The Jacksonville Jaguars won their season opener convincingly over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
On Tuesday, they were already making their roster better to try and continue their quest to repeat as AFC South Division champs.
The Jags have signed BJ Ojulari, an outside linebacker, to a free agent contract. The news was reported Tuesday evening by NFL insider Jordan Schultz.
Ojulari catches the eye immediately for one main reason: He was a second-round pick in 2023.
Of course, he was also a free agent in the middle of September, so there’s clearly not a flawless pickup here, but it’s an intriguing move by the Jaguars.
Who Is BJ Ojulari?
BJ Ojulari is a 24-year old linebacker who grew up in the state of Georgia.
He ended up at LSU for college, and then the Arizona Cardinals drafted him No. 41 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Ojulari appeared in all 17 games as a rookie for the Cardinals in 2023 and he made 40 tackles, including 4.0 sacks.
He then missed the entire 2024 season with an injury sustained in the preseason.
Ojulari also missed the first half of the 2025 campaign with an injury before he came back to play in eight games.
The rusty Ojulari only had nine tackles across his eight games in 2025, including 1.0 sack.
The Cardinals ended up waiving Ojulari at the end of this preseason, deciding that he hadn’t done enough to earn a spot on their 53-man roster.
Why Was BJ Ojulari a Free Agent?
The reality is that injuries had sapped Ojulari of much chance to show his full potential in Arizona.
Of course, the Cardinals also got to see him for three years, so there’s a chance they decided they simply didn’t think he had the potential they once believed in.
Ojulari remained available for about two weeks until the Jaguars signed him, so other teams could’ve gone after him first, but he didn’t have to linger too long.
Why Did Jaguars Sign BJ Ojulari?
The chance to add a young pass rusher with a good pedigree was apparently too logical to pass up.
Ojulari had 16.5 sacks across three seasons at LSU, and he also made an additional 8.5 tackles for loss in the run game. He impacted games right from his freshman season onward with the Tigers.
Even if the Jags just find Ojulari to be a situational pass rusher, that has plenty of value in the modern NFL.
It’s a low-risk signing for Jacksonville, who didn’t have to give out a big contract to land the player lingering in free agency after the season had already started.
It has a decent potential for reward given Ojulari’s age and the possibility that he still has untapped upside.
Jaguars Sign Former 2nd-Round Pick to Free Agent Contract