The Jacksonville Jaguars are moving forward without Mike Sims-Walker, choosing not to tender an offer to the wide receiver who recently completed his fourth season with the team.
Sims-Walker will become an unrestricted free agent when a new collective bargaining agreement is in place, *The Florida Times-Union* reported Thursday, and the receiver also confirmed the news via Twitter.
"Its official," Sims-Walker tweeted. "I personally wanna thank all the fans who stuck with me in jacksonville for the last 4 years but sorry to say my time is up!!"
Sims-Walker was a third-round pick by the Jaguars in the 2007 NFL Draft, then missed all of his rookie season with a knee injury and sat out seven more games with injuries in 2008. The receiver flashed some of his potential in 2009, hauling in seven touchdown passes while leading the team in receptions (63) and receiving yards (869).
Sims-Walker's production dipped to 43 catches and 562 yards in 2010, though he did have seven more touchdowns receptions.
It was a busy day for the Jaguars, who announced a host of roster moves.
Tight end Marcedes Lewis signed his franchise tender and will be paid $7.3 million next season.
Lewis, who just completed his fifth pro season, has long been known as a strong run blocker, but he took things to a new level as a receiver this past season. He had career highs in receptions (58), receiving yards (700) and touchdowns (10) while emerging as Jacksonville's top scoring threat.
Lewis, a first-round draft pick in 2006, has 181 career receptions for 2,224 yards and 17 touchdowns. The 17 receiving touchdowns are the fourth-most in Jaguars history, and the 2,224 receiving yards are the second-most among tight ends.
The team also announced Thursday that it had signed defensive back Tyron Brackenridge, cornerback David Jones and wide receiver Jason Hill to new contracts.
Brackenridge spent the past two seasons with the Jaguars and has 24 special-teams tackles. He also has spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs and New York Jets since entering the NFL as an undrafted rookie in 2007.
Jones joined the Jaguars via a trade with the Cincinnati Bengals last September. He originally was a fifth-round draft pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2007 and spent three seasons (2007-09) with the Bengals. He played in all 16 games for the Jaguars last season, totaling five starts, 27 tackles and an interception.
The Jaguars claimed Hill off waivers from the San Francisco 49ers during the season, and he caught 11 passes for 248 yards and one touchdown in six games.
"Everything I told Gene I would do, I did to the best of my ability," Hill told *The Times-Union*. "They came back with a contract offer, which was fair. It's something I couldn't pass up. ... You're always looking for stability. Jacksonville gave me that. In return, I think that's what they're getting with me."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
