The Jacksonville Jaguars opted to let running back Travis Etienne and linebacker Devin Lloyd walk in free agency this offseason, and the reason why is now clear.
They decided to allocate that cap space toward extending 2022 first overall pick edge rusher Travon Walker to a four-year, $110 million that includes $77 million in total guarantees and $50 million fully guaranteed at signing, according to CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones. Walker, who is 25-years-old, got off to a slow start to his NFL career with just 3.5 sacks in 2022 at the age of 2022. He picked up his production in 2023 and 2024 with 10.0 and 10.5 sacks across each of those two seasons respectively. Walker’s 20.5 sacks between 2023 and 2024 ranked as the 12th-most in the NFL in that span. He regressed back into his rookie form in 2025 with just 3.5 sacks in 14 games played that included 12 starts. Walker’s 36 career tackles for loss are the sixth-most in Jaguars history while his 27.5 career sacks stand as the ninth-most in franchise history.
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Walker’s career will always be compared directly to the No. 2 overall pick in his draft class: Detroit Lions two-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson. Hutchinson’s 43.0 career sacks are tied with Pittsburgh Steelers All-Pro edge rusher T.J. Watt for the seventh-most in the league since 2022 with a career-high 14.5 coming in 2025. Jacksonville decided they preferred Walker’s potential coming out of the University of Georgia (9.5 sacks in three seasons from 2019-2021) versus Hutchinson’s production out of the University of Michigan (18.5 sacks in four seasons from 2018-2021 including a Big Ten-best 14.0 in 2021). Hutchinson signed a four-year, $180 million extension with the Lions last October with $120 million in new guaranteed money.
Jacksonville is now backing Walker and two-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Joshua Hines-Allen is being the foundation of their defense for years to come.
Jacksonville went 13-4 and won the AFC South division title in 2025 in the first year under head coach Liam Coen before losing at home in the wild card round against the Buffalo Bills.