The Buffalo Bills are sitting at 4-1 after their wild overtime win over the Los Angeles Rams in Week 5, but the record only tells part of the story. Even with the AFC East lead through five games, Buffalo’s offense still has a real problem on its hands, and the wide receiver room is the clearest place it shows.
With D.J. Moore missing time because of injury, the Bills’ receiver group looks awfully familiar from last season.
That’s the issue. Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman and Josh Palmer are the top three options right now, and the numbers aren’t strong enough: Shakir has 18 catches, Coleman has 15 and Palmer has three.
None of them has more than 256 yards, and all three sit 36th or worse in yards and 57th or worse in receptions.
That’s why a Brian Thomas Jr. trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars makes sense before the 2026 NFL trade deadline. Buffalo needs another young pass-catcher who can actually change the game for Josh Allen, and Thomas still fits that profile even if his 2026 production hasn’t matched the promise.
The 2024 23rd overall pick has just nine receptions for 105 yards and a touchdown this season. But the upside is still there, because as a rookie he posted 87 catches, 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Since then, things have shifted. Liam Coen is now in the building, Jacksonville has added and developed other receivers, and the connection between Trevor Lawrence and Thomas hasn’t looked the same. Thomas has also dealt with drops and injuries over the last two seasons.
Even so, Buffalo could use another receiver with real impact potential, and at minimum Thomas would give the Bills insurance if Moore’s injury issues continue. Brandon Beane is known for “checking in” with Jacksonville, and this is the kind of move he should seriously consider if the price stays manageable.
The deadline is coming fast, with Tuesday, November 10 landing between Weeks 9 and 10, and that means the market is going to heat up quickly. To figure out what Buffalo should offer, the best place to start is with the receiver deals already made this season and last.
One recent benchmark is the Marvin Harrison Jr. trade between the Arizona Cardinals and Houston Texans. Houston sent a second-round pick and a seventh-round pick to Arizona and got Harrison plus a sixth-round selection back.
That is too steep for Thomas. Harrison was a first-rounder like Thomas, but Thomas was drafted 19 spots later, has hit a rough stretch over the past two seasons, and Harrison also carries a built-in premium because of his family name.
A better guide comes from two trades made before the 2025 deadline: the New Orleans Saints sending Rashid Shaheed to the Seattle Seahawks and the Las Vegas Raiders moving Jakobi Meyers to the Jaguars. Seattle sent New Orleans a fourth-round pick and a fifth-round pick, while Jacksonville gave up a fourth and a sixth.
That’s the type of range Thomas belongs in. Shaheed also brings extra value as a kick returner, which only strengthens the case that Thomas should not cost more than that tier of draft capital. In other words, the cleanest Bills offer is the one that matches what Jacksonville used to acquire the player who effectively replaced Thomas on the Jaguars’ depth chart.
If Buffalo sends its own fourth-round pick and the sixth-rounder it got from the Indianapolis Colts in the Sedrick Van Pran-Granger trade, that should be enough to land Thomas and give Allen another piece that could lift this offense.
In Other News...
Jaguars Have A Discipline Problem Liam Coen Knows He Must Fix
The Jaguars left their game against the Eagles with the same kind of frustration that has been hanging around them for another week: too many flags, too much wasted time, and scoring chances slipping away. Multiple delay of game penalties short-circuited drives, and Jacksonville finished with 13 penalties in that game after also piling up 13 against the Bengals, a pattern that has become hard to ignore for a team trying to establish a cleaner identity.
Liam Coen took responsibility for the breakdowns and said the answer has to start with simplifying the play-calling process so the offense can get lined up and operate with more urgency. For a staff trying to build consistency, the issue is bigger than one messy afternoon. It is about whether the Jaguars can get the details right before the penalties begin to shape games for them. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Fans Have A Bigger Brian Thomas Jr. Concern Than Trade Buzz
Brian Thomas Jr. has become part of the trade chatter around Jacksonville, but the more immediate concern for the Jaguars is not what another team might offer. It is the quiet, underwhelming start to his sophomore season, which has left the young receiver in an unusual spot after what the team hoped would be a step forward.
Through five games, Thomas has just nine catches for 105 yards and one touchdown, production that does not match the expectations surrounding a player the Jaguars still appear willing to build around. Even with outside interest floating around, Jacksonville has not signaled any desire to move him, leaving the bigger question focused on whether the breakout still comes in time for the season to matter. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars-Texans Could Come Down To What Houston Still Hasn't Fixed
With Week 6 bringing the Jaguars and Texans back into the same divisional frame, the matchup is starting to look less like a showcase for star power and more like a test of which side has done a better job of fixing its own issues. Scott Barzilla of Battle Red Blog dug into Houstons current state, and his read centered on a team still trying to sort out its offense, where scheme and playcalling have been lingering concerns even after another offseason meant to move things forward.
From Jacksonvilles perspective, that makes the trip to Houston feel winnable, especially with Barzilla also pointing to defensive injury effects that have complicated the Texans balance on that side of the ball. He flagged a few under-the-radar names worth watching and still called for a tight game, but his slight edge goes to the Jaguars, which says plenty about how much Houston still has to clean up before this rivalry feels settled again. [Read more 🡒]