3 Lingering Questions Facing Jaguars' Defense: Pass-Rush Takes Centerstage

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars' defense has big expectations entering the 2026 season, even if there are not that many new faces.

Jaguars defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile returned to his post this offseason after receiving several interviews to be a head coach, and all expectations are that his unit will progress from the leap they already took a year ago.

But with the offseason program now officially in the rearview mirror, what are the biggest questions facing Campanile's defense ahead of training camp and Week 1? From the pass-rush to the impact of former No. 2 pick Travis Hunter, we break it all down below.

Do they have enough pass-rush?

striggo — Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Danny Striggow (92), left, drills on defensive end Quindarius Dunnigan (59) during the first day of minicamp at the Miller Electric Center, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The biggest concern facing the Jaguars' entire roster right now might be the pass-rush depth, even if the Jaguars themselves do not seem overly concerned with the unit. But it is hard to shake the sheer fact that outside of Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker, the Jaguars are set to rely on a group of rookies or second-year players to provide the pass-rush depth that will be needed to help the Jaguars get through a 17-game season.

We saw last year what the importance of depth behind Hines-Allen and Walker truly is when Walker missed time due to injuries. With Walker at much less than 100% for most of the year, the Jaguars' pass-rush outside of Hines-Allen struggled to pick up the pace with veteran backups Dawuane Smoot and Emmanuel Ogbah.

Smoot and Ogbah are now gone, and the Jaguars are set to lean on rookies Wesley Williams and Zach Durfee, along with former undrafted defensive ends Danny Striggow and B.J. Green. Each of these players has traits and has the confidence of the Jaguars' staff, but the Jaguars can really not afford to be wrong about this one.

What kind of role will Travis Hunter play?

Travis Hunter spent the bulk of his rookie season at wide receiver, playing twice as many snaps on offense as he did at cornerback. While it still remains to be seen exactly what that split might look like entering his second season, the widespread expectation has been that Hunter will play more snaps at cornerback than we saw him play a year ago.

"The piece that I think we can expect to see is actually an uptick in corner usage, right? Last year it was a higher volume, higher percentage of wide receiver usage than it was corner," Jaguars general manager James Gladstone said on 'The Rich Eisen Show in May. "I think we can expect to see that corner percentile and count go up as we move forward. That's not to say anything impacts his availability and usage on offense. It just means that cornerback usage will increase."

Will the usage increase enough to the point where we can safely consider Hunter to be the Jaguars' No. 1 cornerback? It remains to be seen if this will be the case now or sometime in the future, but it is fair to say that he is the most naturally talented cornerback the Jaguars have on their entire roster. Whether or not that means he becomes their true lockdown cornerback week in and week our remains to be seen.

Who is replacing Devin Lloyd?

jacksonville jaguar — Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd (0) celebrates a fumble recovery with cornerback Montaric Brown (30) during the second quarter of an NFL football AFC Wild Card playoff matchup, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Jaguars saw former first-round pick Devin Lloyd have a huge performance in 2025, earning second-team All-Pro honors after tying for the team lead in interceptions with five. Lloyd made big plays time and time again for the Jaguars last season, and this led to him earning a big deal from the Carolina Panthers once free agency rolled around in March.

So, who will actually replace Lloyd in the lineup come Week 1 vs. the Cleveland Browns? The most obvious answer would be fourth-year linebacker Ventrell Miller, who started two games for the Jaguars last season when Lloyd missed time due to injuries. Miller competed with Lloyd for the starting role through training camp last season and was even splitting reps with Lloyd in last season's Week 1 opener vs. the Carolina Panthers, so there is some precedence for the Jaguars having faith in his skills.

There is also former undrafted linebacker Branscon Combs, who is entering his second season and who impressed the Jaguars throughout the offseason program. Combs could push Miller for the job over the course of training camp, but he is even more unproven than the Jaguars' veteran backup. Whoever takes over for Lloyd has some big shoes to fill, and we are still waiting to find out who is going to fill them.

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