The Jacksonville Jaguars sit at 3-11 on the season following their back-and-forth, 32-25 loss to the New York Jets. The 2024 season has been one of the most disappointing in franchise history and the blows continued on Sunday.
However, one of the upsides of having one of the worst records in the NFL is the opportunity to utilize and evaluate the young talent on the roster. Against New York, a handful of Jacksonville’s rookies and second-year players stood out.
Jaguars Wire takes a closer look at the All-22 from Sunday’s loss to examine the potential future pieces of the roster.
WR Brian Thomas Jr.’s historic rookie season
Should Trent Baalke hold onto his job as Jacksonville’s general manager this offseason, his first-round selection of the former LSU All-American may very well be the biggest reason why.
Against the Jets, Brian Thomas Jr. caught 10 passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns, breaking the franchise rookie record for receiving touchdowns and yards while tying its rookie record for receptions in a season, putting his season total at 64 catches for 956 yards and eight touchdowns.
Thomas has become more than just a vertical threat in the passing game. He has transcended into a true No. 1 target in the passing game with plenty of room to continue growing in the years to come.
One of the reasons why Thomas has begun to receive a high volume of targets is because of his smooth, yet sudden short-area bursts and quickness at the line of scrimmage.
Take his first touchdown for example. He does a great job setting up the man defender to get his feet stuck in the grass. This allows Thomas to break quickly inside and use his explosiveness out of the break to separate.
Brian Thomas Jr. is just so damn smooth. Clean break inside on the inside dig and the acceleration to separate. pic.twitter.com/rxtkNIrH9u
— Jared Feinberg (@JRodNFLDraft) December 16, 2024
Here’s another example of Thomas winning at the line of scrimmage. He displays a textbook split release and forces the corner to be choppy in his footwork. The separation out of the break allows Thomas to catch and run away from the defender for his second touchdown of the day.
Love the split release and then the instant acceleration after the catch. Thomas is so good, man. pic.twitter.com/Tn8PCqLljh
— Jared Feinberg (@JRodNFLDraft) December 16, 2024
Thomas was not asked to sit and find green grass in LSU’s offense last season, raising concerns about his ability to succeed in this area. This is an example of how just because you couldn’t do it in college, doesn’t mean you can’t do it.
This was one of the most explosive plays from the Jaguars’ offensive explosion against the Jets. Thomas does a great job of exploding out of his stance and then quickly decelerating in green grass to sit and make his number available for the quarterback. After the catch, he splits defenders and takes off for a 41-yard pickup.
Accelerate, decelerate, sit in zone, explode after the catch. This is what the Jaguars envisioned when they took BTJ as the fourth WR off the board. pic.twitter.com/RYNOAQkUIF
— Jared Feinberg (@JRodNFLDraft) December 16, 2024
Thomas must continue to improve his overall play strength to better win at the line of scrimmage against physical press-man cornerbacks. There were a couple of reps against the Jets where All-Pro defender Sauce Garnder used his physicality to disrupt the timing and tempo of Thomas’ route.
If he can add more to his frame and be more assertive against physical corners, Thomas will have taken the next step to being one of the best playmakers in the NFL. Jaguars fans will be in for a treat regardless for years to come.
Rookie CB Jarrian Jones thriving in the nickel
A nice development for Jacksonville’s defense is the emergence of rookie defender Jarrian Jones, who was a standout cornerback at Florida State just down I-10.
Jones has flashed many qualities as a nickelback and may have emerged as the team’s future at this spot. He showed impressive recovery skills and awareness in man coverage, positioning himself to make plays on the ball or disrupt the timing of the catch with physicality against opposing receivers.
Below are two quality reps in coverage against Allen Lazard and All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams.
Jarrian Jones continues to make an impact and flash at nickel for Jacksonville. The rookie out of FSU had some nice defended passes against Allen Lazard and Davante Adams. pic.twitter.com/dOq2RpFeI2
— Jared Feinberg (@JRodNFLDraft) December 16, 2024
TE Brenton Strange
With versatile tight end Evan Engram out for the rest of the season with a torn labrum, the Jaguars can see what they have in second-year tight end Brenton Strange.
Strange took over Evan Engram’s role as the F-move TE where, paired with his traditional duties in-line and as a receiver, he motioned to fullback on occasion to disguise 21 and 12 personnel looks.
Strange is an above-average athlete who was used on screens to create after the catch and shows good quickness out of breaks. He is also a reliable and tough hands catcher who caught 11 passes for 73 yards against the Jets.
