Justin Blackmon, Jaguars To Begin Serious Negotiations Soon

Jacksonville Jaguars first-round pick Justin Blackmon is one of the handful of first-round picks who remain unsigned. Part of the holdup is believed to be the inclusion of offset language in the contract, which will especially be wanted in place with Blackmon, following his DUI a few months ago.

According to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk, the two sides will begin serious negotiations "soon".

Despite the inherent challenges to working out a contract for the fifth overall pick in the draft who was arrested for aggravated DUI with a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.24 percent, the Jaguars and receiver Justin Blackmon haven't been spending much time working toward doing a deal.

Per a source with knowledge of the negotiations (or, more accurately, non-negotations), the two sides will start talking more seriously soon.

Complicating matters is the fact that Blackmon is sandwiched between a pair of unsigned players, Vikings tackle Matt Kalil at No. 4 and Cowboys cornerback Morris Claiborne at No. 6.

With Blackmon's DUI, the Jaguars will want to make sure those protections are in place, but that will likely be a hold up according to past reports on Blackmon's contract situation. Couple that with unsigned players around him, it might go on for a little while, as no one wants to be the first in a grouping to sign, in fear of the other players getting a better deal.