After a resurgent 2022 season, the Jacksonville Jaguars unsurprisingly did not want to let TE Evan Engram walk. When the two sides couldn’t come to an agreement, the team slapped Engram with the franchise tag.
Fast forward to July 16, and they were able to reach terms on a two-year extension worth $14.953 million, according to Ian Rapoport. In total, Engram will make $41.25 million over the next three seasons.
As with most NFL actions, this has fantasy football implications. Let’s discuss them.
Did you get a trade offer in your dynasty or redraft league? Not sure what to do? Make championship-winning decisions with PFN’s FREE Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer and Calculator!
Impact of Evan Engram’s Contract Extension for Redraft Fantasy Football Leagues
Prior to signing an extension, Engram was set to play out the current season on the franchise tag. So, for the purposes of the 2023 campaign, nothing has changed.
We can try and speculate about player motivation. The fact that Engram is secure for the next three years is certainly better than having no job security beyond the upcoming season. Nevertheless, Engram’s fantasy value for the 2023 season remains unaffected.
Last year, Engram caught 73 passes for 766 yards and four touchdowns. He averaged 10.4 PPR fantasy points per game, finishing as the TE7. Engram did this with just a 17.1% target share (14th in the league).
Prior to his extension, Engram had a TE8 ADP. I also have him ranked at TE8 and do not anticipate anything to change.
Impact of Engram’s Contract Extension for Dynasty Fantasy Football Leagues
Real-life player contracts matter much more in dynasty leagues than in redraft. Engram will be 29 years old this season. This very well may be his last contract in which he is a fantasy factor. Now, we know Engram is tethered to Trevor Lawrence and a rising Jaguars offense for at least the next three seasons.
This is good news for Engram’s dynasty value. I’m not sure if there will be any immediate clear impact in terms of an increase in what he fetches in trades or what fantasy managers are willing to pay for him. The more likely impact is that if you already have Engram, you feel better about his chances of remaining a TE1 for the foreseeable future.
