Report: Jaguars Agree to Terms With Former Packers DB Darnell Savage
A week after the Jacksonville Jaguars released a starting veteran safety in Rayshawn Jenkins, the Jaguars have seemingly found his replacement.
According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Jaguars agreed to terms with former Green Bay Packers defensive back Darnell Savage. Savage, the Packers' first round pick at No. 21 in 2019, spent five seasons with the Packers.
Savage, who played both safety roles as well as in the slot at times, appeared in 72 regular season games for the Packers, starting 69. He also started seven playoff games.
In five years with the Packers, Savage recorded 302 tackles, nine tackles for loss, one sack, 32 pass breakups, and nine interceptions.
In 2023, Savage appeared in 10 games for the Packers and recorded 51 tackles and five pass breakups.
According to Pro Football Network's Adam Caplan, the deal is worth roughly $7 million per year.
Savage entered today as Pro Football Focus' No. 12 safety and No. 148 free agent.
"When the ball is thrown Savage's way, the ball skills that made him a first-round pick are put on display. It's more about the snaps where Savage has to come down and make plays in the box that keep him lower on this list," PFF said.
"We like to, as one of our coaches would like to say, ‘Nothing cheap and nothing deep.’ When you’re press, you take away the quick game and we like to play shell which when you look at us, we take away the deep throws. It may look man or man-ish at times, but sometimes there’s press bail and some nuances in the coverage of that’s actually a zone with tighter coverage on the outside," Jaguars defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen said last month.
"It’s actually good that you see it like that because if we’re viewed like that, then we drop into zone and it could be advantageous for us on defense. We’re going to be mixing and matching, we’re going to be playing different coverages and mix and match our coverages. Again, that’s what we did then and it may be different now. That’s what the process of what we’re going through with the players. We definitely have everything in there, we know what we’re starting with, what’s it going to look like in the end. The new coaches and the new players together, we want to do what’s best for everybody.”
