With eye toward tight ends, receivers, Jaguars extend contracts to 16 undrafted free agents

The Jacksonville Jaguars did not select any wide receivers or tight ends in the 2022 NFL Draft, but extended contracts to two undrafted free agent wide receivers and tight ends Monday.

The Jaguars signed 15 undrafted free agents, including Notre Dame wide receiver Kevin Austin.

Austin, 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, caught 48 passes for 886 yards and seven touchdowns last season. In March, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds at the NFL Combine.

After missing the entire season in 2019 after serving a suspension for disciplinary reasons, Austin fractured his foot twice in 2020 and was limited to playing one game. Before the 2021 season, Austin had just six catches for 108 yards.

The Jaguars also signed Central Arkansas wide receiver Lujuan Winningham, 6-3, 198, and tight ends Grayson Gunter, 6-6, 250, Southern Mississippi and Alabama-Birmingham's Gerrit Prince, 6-5, 241.

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"I think you never have enough big bodies. You’re always searching for big bodies. You’re always searching for speed," Jaguars GM Trent Baalke said after Saturday's draft regarding undrafted free agents. "The board is set obviously and we’re working off the board right now. If we have players, the higher rated they were on our board, if they’re still available then we’re willing to spend to get those players. It’s a very competitive period right now.

"You have 32 teams scrambling. There’s some teams looking for 30 plus guys to fill their roster. There’s other teams looking for less than that. So right now, the guys are down there, the scouts and coaches, making calls and trying to fill these spots. We know exactly how many guys we want to bring in at each position to fill the 90-man roster, so that’s what we’re currently doing."

Other signees are Oklahoma State defensive tackle Israel Antwine; Southeast Missouri State cornerback Shabari Davis; UCF offensive lineman Marcus Tatum; Texas cornerback Josh Thompson; Norfolk State outside linebacker De’Shaan Dixon; Utah offensive lineman Nick Ford; Tarleton State cornerback Benjie Franklin; West Virginia safety Sean Mahone; Iowa State kicker Andrew Mevis; Arkansas linebacker Grant Morgan and Texas offensive lineman Denzel Okafor.

Jaguars sign QB Perry

After initially reaching an agreement to sign with the Philadelphia Eagles, undrafted rookie quarterback EJ Perry, who played at Brown University, signed with the Jaguars on Tuesday.

Perry was the Ivy League Player of the Year last season after he led the conference in total offense (343.5), completions per game (29.5), touchdown passes (23), passing yards (3,033) and passing yards per game (303.3).

Perry joins a quarterback room that includes starter Trevor Lawrence, C.J. Beathard and Jake Luton.

Oyelola joins roster as part of NFL International Pathway program

The Jaguars added defensive back Ayo Oyelola to the roster as part of NFL’s International Pathway Program. He will be on the Jaguars’ roster until the end of training camp. At the conclusion of training camp, Oyelola, 5-foot-11, 205 pounds, is eligible for the international player practice squad exemption, granting the Jaguars an extra practice squad member.

As a first step in the pathway program, the NFL conducted International Combines in the U.K. and Mexico last October that featured 66 athletes from 21 countries. Following the Combine, Oyelola was among a group of 12 selected to receive additional training and development alongside NFL players and draft hopefuls in the United States this past winter at the OLP Performance Academy run by NFL Legend and NFL Senior Advisor of Player Development & Performance LeCharles Bentley. Oyelola then had the opportunity to showcase his talent at the University of Florida Pro Day in March.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars sign 15 undrafted free agents