LOL, this guy is a tool.  Here is the Jags grades

 

<b>Jaguars sign TE Julius Thomas (5 years, $46M; $24M guaranteed): C Grade </b>

I have to wonder if David Caldwell had Julius Thomas on his fantasy roster in 2013. Perhaps that would explain his interest in the former Denver tight end at this price.


Thomas has never really played without Peyton Manning. The future Hall of Fame quarterback made Thomas, throwing a whopping 24 touchdowns to him the past couple of seasons. Thomas is athletic, and there is a chance that he can be productive outside of Denver's offense, but paying him this sort of money is very risky. Thomas is obviously bolting a Super Bowl contender for a big contract with a terrible team, and those sorts of signings seldom work out.


I'm not going to give the Jaguars a Millen (or a Caldwell) grade for this though. Thomas is talented, unlike Dan Skuta and Davon House, so he could actually make an impact. Also, the Jaguars have to spend a lot of money to get over the salary floor, so why not give it to a skilled player?

 

<b>Jaguars sign CB Davon House (4 years, $25 million): CALDWELL Grade </b>

Yes, David Caldwell has finally earned his own grade. He's not yet as bad as Matt Millen - he needs to shout homophobic remarks at his own players and criticize Polish people on live television to get there - but he might be just as inept at his job as Millen was, albeit without the impressive longevity Millen maintained.


To be clear, the $25 million figure is an approximation. We know Davon House will be getting $6.25 million per year over four seasons, so I'm assuming the sum total of this deal is $25 million, but it could be more or less. Regardless, it's an awful signing. House has the size that Gus Bradley likes out of his defensive backs, but that's about it. House is not a good player, which is why he was 21st in my Free Agent Cornerback Rankings. He didn't even warrant a write-up.

 

<b>Jaguars sign OLB Dan Skuta (5 years, $20.5 million): MILLEN Grade </b>

Ladies and gentlemen, we have our first Millen grade of the 2015 NFL offseason. No one should be surprised though, as it wouldn't be an NFL free agency period if David Caldwell didn't wildly overspend on a mediocre player.


I wasn't even planning on doing a grade for this signing because I assumed the Jaguars obtained Dan Skuta for a 1-year, $2 million deal, or something of that nature. I almost choked on a brownie I was eating when I saw these numbers. A 5-year, $20.5 million contract for a career backup with just 5.5 sacks, two of which came against the beleaguered Rams on Monday Night Football this past season? What!?


This is truly embarrassing for Caldwell. He could've obtained Skuta for half this price, and he still would've spent too much. Skuta is a career backup and a special-teams ace. That's all he is, but Caldwell is paying him to be a starter. I suppose Caldwell watched Skuta intently in that aforementioned Monday Night Football contest and nothing else, given that was Skuta's only good game of the 2014 season. He was very mediocre otherwise, so I have no idea what Caldwell is thinking. I'm truly baffled by this.

 

<b>Jaguars sign OT Jermey Parnell (5 years, $32M; $13M guaranteed): D Grade </b>

So, let me get this straight: Doug Free, who is the better, more-proven right tackle who played for Dallas last year, received just as much overall money in his contract as what Jermey (not Jeremy) Parnell is seeing in guarantees. Huh?


Someone needs to send a raven to Jacksonville to let general manager David Caldwell know that the right tackle position, contrary to his belief, is not that important of a position. There's absolutely no reason the Jaguars should've spent this much money on a player who has just seven career starts. Sure, Parnell has looked good when thrust into action, but he's an unproven commodity.


Contracts like this are always scary. The Jaguars truly don't know what they're getting in Parnell. Maybe he'll work out, but he has no track record of success. In fact, the one pattern here is a negative one, and it's that bottom-tier teams that sign free agents like this away from superior franchises almost always end up with busts. Sure, it works on occasion, but the probability that this signing won't work out is extremely high.

 

 

 

Here is JT Thomas grade to NY

 

<b>Giants sign LB J.T. Thomas (3 years, $12M; $4.5M guaranteed): D Grade </b>

I liked the Giants' signing of Shane Vereen, but this one makes very little sense. J.T. Thomas, who was once waived by the Bears of all teams, played for the Jaguars last year and was terrible, to say the least. He was on the field for all three downs, but was especially brutal in run support. He's a backup at best, so I don't understand why the Giants paid him $4.5 million in guarantees when they just as easily could've given a similar player a 1-year, $850,000 deal, or something of that nature.

 

 

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