Big Cat Country
The Jacksonville Jaguars have reached an agreement with long snapper Ross Matiscik on a two-year contract extension, per the team, keeping one of the NFL’s elite specialists in Duval through the 2028 season. Per multiple reports, the deal is worth $3.8 million in new money.
The 29-year old Matiscik was headed into the final year of his previous four-year, $5,070,000 deal, making him one of the more notable, yet, under-discussed contract year players on the current roster. Jacksonville quickly moved to ensure that didn’t become a storyline. With this extension, Ross becomes the NFL’s highest paid Long Snapper.
“Ross’ consistency and ability to get down the field and make plays on special teams gives us an edge in that phase of the game,” said General Manager James Gladstone. “He has played at an elite level for several seasons and is at the top of the league at what he does.”
Matiscik has quietly built one of the most decorated resumes of any long snapper in the modern NFL. He earned his third All-Pro honor in 2025, as the only first-team selection on the Jaguars’ roster last year, while also adding a third consecutive Pro Bowl nod to a career that continues to set the standard at his position. Since being drafted in 2020, no long snapper in the league has recorded more special teams tackles than Matiscik’s 22, a number he shares with just one other player across the entire position group.
In 2025 alone, he logged 140 special teams snaps and finished with four tackles, a total that ranked tied for third among long snappers league-wide. But Matiscik’s impact stretches well beyond what shows up in the tackle column. Punter Logan Cooke averaged 43.0 net yards per punt last season, the fourth-best mark among AFC punters, a number that doesn’t happen without clean, reliable snaps on every single attempt. Meanwhile, kicker Cam Little made history in 2025, setting a new Jacksonville franchise record with 140 points scored, finishing fifth in the entire NFL in that category. Little’s record-setting season was built snap by snap, and Matiscik delivered on every one of them.
Per the team release:
Matiscik, 29, has spent six seasons with Jacksonville and played 101 games as a Jaguar after signing with the team as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Baylor in 2020. Since entering the league, his 22 special teams tackles are tied for the most in the NFL at his position. Matiscik has earned All Pro and Pro Bowl honors in each of the last three seasons. Only OL Tony Boselli and WR Jimmy Smith have more Pro Bowl nods in franchise history (five each).
The best special teams units in the NFL aren’t built by accident, and Jacksonville clearly has no interest in finding out what life looks like without one of the game’s best at a position that rarely gets its due. Ross Matiscik is staying in Jacksonville.
