Zay Jones: The Jaguars follow ‘great leader’ Evan Engram

Evan Engram broke franchise records in his first season with the Jacksonville Jaguars, setting all-time best marks in receptions and receiving yards for a tight end. His impact on the team has gone beyond his production as a pass catcher, though.

“This guy is a great leader,” Jaguars receiver Zay Jones said of Engram during an interview the pair did with NBC’s Maria Taylor along with receiver Christian Kirk. “Evan really is a natural leader in the way that he speaks to the team. The way he just evokes his emotion.

“I don’t think it’s disingenuine, I think when he speaks, he really means it and a lot of people follow what he does and the types of things that he does. He leads by example and so when someone like that speaks before the game it’s like … I got people beside me that I know are gonna play with me.”

Engram, 28, joined the Jaguars in the offseason on a one-year, $9 million contract. It didn’t take long for coaches to start raving about the work ethic and character that the tight brought to the young team.

#Jaguars TE Evan Engram works after everyday of practice, jugs machine and tennis balls. He’s always one of the last off the field, working hard: pic.twitter.com/YvMwbLKYid

— Demetrius Harvey (@Demetrius82) August 17, 2022

“He’s very unselfish,” Jaguars coach Doug Pederson told reporters in December after a win against the New York Jets. “He works extremely hard in practice. He wants to be good. He loves being coached and it shows on the field. He’s a really good teammate to have and leader of the team.”

The question in upcoming months will be what effort the Jaguars will make to keep Engram in Jacksonville. It’d be surprising if the team didn’t want to keep the impending free agent, but his value on the market has certainly risen after posting career numbers.

If a long-term deal isn’t the answer, the franchise tag could also be a logical move for the Jaguars. That’d guarantee that Engram is with the team for at least one more year with a price tag likely around $11-12 million.