3 2025 Mistakes for Jaguars to Learn From

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars had a stellar 2025 season, littered with good memories, big wins and shrewd moves on and off the field.

But if the Jaguars for a second act like they have arrived and perfected their craft, they are going about it wrong. The Jaguars, of course, are too smart and too well-run to act like that, which means they know there are moments and mistakes to look back and learn from.

So, what are the three mistakes from 2025 the Jaguars' regime can learn from to help influence their 2026 decisions? We take a look below.

Dyami Brown Deal

The Jaguars mostly had success in free agency, or at least got in base. Jourdan Lewis and Robert Hainsey were both key starters and team captains, while Eric Murray and Patrick Mekari started plenty of games and played a lot of snaps. Most of the other signings were depth moves, but there was also the Dyami Brown signing.

Brown's one-year, $10 million deal wasn't one that was ever going to hurt the Jaguars in the long-run. It was a low-risk deal for a player coming off a terrific playoff run, and there was some considerable upside if Brown panned out to be what they envisioned -- a starting receiver. This seemed like a reach in terms of projection at the time, and it finished with Brown as a healthy scratch with 20 catches for 227 yards and one touchdown. Don't expect James Gladstone to make this mistake again.

Houston, Bengals Losses

jacksonville jaguar — Sep 14, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Jake Browning (6) dives for a touchdown against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second half at Paycor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

The Jaguars certainly won their fair share of games in 2025. The Jaguars had one of the NFL's best records at 13-4, finishing with one of the most impressive regular-seasons in the entire history of the franchise. But if there are any games the Jaguars would like to have back, it would be their only regular-season losses to AFC foes.

The Cincinnati Bengals loss came back to haunt the Jaguars when it came to playoff seeding, and it certainly felt avoidable in the moment too. Awful DPI flag on Travis Hunter notwithstanding, the Jaguars made a ton of self-inflicted mistakes and let Jake Browning get a game-winning drive. As for the Houston loss, not much more needs to be said about it. They learned from it in 2025 and need to continue to do so.

The Khalen Saunders Trade

Sep 7, 2025; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Khalen Saunders Sr. (96) takes the field prior to a game against the Carolina Panthers at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Jaguars' trade for Khalen Saunders came with no real downside, but it was still a stud. All of the other trades the Jaguars made either had the Jaguars as clear winners or at least got the Jaguars something positive out of it (dumping Tyson Campbell's contract, adding Travis Hunter's talent). The same can't be said for the Khalen Saunders trade, though. Good on the Jaguars for being creative about their defensive tackle issue, but this was a dud.

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