Big Cat Country
The Jacksonville Jaguars, on Tuesday, announced that the team would be moving on without veteran safety Darnell savage. Savage, a 2019 first-round pick, was signed as a March 2024 free agent by former general manager Trent Baalke to man the safety and slot role in former defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen’s man defense. Savage was signed to a three-year, $21.75 million contract, with $12.5 million fully guaranteed, including a $5 million signing bonus.
Savage, in a backup role, played 44% and 29% of the team’s defensive snaps in the first two weeks and was credited with one tackle on his 48 defensive snaps.
This move would hardly be considered a surprise based on the heavy zone defense the Jaguars have run in 2025, in stark contrast to Savage’s strength in man coverage. With Eric Murray and Andrew Wingard cemented as the top two safeties and Savage having zero special teams snaps over the past two weeks, Antonio Johnson and sixth-round pick Rayuan Lane will look to fill the vacated role (sans any pending transactions to come).
Via Spotrac, Savage’s release carries a 2025 $7.5 million dead cap, 2026 $3 million dead cap, and will cost the team $2.8 million on the 2025 salary cap (no cap savings). In 2026, the move will save around $7.75 million and $2.6 million in 2027, per OverTheCap.
The team has yet to announce a corresponding roster addition at the time of publishing. We will update accordingly, upon receiving additional information.
The youth movement continues. Any thoughts on the roster move, Duval?
