Jacksonville Jaguars pass rusher Josh Allen is a “name that has garnered interest” with the NFL trade deadline less than a week away, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Allen, 25, was the Jaguars’ first-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft and earned Pro Bowl honors as a rookie after finishing his first season with 10.5 sacks. In the next two seasons, Allen had 10 sacks. So far this season, he has three sacks and is top 10 in the league in quarterback hits with 11.
Earlier this week, the Jaguars traded away third-year running back James Robinson to the New York Jets for a sixth-round pick that has a chance at becoming a fifth-rounder. While that move may have signaled to teams around the league that Jacksonville may be a team in sell mode, trading Allen would be a pretty stunning indication that the Jaguars are throwing in the towel on 2022.
Allen is on the fourth year of his rookie contract and the team already picked up the $11.5 million fifth-year option on the deal. That means the Jaguars and Allen are likely to work on a long-term contract in the offseason.
With the stage set for the Jaguars to pay a premium to keep Allen, it’s not the worst idea to hear what kind of price teams are willing to pay for the pass rusher. But trading away the three-time team captain would be a devastating loss for the defense and would presumably take a lofty price to get done.
