If you want to know exactly why the Jacksonville Jaguars have been so bad for so long, look no further than their last 2 first round draft picks.
In 2024, the Jaguars drafted LSU wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. at No. 23 overall. As a rookie, he led his team with 87 receptions for 1,283 yards and 10 touchdowns on the way to being named a Pro Bowler.
For most logical thinking front offices and coaching staffs, that’s one position that’s locked down for the foreseeable future.
For the Jaguars, it just meant taking another wide receiver one year later, when they took Travis Hunter at No. 2 overall, passing over positions and players that could have filled a pressing need on offense like offensive tackles Will Campbell and Armand Membou or tight end Tyler Warren.
As we’ve seen through the first 8 weeks of the season, taking Hunter was not just egregiously stupid but it was also redundant. Now, with Thomas butting heads with with first year head coach and former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen, it’s also made him expendable.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox thinks the Jaguars could be open to a trade with Coen’s old team, pitching a trade that sends Thomas to the Buccaneers in exchange for a 2026 second round pick and 2026 second round pick Chris Braswell.
“Chris Godwin is still sidelined with a fibula injury, while Mike Evans is on injured reserve with a broken collarbone,” Knox wrote. “Tampa struggled to keep pace during its Week 7 loss to the Detroit Lions, and it didn’t get a ton going through the air during Sunday’s win over the New Orleans Saints. Baker Mayfield has also seemed either off or at less than 100 percent over the last two weeks, but adding a receiver like Thomas might be just the thing to get him back into Pro Bowl form.”
Buccaneers Invested Poorly at Wide Receiver
The Buccaneers invested heavily in Godwin and Evans, a pair of aging wide receivers who they bet big on still having some gas left in the tank.
It looks like both players might actually be running on empty.
Godwin received a 3-year, $66 million free agent contract this offseason despite missing the last 9 games of the 2024 regular season with a dislocated left ankle. He returned in Week 4 of the regular season and played 2 games before irritation in that same ankle forced him to sit for the last 3 games â he has just 6 receptions for 52 yards.
Evans, who already missed 3 games earlier this season with a hamstring injury, is in the final season of a 2-year, $52 million contract and broke his collarbone in a Week 7 loss to the Detroit Lions. It’s the second consecutive season Evans has missed multiple games due to injuries after missing 3 games in 2024 with another hamstring injury.
Thomas, Egbuka Could Be Lethal Combination
For a team on the verge of being a legitimate NFC contender, Thomas could be the player who truly takes the top off the offense.
Paired with another young, star wide receiver in 2025 first round pick Emeka Egbuka, it could be the combination that lifts the Buccaneers into elite status.
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