Top Free Agent Fits For Jaguars WR Calvin Ridley

The final numbers for Jaguars WR Calvin Ridley from the 2023 season don’t look so bad. He caught 76 passes for 1,018 yards and eight touchdowns and was Jacksonville’s leading receiver. 

But just like the Jaguars as a whole, more was expected of Ridley. Maybe it wasn’t fair coming off a whole season away, but Ridley left a lot of plays on the field last season, more than a No. 1 receiver probably should. 

Now the Jaguars face an interesting situation with Ridley who’s set to test free agency for the first time in his career. Due to the conditions of the trade to acquire him from the Falcons, the Jaguars would have given up a second-round pick if they had extended Ridley before free agency. They also needed to save the franchise tag to keep OLB Josh Allen. So while they want Ridley back and would be one of the top landing spots for his services, they have to bid for him. 

Ridley was an old prospect and was already 24 years old as a rookie back in 2018. The year-long suspension for gambling and the fifth-year option delayed his chance at a big contract even longer. He’ll be looking to maximize his career earnings because this is likely the only chance at a huge contract that he’s going to have. While Ridley has a good thing going in Jacksonville, he shouldn’t be expected to take a major discount to stay. 

Even if Ridley’s not a bonafide top wideout, he’s still by far the best free agent receiver available and someone who would start for all but maybe a tiny handful of teams. Because of that, he could easily land a deal north of $20 million per season even when factoring in his age. That could come from the Jaguars, or it could come from another team. 

Ridley, 29, is a former first-round pick of the Falcons back in 2018 out of Alabama. He played out the fourth year of his four-year, $10,900,732 contract that included a $6,007,804 signing bonus.

The Falcons exercised Ridley’s fifth-year option which was scheduled to cost Atlanta $11.116 million fully guaranteed in 2022. However, it was tolled a year following his suspension for gambling. The Jaguars acquired the deal as a part of their trade for Ridley at the deadline in 2022. 

He’s set to be an unrestricted free agent in 2024. 

In 2023, Ridley appeared in 17 games for the Jaguars and caught 76 passes for 1,016 yards receiving and eight touchdowns. 

We have him included in our Top 100 – 2024 NFL Free Agents list.

Patriots

The Patriots have a ton of work to do on offense after fielding a unit that personnel-wise was near the bottom of the league last season. If the rest of the NFL brought Super Soakers to the neighborhood water fight, the Patriots showed up with one of those dinky squirt guns. A good chunk of their cap space will likely be dedicated to becoming more dangerous on that side of the ball. 

That makes New England a team to watch for Ridley. Money is a factor for all free agents but in Ridley’s case this is his last real chance for a huge payday and to secure generational wealth for him and his family. The Patriots have the cap space to outbid most other teams, and honestly they might have to overpay to get players to New England this year. 

On the field, Ridley would be the best wide receiver the Patriots have put out on the field in several years. He’d be a huge benefit to whoever ends up starting at quarterback for the team, and while he’s not an elite No. 1, he’s capable of operating as a team’s primary receiver.

In a twist of irony, just like the Jaguars threw a wrench in the receiving market by throwing more money at WR Christian Kirk than anyone expected, they now could be a victim of a team like the Patriots going way over what they can afford to match for Ridley. 

Falcons

Plot twist! I suspect Ridley would fit in a lot better with the new coaching staff in Atlanta, led by his former position coach Raheem Morris, than he did with the last regime that traded him to the Jaguars. Morris already has significant familiarity with Ridley and some other links remain on the staff as well. 

Receiver is an under-the-radar need for the Falcons as well since they have a fair amount of skill position talent already between WR Drake London, RB Bijan Robinson and TE Kyle Pitts. However, new OC Zac Robinson will likely use a lot more 11 personnel, meaning the Falcons will have two other receivers on the field for the majority of their plays in addition to London and Pitts. There’s almost no one else on the roster at receiver outside of London and a few UDFAs. Van Jefferson, Mack Hollins, Scotty Miller and Kha’Darel Hodge are all pending free agents. 

If the Falcons landed Ridley to start across from London and open up more room for Pitts and Robinson to operate, the Falcons could quickly become one of the league’s most explosive offenses. It would be a potent set of weapons for a veteran like Kirk Cousins, who seems to be Atlanta’s top target to solve its quarterback problem. It’s fair to wonder if the Falcons can afford both, but they have more than $30 million in effective cap space right now per Over The Cap and can create gobs more through restructures and a few realistic cuts. 

For a Falcons team that hasn’t been shy about discussing the high expectations they have for themselves, signing Ridley to team up with Cousins would be a huge shot across the bow for the rest of the NFL announcing they mean business. 

Giants

One of the issues for the Giants on offense has been an inability to give QB Daniel Jones a solid supporting cast, whether it’s the offensive line or the pass-catching group. Both have been severely deficient over the past few years, and big swings for guys like WR Kenny Golladay and TE Darren Waller haven’t really panned out. 

But New York has no choice but to keep on swinging to land weapons for either Jones or their next potential franchise quarterback. Receiver is a major priority for the Giants along with edge rusher and offensive line. They have some young players on the roster but no one capable of being a top target. Ridley could be that guy for the Giants, and put less pressure on the team to solve the position in the draft.

The Giants have three picks in the top 50 this year, and signing Ridley wouldn’t prevent them from using one on another receiving threat. But it would mean if a quarterback they like falls to No. 6, or if they have to trade up for one, they wouldn’t be skimping on giving the rookie targets to work with. 

New York has enough cap space at over $30 million to make at least one big swing this offseason. It’s also worth noting Giants HC Brian Daboll was the offensive coordinator at Alabama for Ridley’s final season in 2017. 

Panthers

Carolina should be listed here because the Panthers are desperate for receivers and likely will be active in both free agency and the draft to try and solve their problem. Not only is Ridley the best receiver available this month, but the Panthers had to deal with him for years in the NFC South, playing him twice a year from 2018 to 2020. New RB coach Bernie Parmalee worked with him in both Atlanta and Jacksonville, and new QB coach Will Harriger also overlapped with Ridley in Atlanta. They aren’t big decision-makers but they can give some insight into Ridley’s fit in Carolina. 

However, the Panthers currently have less than $10 million in effective cap space. They’ll free up some with expected cuts like with CB Donte Jackson, and they can restructure a few contracts to create more space. But this roster is littered with holes and is nowhere near contending. While there’s some urgency to get QB Bryce Young some better weapons, blowing their whole free-agent budget on a soon-to-be 30-year-old wideout does not seem like the best use of resources for Carolina.