Jaguars Release QB Nick Mullens, Waive QB Joey Aguilar

Mullens, 31, joined the Jags on a two-year contract last year. He only threw three passes over the course of the 2025 campaign, as starter Trevor Lawrence enjoyed perfect attendance and led the club to a 13-4 record and a division title in Liam Coen‘s first year as head coach. His release will free up $1.2MM of cap space and leave a $1.3MM dead money charge on the ledger.

Although teams with playoff aspirations often prefer more experienced backup passers, it is clear the Jags were looking for a younger, higher-upside quarterback to work behind Lawrence this season. Before making the move for Ewers, a 2025 draftee, Jacksonville also inquired on the Saints’ Spencer Rattler, who entered the league in 2024 as New Orleans’ fifth-round choice.

Mullens, though, may not be without work for long. As Garafolo notes, there are plenty of QB spots available around the league, so Mullens could quickly garner interest.

A 2017 UDFA, Mullens spent his entire rookie season on the 49ers’ practice squad. He started a total of 16 games for San Francisco over the next three seasons, thanks in large part to Jimmy Garoppolo‘s inability to stay healthy. During that span, he compiled a 5-11 record while completing 64.5% of his passes for 25 TDs against 22 interceptions. He started three games for the Vikings in 2023 but was unable to record a victory.

As of the time of this writing, Carter Bradley remains on the Jaguars’ roster as the third quarterback. The team has waived UDFA rookie Joey Aguilar, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson, although the club would like to sign him to the taxi squad on the heels of his strong preseason showing.