Jacksonville Jaguars: How serious should Jalen Ramsey be taken?

How serious should the Jacksonville Jaguars take Jalen Ramsey and his latest comments concerning his next contract?

There is never a dull moment for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Just when things appear to be slowing down before the start of training camp, something happened. Jalen Ramsey shared his thoughts about his next contract and negotiations.

Ramsey has expressed the fact that he wants a contract extension. He mentioned that Jacksonville will not get any salary cap considerations from him, essentially saying that he’s going to be demanding a massive payday from the Jaguars.

Darin Gantt of Pro Football Talk quoted Ramsey’s comments from an Instagram Live video:

"“They’re going to come to me ‘Hey, you know, we want to holler at you,” Ramsey said, and then whistles. “That number is going to be so ungodly. They’re going to say, ‘Oh god, can’t we get a little discount, 20 percent off?’”"

How seriously should Ramsey be taken? He has definitely earned a large contract as an elite NFL cornerback and his production has proved his worth to the Jaguars. Would Jacksonville risk losing him to the highest bidder?

Currently, Ramsey is entering the fourth year of his rookie contract. Jacksonville picked up the fifth-year option of his contract. He could become an unrestricted free agent in 2021 if an extension isn’t reached. It’s reasonable to think that the Jaguars would make him a really big offer.

Will the offer satisfy Ramsey’s demands? Salary cap implications will force both sides to negotiate carefully. Is Ramsey serious enough to pursue a huge deal elsewhere? There are teams with plenty of cap space to grant Ramsey’s wishes of a huge contract.

There will be difficult decisions to be made concerning Jacksonville’s salary cap situation in 2020. Jacksonville is projected to be over the cap by $14 million, according to Over The Cap. Would Ramsey seriously demand more money than Jacksonville could afford to pay?

Myles Jack and Yannick Ngakoue will want big paychecks soon as well. They become unrestricted free agents after this season. Which one leaves, in order to pay Ramsey?

There is always the chance that Jacksonville drafts Ramsey’s replacement in 2020. The Jaguars could let Ramsey sign elsewhere and gain a compensatory draft pick. This next season will be interesting to watch.