JACKSONVILLE – Nick Foles' time with the Jaguars is over.
That's not official according to NFL rules, so we can't officially report it on jaguars.com. But it has been widely reported elsewhere that the Jaguars on Wednesday traded the veteran quarterback to the Chicago Bears for a fourth-round selection in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Foles, who signed as an unrestricted free agent from the Philadelphia Eagles last offseason, went 0-4 as a starter in his lone season with the Jaguars. He sustained a broken clavicle in Week 1, then started three games – all losses – in November before being replaced by then-rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew II.
Foles began his Jaguars career as the highest-profile free-agent signing in franchise history. He ends it as perhaps the most disappointing free-agent signing in franchise history. Times change fast in the NFL. Really fast.
Not unexpectedly, today's O-Zone is pretty much all Foles all the time.
(Deep breath) Let's get to it …
Bob from Sumter, SC
I like that the team is going all in on Minshew so they can design an offense that suits his strengths. Hopefully, he will make that first-to-second-year improvement and there will be some more talent around him with all these draft picks.
The Foles trade makes it extremely likely Minshew will start the 2020 season as the Jaguars' starting quarterback, and all indicators point to the season being Minshew's opportunity to show that the many good signs he showed as a rookie last season were his first steps toward being a franchise quarterback. That's the Jaguars' ideal scenario; it would mean at last having solved the quarterback issue. The other scenario would be the Jaguars selecting a franchise-type quarterback in the 2020 NFL Draft. We won't get a clear idea of their direction on that front until the draft late next month because no one around the Jaguars is going to publicly state their draft intentions. Still, considering their draft position at No. 9 overall – and the enormous amount of draft equity the team has acquired – it's a scenario that must be considered. The guess here is that the Jaguars will be all-in on Minshew at least through 2020 and that they'll determine after the season whether they still need to find a starting quarterback. Stay tuned.
David from Maplewood, NJ
I guess we know who is going to start at quarterback now. Clarity can be very clarifying.
Thanks for the clarification.
Sac from Austin, TX
How many total picks in the 2020 draft do we totally have - rumors and unofficial trades included?
If all reported trades take place, the Jaguars will have 12 selections in the 2020 NFL Draft: two in the first round (No. 9, No. 20), one in the second round (No. 42), one in the third round (No. 73), four in the fourth round (No. 116, No. 137, No. 140), two in the fifth round (No. 157, No. 165), two in the sixth round (No. 189, No. 206) and one in the seventh round (No. 223).
Jefferson from Phoenix, AZ
2020 goal is for the Jaguars to have ALL the draft picks?
Halfway home.
Fred from Naples, FL
With the trade of Foles to the Bears, I cannot help but think they are stockpiling picks to make a run at a franchise quarterback in the draft. What do you think, O?
I don't think it's likely, but I don't rule it out. The Jaguars have enormous draft equity next month. Enough to move up far enough from No. 9 to get the quarterback they would want? That's a trickier question.
Pat from Hawthorn Woods, IL
How did we just trade Foles for a fourth-round pick without having to give up more? Seems like a bit of a steal.
How did the Jaguars get a fourth-round selection for Foles? Because despite early speculation that the Jaguars might have to give away a draft selection to trade Foles, there was in fact a demand for him. As for your thought that the trade was a steal for the Jaguars … yes.
Josh from Atlanta, GA
We don't even have to send a pick AND get a fourth? Dave sure does know how to clean up a mess. We are going to be HEAVILY involved in draft-day trades. One fer trades! One fer draft capital! One fer Culligan girls!
One fer everything! And I have no idea what you're talking about!
Tommy from Fernandina Beach, F:
KOAF...so another one bites the dust? Jags want to stay competitive in a small market they can't be wasting money like they did on Foles! ROI is a big zero in his case. How stupid is the owner that he's letting the same clowns run this for another year? How are fans supposed to believe in anything they tell us? Win-now...nah, this is full-on rebuild. Care to spin that one for us?
Do I care to "spin" it? Not really. I'll say this: No matter how you feel about Caldwell – and my sleuth-like journalistic instincts lead me to believe you're not a fan – the reality is he and Head Coach Doug Marrone are the ones making the moves this offseason. The further reality is the Jaguars are having a very good offseason, reportedly acquiring middle linebacker Joe Schobert from the Cleveland Browns as a free agent – and getting a lot of draft capital for a lot of players many believed might have to be released. As for what the fans are supposed to believe … well, I can't control that. If the draft and next season look like progress, then I suppose many fans will like what they're seeing. If not, they won't. Sometimes, you just don't know until you know.
Scott from Medford
Dave Caldwell is a trade machine!
Caldwell in recent weeks/months has been able to get two first-round selections for cornerback Jalen Ramsey, a fourth-round selection for cornerback A.J. Bouye, a fifth-round selection for defensive end Calais Campbell and a fourth-round selection for Foles. Bouye was likely to be released had he not been traded, and the value for Foles was more than many expected. It's hard to argue that Caldwell hasn't gotten significantly more value overall in those trades than was initially expected. So, trade machine? Yes. No doubt. #Diamonddavelives
Sanford from Jacksonville
Marcell Dareus?? Is it possible the Jags bring him back on a much cheaper contract?
Anything's possible.
Kenny from North Port, FL
What is it with quarterbacks and dead money? Between Blake Bortles and Foles, $33 million just wasted.
The reason failed quarterbacks result in so much more dead money on the salary cap so much more often than players at other positions is simple: It's the costliest position in the NFL by far. When you err there, you err bigger than you do anywhere else.
Jim from Jagsonville
Please explain how the trade of Foles will affect our salary-cap situation.
Trading Foles dramatically alters the Jaguars' cap situation for 2020 and for 2021, and it's particularly favorable to the franchise for '21. For '20, trading him saves the Jaguars $15 million on the cap because they no longer will be paying his $15 million salary – but they will take on about $18 million in "dead cap" because of prorated signing bonus. That means they save about $3 million against the cap in 2020. But he would have counted about $21.5 million on the cap for 2021, so the Jaguars save that against the cap in '21 because they traded him this offseason.
Ed from Ponte Vedra, FL
How much did Foles actually cost the Jaguars during his short term?
About $30.5 million, so … yeah.
Jack from Mayport, FL
The Jags aren't Tanking for Trevor in 2020 ... they are blowing up the NFL record for losses in 2020 & 2021 ... how about 0-33!!!!
You're panicking over losing cornerback Bouye, Campbell and Dareus – though you're presumably not panicking over Foles – and your panic is in a sense understandable considering all three were high-profile players. But a closer look suggests that panic may be unnecessary. Bouye wasn't the Jaguars' best cornerback last season (Tre Herndon was), and my guess is they will address the position early in the 2020 NFL Draft. Dareus played just six games last season, and my guess is the Jaguars also will address that position early in the draft. Campbell made the Pro Bowl last season, but he was far from the player last season he had been the previous two. Will the Jaguars miss him? Yes. Will his loss be as devastating as many fans seem to hear. Don't be so sure about that. I don't know that the Jaguars are going to push for the postseason next season. Given the youth on the roster, that will be tricky. I also don't know that the team looks significantly worse right now than it did much of last season. Actually, it doesn't.
Steve from the Road
A nod is as good as a wink to a blind man, ok?
Say no more.
