if he signs a nice contract somewhere else. Of course if the season goes down the drain, this would just be a heap of wasted money.

Now for my favorite option. The swing for the fences choice. Let’s trade for Yannick Ngakoue! It’s the kind of move that coupled with the Adams trade, could potentially set us up nicely for years to come. A trade could look similar to what the Seattle/Clowney trade looked like yesteryear. The Jaguars want premium picks, but it will most likely be a 3rd at most. Yannick’s production would be the kind of production we have craved since John Abraham and Shaun Ellis were on the prowl. Like the Clowney move, this could be moving deck chairs around on the 2020 Titanic. It could result in almost $20M down the drain. There is also no guarantee that Yannick signs with us long-term. So to sum up we could be down millions in cap, and a 2021 3rd round pick. Sure we could get that 3rd back as a comp pick, but I wouldn’t rely on that and it wouldn’t be in 2021. Then again, a 2021 3rd round pick might be drastically devalued.

These are the three moves I see Joe tossing around. I am sure he is in his office right now making pros and cons lists for each. I am a fireworks kind of guy, so I personally would love to trade for Yannick. What do you guys think? Which of these 3 options do you prefer? Is there another option I may have blanked on?