The Jaguars head into their Week 7 bye with a loss fresh in the memory, but the bigger picture still looks sturdy. Jacksonville fell to the division-rival Houston Texans and slipped in the latest NFL power rankings, yet the AFC South is still theirs to control through six games.
Safety Eric Murray said Tuesday the message inside the building is about sharpening the edges, not panicking over the record.
“We strung together some good performances,” Eric Murray said Tuesday. “I think the biggest thing going forward is just hitting on consistency and getting back to what we do on a more consistent basis.
Not necessarily putting ourselves in bad positions where we can’t make plays and going off of that but just being more consistent. We are 4-2 at the bye, it’s nothing to be going crazy about.
It’s just lock in and keep going.”
Nationally, the Jaguars took a hit after the Texans game. Pro Football Talk moved Jacksonville down to No. 4 from No. 3, writing, “They’re finally getting a return on the Travis Hunter investment.”
ESPN kept the Jaguars at No. 5, while NFL.com also held them at No. 5 after a game that drew plenty of attention beyond the result. Michael DiRocco pointed to penalties that wiped out three touchdowns, including two 3-yard scoring runs by running back Bhayshul Tuten.
One of those came Sunday against Houston, when a holding call on tight end Brenton Strange wiped out a chance at points before Trevor Lawrence threw an end zone interception two plays later. Jacksonville still found the end zone after the other two penalties, against New England and Cincinnati, but that luck ran out in the three-point loss to the Texans.
Nick Shook of NFL.com called the London loss one of the best games of the season so far, noting that the Jaguars erased a 10-point deficit before a last-second defeat left them frustrated after their two-week trip. He also singled out Travis Hunter, saying his two-way role should be watched closely because it is “finally adding significant value to the Jaguars’ larger equation.”
A few outlets slid Jacksonville further down the board. Bleacher Report dropped the Jaguars to No. 7 and highlighted an elite run defense, along with an offense that can keep pace when Trevor Lawrence protects the football.
The Athletic also placed them at No. 7, focusing on Lawrence’s production. Josh Kendall and Chad Graff noted that he was drafted, on average, at No. 86 in fantasy leagues but is 22nd in scoring at 19.0 points per game through six games.
They also pointed out that Lawrence’s EPA per dropback this season, at 0.20, is nearly double his previous career high, even after Sunday’s four-touchdown, one-interception effort in the loss.
USA Today matched that No. 7 ranking. Nate Davis wrote that Travis Hunter played a season-high 71 snaps Sunday and kept making impact plays, while Brian Thomas Jr.
“Same can’t be said for WR Brian Thomas Jr.” Conor Orr added that it is hard to punish Jacksonville too harshly for a shootout loss to a Texans team that is heating up, and said the ceiling looks better if Hunter keeps working on both sides of the ball and Brian Thomas Jr. is possibly traded.
CBS Sports put the Jaguars at No. 8, with Pete Prisco saying they need better pass rush if they want to be a deep-playoff team and should look for help at the trade deadline. Fox Sports also had Jacksonville at No.
- Ralph Vacchiano said the offense is starting to click, but the 34-31 loss in London should serve as a reminder that the defense may not be quite what the Jaguars believed it was.
He added that Houston’s running game still managed 114 yards, though Jacksonville should like what comes next: a soft stretch after the bye that includes the Colts, Giants and two games against the Titans.
Yahoo Sports ranked Jacksonville No. 9.
Frank Schwab said the Jaguars looked strong through four weeks, but the London trip was rougher than it should have been, even with a last-second win over Philadelphia helped by a game-management mistake. He wrote that the defense let C.J.
Stroud carve them up against Houston, turning what could have been a knockout blow to the Texans’ AFC South hopes into a disappointing result for a team that had looked like one of the league’s more trustworthy contenders after the opening month. Still, he noted, a 4-2 start is nothing to dismiss, and the Jaguars do not seem rattled.
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Jaguars Are Offering Fans A Permanent Place At The New Stadium
A new part of the Jaguars stadium plans is aimed less at game days than at memory. The team is partnering with Eternal Fan on the 904Ever Club, a fan memorial that will sit outside the new stadium now scheduled to open before the 2028 NFL season, giving supporters a permanent place tied to the franchises future home.
The concept includes private and shared spaces where fans can store memorabilia, with membership tiers set at $904, $2,904 and $5,904. Eternal Fan will handle construction, operations and revenue for the memorial, while the Jaguars will collect fees for the use of their marks and stadium grounds, a reminder that this project is as much about business as it is about sentiment. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Face One Bye Week Decision That Could Fix Their Secondary
The Jaguars have opened the season with plenty to feel good about, but the loss to Houston also put a familiar issue back in the spotlight: coverage in the secondary. For a team trying to stay on track, the back end has become the spot that can swing a game in a hurry, and it is the kind of problem a front office has to keep weighing as the season moves toward its next checkpoint.
One possible fix that has surfaced is a look at Arizona safety Budda Baker, a veteran with multiple Pro Bowl nods who would bring instant credibility to the defensive backfield. Whether Jacksonville can make a move, and whether Baker is the right fit, remains an open question, but the appeal is obvious if the Jaguars decide they need help sooner rather than later. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Bye Week Puts One Crucial Roster Decision Under The Microscope
The Jaguars 4-2 start has bought them something every NFL team covets in mid-October: time. With the Week 7 bye here, Jacksonville can step back and sort through a defense that has been tested by injuries and uneven play in the secondary, while also taking a hard look at how to get Travis Hunter more involved on offense after he has flashed the kind of potential that makes him hard to ignore.
The same pause also gives the front office and coaching staff a chance to reassess the wide receiver rotation, where Brian Thomas Jr.s playing time has trailed off. Those conversations matter now because the bye week is one of the few windows to make meaningful adjustments before the trade deadline, and Jacksonville has a few roster questions that could shape the rest of its season. [Read more 🡒]