The Panthers and Jaguars are heading into Friday night’s preseason meeting from very different places.
Carolina already has two exhibition games under its belt. The Panthers opened by beating the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL Hall of Fame Game, then came back to reality in Week 1 with a 29-14 loss to the Buffalo Bills. Jacksonville, meanwhile, started its preseason with a 24-20 win over the Saints.
One of the more interesting angles for the Jaguars is the receiver room. Brian Thomas Jr. is locked in as the clear No. 1, with Jakobi Meyers and Parker Washington part of the starting mix, but there’s still room for a rookie to carve out a role.
That makes CJ Williams a name worth watching. The Jaguars used a sixth-round pick on the Stanford product, and he made a solid first impression in the opener with two catches for 28 yards.
On the Carolina side, Dave Canales’ preseason track record doesn’t exactly inspire confidence if you’re looking for a team that treats these games like must-win affairs. He has gone just 1-7 against the spread in the preseason since becoming Panthers head coach, and that lines up with a staff that leans on these games more as evaluation than anything else.
Jacksonville is also in a different spot this week than it was in Week 1. The Jaguars won their first preseason game without any of their starters on the field, and now they plan to get those players some work, at least for part of the game.
That’s enough to make the Jaguars the side to trust here.
In Other News...
Jaguars Roster Fights Are Suddenly Getting Harder To Ignore
With preseason work turning toward Carolina and the backdrop of ongoing stadium construction, the Jaguars are getting a long look at the parts of the roster that rarely stay quiet in August. The most obvious fights are along the offensive line and at linebacker, where recent trades and signings such as Daniel Faalele and Timothy McKay have only added more names to sort through as the staff tries to settle the depth chart.
Injuries have made the picture even less tidy, and that has pushed the evaluation of backup quarterback options and rookie performances closer to the center of the conversation. With the 53-man roster deadline looming, Jacksonville is still searching for clarity in several spots, and some of these decisions could be harder to separate than the usual preseason cutdown talk. [Read more 🡒]
Trevor Lawrence Decision Puts Jaguars At A Real Preseason Crossroads
The Jaguars are still weighing whether Trevor Lawrence and the rest of the first team will take the field in Saturdays preseason game against the Carolina Panthers, a choice that now feels more meaningful than a typical August tune-up. Liam Coen has left the door open both ways, pointing to recent injuries and what he has seen in practice as the factors shaping the decision, with the team still having more work ahead in practice and joint sessions before the regular season opener.
For a Jacksonville team trying to find the right balance between getting ready and staying healthy, this is the kind of call that can say as much about the staffs priorities as anything on the field. The final answer is expected within 24 hours, and whether Lawrence plays or not, the Jaguars are entering a preseason stretch where every rep seems to carry a little more weight than usual. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Tight End Battle Is Suddenly Putting Liam Coens Vision To The Test
Training camp has already started to show how Liam Coen wants his offense to look, and the Jaguars tight end room is one of the clearer signs. Nate Boerkircher and Tanner Koziol, the teams two recent draft picks at the position, have both been worked into the mix as Jacksonville sorts out how much value it can get from a group that is being asked to do more than just fill space on the field.
Boerkircher brings a reputation for blocking, but there is also growing belief he can chip in as a receiver, especially around the red zone. Koziol offers a different look as a pass-catching threat who is willing to block, and that combination has already pushed veterans Quintin Morris and Hunter Long further down the depth chart. For a coaching staff trying to build a tight end rotation that fits Coens vision, the competition is starting to say as much as the playbook. [Read more 🡒]