JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – What the Jacksonville Jaguars may be able to do -- and possibly wanted to do -- before the draft has been altered significantly before the signing period could even start.

Five pass-catchers (Davante Adams, Chris Godwin, David Njoku, Mike Gesicki, Dalton Schultz) are now unavailable because of teams using the franchise tag. Another potentially available receiver (Calvin Ridley) was suspended for at least a year for gambling on NFL games. And the Jaguars used the franchise tag on left tackle Cam Robinson for the second consecutive year.

That last one may have been part of the team’s plan all along, but those moves present a much different landscape for a franchise trying to build around second-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Based on what general manager Trent Baalke said at last week’s NFL scouting combine, the Jaguars may not have planned on being significant players in free agency anyway. He said the plan was to be very aggressive, but he used the caveat “within reason,” which came a year after he said he stresses value in free agency.

His first free-agent class showed that: The Jaguars spent big money on one free agent (cornerback Shaquill Griffin -- three years, $40 million) and signed eight other players to reasonable deals. Three players (receiver Marvin Jones Jr., safety Rudy Ford and returner/receiver Jamal Agnew) out-performed their contracts.

The Jaguars are in a similar situation this March, with plenty of needs and plenty of cap space ($41 million after Robinson’s $16.6 million was deducted). So if Baalke is going to follow the same formula, then assume one big signing and multiple depth signings at good values.

“What you can’t get into a habit of is doing -- and we've seen this played out multiple times -- [is] where you go into free agency, and you have a need, and you way overpaid to fill that need,” Baalke said. “And then a year later you're disappointed and you move on from the player. We can't get in those situations. We have to be smart.

“We have to identify the right players. But you can't … pay $11 million for a $3 million player. It's just over time that it doesn't work.”

What does that mean over the next week?

With Adams and Godwin getting tagged earlier this week, the biggest names at receiver available are Allen Robinson II, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Christian Kirk. They likely will command deals that could average at least $11 million annually, and Robinson could approach $20 million.

There is also the possibility the Jaguars could try to re-sign DJ Chark Jr., though there have been reports that multiple teams plan to target Chark, and that could drive the price up into an area the Jaguars don’t want to pay.

So it’s more likely the Jaguars could target players such as Cedrick Wilson, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Michael Gallup (who is coming off a torn ACL but was reportedly offered an extension by the Dallas Cowboys) and Braxton Berrios.

At tight end, the pool of available players shrunk with Njoku, Schultz and Gesicki getting tagged, so Hayden Hurst, Zach Ertz (who played for new Jaguars coach Doug Pederson when they were with the Philadelphia Eagles), C.J. Uzomah, Eric Ebron, Robert Tonyan and O.J. Howard could be options for the Jaguars if they want to find a complement to Dan Arnold. Baalke said the team likes 2021 sixth-round pick Luke Farrell, but adding another proven pass-catching tight end to go along with whatever receivers they add in free agency and the draft would be a significant upgrade.

With Robinson back, the Jaguars won’t target a left tackle in free agency, and it likely takes the position out of play for the first overall pick. That would mean Aidan Hutchinson or Kayvon Thibodeaux are the likely choices, but even if so, that wouldn’t preclude the Jaguars from adding an edge rusher in free agency too. That could be pricey – Chandler Jones, for example, could land a deal around $15 million – and the bulk of the proven edge rushers are in their 30s. Good, young pass-rushers don’t hit the market because they’re so valuable.

Things have changed heading into free agency, but the priority hasn't: Surround Lawrence with better playmakers, regardless of how they do it.

“We have to protect him better, and we have to get more explosive players around him – guys that can make explosive plays,” Baalke said. “It is tough in the National Football League to move the ball 14 plays, 15 plays, 16 plays and score. It just doesn’t happen that often. You have to be able to throw a 7-yard dig and turn it into an 80-yard touchdown. You have to have players that can do that.

"That is the mission this offseason in free agency and the draft – to get more explosive players on both sides of the ball, guys that can change games. That is what you win and lose football games with.”