The Jaguars’ Week 2 stumble against Denver has shown up in the national power rankings, but not everywhere in the same way. A 20-13 loss that included a blown 10-point second-half lead is enough to knock Jacksonville off its perch in some lists, yet plenty of rankings still treat the Jaguars as a solid team that simply slipped for a week.
That was the tone from head coach Liam Coen on Monday after the loss. “That was the message, right after the game in the locker room, and then obviously this afternoon now, in the team meeting, was, ‘Hey guys, we've got to be extremely accountable to each other, to the things that obviously we could improve on or where we fell short.
Coaches, players, everybody involved in that, we've got to be accountable," Jaguars head coach Liam Coen said Monday. "We have to connect, reconnect; we've got to move on and respond.’
That's what it really comes down to. I'm excited to see us respond.
I'm excited to get back on the grass on Wednesday with this group, and get back to work."
The rankings tell a pretty clear story: Jacksonville is still viewed as a top-15 team almost across the board, but the Broncos loss trimmed the shine. One outlet has the Jaguars just outside the top 10, with the Vikings apparently getting more of the benefit there than Jacksonville getting penalized. Another kept the Jaguars in the same spot, which says as much about where they started as anything else.
Pete Prisco’s list delivered the harshest drop. He had Jacksonville at No. 2 a week ago, but after the Broncos loss and a broader stretch that now includes two defeats in the last three games if you count the Wild Card playoff loss to the Buffalo Bills, the Jaguars took a major hit.
Elsewhere, the damage was lighter. One ranking left Jacksonville in danger of slipping out of the top 15 if it drops a game to the New England Patriots on Sunday. Another placed the Jaguars barely inside the top 15 and noted they did not get much of the benefit of the doubt even before Week 2.
There were also rankings that kept Jacksonville hovering much closer to the top tier. One outlet had the Jaguars in the top five just a week ago before the Broncos loss pushed them down to the bottom of that group, while another still gave them plenty of respect, slotting them behind only the Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs, Cincinnati Bengals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, and Buffalo Bills.
The general theme is simple enough: the Jaguars took a hit, but not a devastating one. Even the lower marks suggest more of a correction than a collapse, and several rankings seem to think Jacksonville can climb right back with a couple of wins over the next few weeks. The Broncos, meanwhile, were helped more by the head-to-head result than the Jaguars were hurt by it, with Denver sitting at No. 6 in one ranking and just one spot ahead of Jacksonville.
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Jaguars Rookies Already Face A Week 3 Reality Check
The Jaguars Week 2 loss to the Broncos was a sharp reminder that early-season momentum can disappear fast, especially for a young roster trying to settle in. Jacksonville had led 13-3 before things slipped away, and head coach Liam Coen spent the week stressing the same point to the rookies: keep the focus on the next game, not on the disappointment behind them. For a group still trying to earn trust and find a foothold, every snap and every inactive list decision carries extra weight.
Several newcomers felt that reality in Denver, where Wesley Williams, Tanner Koziol, Jalen Huskey and CJ Williams were healthy scratches, while undrafted rookie Bryan Thomas Jr. got his NFL debut. Others, including Albert Regis, Josh Cameron and Nate Boerkircher, had different levels of involvement as the staff mixed and matched roles on the fly. It is the kind of early-season sorting process that can change quickly, but for these rookies, Week 3 already looks like another test of how much they can handle and how soon they can help. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Already Look Like Contenders But One Doubt Still Lingers
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Still, the placement also serves as a reminder that Jacksonville has not fully erased every question around its ceiling. A loss this early does not change the bigger picture, but it does keep the pressure on a roster that has to prove it can stack wins the way the leagues more established contenders do. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Run Defense Suddenly Has A Week 3 Concern Fans Will Notice
The Jaguars Week 3 injury report brought a familiar kind of small-sample concern into focus, with center Robert Hainsey and defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton both listed as limited participants. Hamiltons situation is the one that matters most on the defensive side, because he has been working back from a back injury and remains a key part of the middle of Jacksonvilles run defense.
Liam Coen said the team needs more production from the defensive tackle group, but also pointed to the depth behind it if Hamilton cannot handle a full workload. Rookie Albert Regis is among the players who could see more snaps in that case, and that is the kind of adjustment fans will be watching closely as the Jaguars try to keep the interior of the defense steady early in the season. [Read more 🡒]