JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Jaguars have a lot of moving parts coming out of camp, but the cleanest takeaway is this: Trevor Lawrence has more help around him, and the roster is being built to make that support count.
The receiver room has taken real shape over the summer. The in-season trade for Jakobi Meyers helped the Jaguars sort out the pecking order, and it has opened the door for the rest of the group to settle into better-fitting roles.
Brian Thomas Jr. has returned with more assurance and decisiveness in how he plays, and he looks more comfortable in Liam Coen’s scheme. Parker Washington has also made another jump.
Travis Hunter, who’ll come up again, should be dangerous in packages. Meyers brings the kind of heady, smart presence that works over the middle, while rookie sixth-rounders Josh Cameron, who has return ability, and CJ Williams have both flashed.
Lawrence, in short, should have no trouble finding options.
The run game may be the biggest offensive change. Travis Etienne Jr. is gone to the Saints, and the Jaguars are shaping things around Bhayshul Tuten and Chris Rodriguez Jr.
Tuten is the explosive one, a back who can hit a home run and also run inside with power. Rodriguez looks like the tone-setter, a big, physical, efficient runner with strong vision in camp.
Together, they could push the offense toward something closer to what Liam Coen and James Gladstone were around in Los Angeles, with Kyren Williams and, in Coen’s case, Cam Akers and Todd Gurley. The Jaguars believe that kind of backfield could set up more play-action chances.
Up front, the questions are real. The most immediate one is at right guard, where Patrick Mekari had back surgery.
Emmanuel Pregnon, the third-round pick out of Oregon, has made a strong case in pads and has a shot to fill that spot while Mekari works his way back, though his return timetable remains uncertain and he’s expected back at some point this season. There’s also the tackle shuffle to monitor.
Jacksonville has been testing Anton Harrison on the left side to see how high his ceiling can go, and if he stays there, Walker Little would move to the right. That was the alignment at the practice I was at.
Depth was supposed to be a strength here, but injuries have hit hard - the Jaguars began camp with 16 linemen and were down to nine earlier this week, even if most of those players are expected back.
The defense, especially the front, looks much sturdier. Arik Armstead has put together an outstanding summer in his 12th year, and the Jaguars are moving Travon Walker inside a lot because they think he can be even more disruptive there.
If Walker is inside on passing downs, that creates an opening on the edge opposite Josh Hines-Allen, and B.J. Green II has emerged as a real dark-horse candidate to matter there.
The 2025 undrafted free agent has been active when given chances and has been borderline dominant early in camp as a short, hard-to-block end.
There’s also a chance the Jaguars lean into more unusual looks under second-year defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile. They still need to settle the Will linebacker spot after Devin Lloyd’s departure, with Ventrell Miller and Branson Combs in the mix. Dennis Gardeck and maybe Jahlani Tavai give them options for more creative usage as well.
And then there’s Travis Hunter. The question isn’t whether he can play both ways - it’s where the Jaguars want him most.
This year he has been focused on defense, after spending last spring and summer centered on offense. The belief inside the building is that he can be a special player at corner or safety because of his length, ball skills, instincts and everything else.
Jacksonville also knows it is easier to have him operate mainly as a defensive player - meetings, drills, practice and all - and then use him in offensive packages than to flip that arrangement, which was also his routine at Colorado. Most of all, the Jaguars need him more on defense.
The secondary has promise, with fourth-year safety Antonio Johnson making a leap, Eric Murray steady next to him, Jarrian Jones trending up at corner, and nickel Jourdan Lewis dealing with injury. If Hunter becomes what they think he can be on that side, it all starts to come together.
In Other News...
Jaguars Tackle Depth Just Entered A Trade Rumor Fans Will Notice
Washingtons left tackle situation changed quickly after Laremy Tunsil suffered a torn triceps that will require surgery and is expected to keep him out for a significant portion of the 2026 season. Dan Quinn has already pointed to Brandon Coleman as the starter on the blind side, and for now the Commanders are saying they do not plan to go outside the building for help. Still, with the depth chart at a premium spot suddenly looking thinner, any team with a capable tackle is going to draw attention.
Thats where Jacksonville naturally enters the conversation, at least in a speculative sense, because Walker Little is the kind of name that can surface when another club is searching for stability up front. For the Jaguars, the wrinkle is obvious: there have been no public trade talks, and Little is currently hurt, which makes any move more complicated than the rumor mill might suggest. Even so, it is the sort of background noise that tends to follow a team with a usable tackle and a league with a lot of teams quietly watching the same position. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Camp Injuries Just Raised The Stakes For Several Roster Battles
The Jaguars roster battles got a little more complicated this week after the team delivered a fresh round of injury updates before its joint practice with the Panthers. Parker Washington is dealing with an undisclosed issue, Wyatt Milum will sit out the rest of the week, and LeQuint Allen is out for the remainder of training camp with a soft tissue injury, while Patrick Mekari has already gone through back surgery and still has an uncertain timetable for any injured reserve move.
For a team sorting through depth chart decisions in late August, the timing matters as much as the names. Washington has been part of a crowded competition at receiver, so every missed practice rep counts, and the absences elsewhere only tighten the numbers as Jacksonville tries to evaluate who can stay on the field and keep pushing through camp. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars May Be Leaning One Way With Travis Hunter After All
Travis Hunter has spent Jaguars training camp doing the rare double-duty act the team signed up for, working both cornerback and wide receiver while Jacksonville sorts out how best to use one of its most unique rookies. In recent practices, though, the emphasis has tilted more heavily toward defense, a sign the Jaguars are trying to make sure Hunter is ready for a meaningful role on that side of the ball without taking him out of the offensive mix.
Head coach Liam Coen has made it clear the increased cornerback workload is no accident, part of a deliberate plan to get Hunter more comfortable with the mental side of the position as well as the physical demands. Even with that shift, the Jaguars still view him as a key piece on offense, and the expectation remains that he will keep playing both ways as camp moves along. [Read more 🡒]