3 Best Free Agent Signings in Jaguars History

The Jacksonville Jaguars have had a complicated history with free agency in the past.

The important aspect of the NFL offseason is one area that new head coach Liam Coen, general manager James Gladstone, and executive vice president of football operations Tony Boselli hope to navigate smoothly in the coming years.

While free agency can be rough waters for some franchises, each team has found their gems at some point and the Jaguars are included. So, who are the best free agents the Jaguars have ever signed and whose success is the new regime hoping to duplicate?

WR Keenan McCardell (1996)

All-time great wide receiver Jimmy Smith would be first on the list had he been an actual unrestricted free agent whose contract from his previous team expired, but that was not the case. Smith is still the best acquisition the franchise has ever made, but for this list we go with his "Thunder and Lightning" running-mate in Keenan McCardell.

In six years with the Jaguars, McCardell started in 93 regular season games and caught 883 passes for 11,373 yards and 63 touchdowns. This included four 1,000-yard seasons, making McCardell the second-best receiver to ever suit up for the franchise and one of its best players ever in general. Quite the find after he caught just 80 passes in four years with the Cleveland Browns.

Calais Campbell (2017)

The Jaguars were amongst the NFL's most active free agent teams during this period, which led to some quality signings like Malik Jackson and A.J. Bouye. It also led to some less-than stellar signings like Jared Odrick and Julius Thomas, but the impressive highs likely outweigh the lows. And the most impressive of these was defensive lineman Calais Campbell, who signed a four-year, $60 million deal with the team in 2017.

Campbell was already one of the NFL's best defensive linemen, and his addition to a line with Jackson and Yannick Ngakoue on it helped turn the Jaguars into one of the best defenses in football. Campbell led the way to the 2017 AFC Championship Game and finished his Jaguars career with 31.5 sacks, three Pro Bowl nods, and an All-Pro selection.

Mike Peterson (2003)

This one was tough, with former offensive line great Leon Searcy deserving a mention and consideration as well. But ultimately the final spot goes to former middle linebacker Mike Peterson, who signed with the franchise in 2003 after spending the first four years of his career with the Indianapolis Colts.

Peterson would go on to lead the Jaguars' defense for six years, collecting 546 tackles, 32 tackles for loss, and 15 sacks. He was the key piece of the some of the best defenses and playoff runs in the entire history of the franchise.