3 Things the Jaguars' Scrimmage Really Told Us About Their Future

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars put in their most important day of practice work this summer yet on Friday, with the team's annual scrimmage taking centerstage for 90 minutes.

Scrimmages are closer to the real thing than anything else that transpires over the first few weeks of training camp, even if the proper context is still required when evaluating the day's events. So, what did Friday's scrimmage actually tell us about the Jaguars' future?

Liam Coen Has Optimism in the Running Game

Jaguars head coach Liam Coen will be the first to say something whenever the Jaguars' offense doesn't meet their standards, and he has never been afraid to mince words. That is why it was such a positive outcome for the Jaguars to hear Coen heap praise onto their running game after Friday's practice, considering the importance of an improved rushing attack for the Jaguars' 2026 offense. Coen has not been shy about making it clear how much better the running game has to be this year, and he was clearly happy with the results he saw during Friday's scrimmage.

"I think we ran it, fairly well. I thought there was some movement," Coen said after practice. "It didn't feel like there was a ton of guys in the backfield, with the two-versus-one defense. Some of that's going to happen, but I felt like, for the most part, there was movement at the line of scrimmage and opportunities for the backs, whereas sometimes there's nowhere to go, right? And that's not a fun movie to watch. And I feel like really consistently the last few days, especially with the pads, we've been able to move the line of scrimmage a little bit, and the backs are getting some opportunities.”

The running game had a slow start to camp but it has certainly come alive over the last few days, namely due to the performances of Bhayshul Tuten and Chris Rodriguez Jr. Tuten is getting efficient chunks to keep the chains moving, while Rodriguez has been very impressive as a power back in limited looks as he still works his way back to 100%.

The Jaguars Will Be Able to Utilize 4 Cornerbacks

The Jaguars have four different cornerbacks who would be considered starters on any defense between Travis Hunter, Montaric Brown, Jourdan Lewis, and Jarrian Jones. There was some question entering the offseason of just how the Jaguars would be able to manage having so many talented cornerbacks, though they showed last year with the rotation of Brown/Lewis/Jones/Greg Newsome that they can have four cornerbacks get important snaps over the course of a game. They showed exactly this once again during Friday's practice.

The Jaguars were able to get all four of their top cornerbacks some extended run with the starting defense on Friday, with the most notable playing time split being the fact that it felt like Brown was never off the field. Otherwise, the Jaguars had Hunter and Jones takes reps outside, with Lewis taking his spot in the slot cornerback role. If anyone was curious how the Jaguars would manage to get their four best cornerbacks on the field before, they have proven now that they hae no real challenges in doing so.

The Pass-Rush Depth is Better Than Given Credit For

Perhaps the biggest question facing the Jaguars' defense entering 2026 was their pass-rush depth. The Jaguars have three talented pass-rushers in Josh Hines-Allen, Travon Walker and Arik Armstead, but they did not make any high-profile splashes to add to their pass-rush rotation this offseason, instead relying on internal growth from a pair of second-year defensive ends in Danny Striggow and B.J. Green and the inclusion of a few new faces.

Amongst those faces are rookie pass-rushers Wesley Williams and Zach Durfee, who recorded a pass deflection and a sack against the starting offense respectively. There is also the addition of defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro, who had several quick pressures over the course of practice. Add in Green's complete domination of the Jaguars' backup offensive line and it was a good sign that we may have been underrating the Jaguars' pass-rush depth this whole time.

“We have what we need. At edge, I like the team that we have and those are my boys and we roll out with what we roll out with. I know what they can do. They can set the edge, so that's important in our defense," Foyesade Oluokun said after practice.

"And then they have good pass rush moves and coordinate the pass rush games with the rest of the defense. So, I like the kids that we have out there now and I really like their competitive edge that they have to them. It's all about playing right in the scheme, and I think they can all do that. So, we rely on them play in, play out to do what they're supposed to.”

Add us as a preferred source on Google