5 Takeaways on Travis Hunter, Trevor Lawrence and More From Jaguars OTA No. 1

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars' path toward another AFC South title has officially begun.

Months of offseason work have finished, and the Jaguars' entire roster hit the practice field for the first time on Tuesday with the official start of OTAs. We were boots on the ground for each moment of Tuesday's practice, and here is everything we saw

What We Saw from RB Room

bhayshul tute — Jacksonville Jaguars running back Bhayshul Tuten (33) runs the ball during a rookie minicamp at Miller Electric Center Saturday, May 10, 2025 in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

One of the most fascinating position groups on the Jaguars' roster has to be the running back position. Liam Coen himself called the running back room "wide open" in terms of oppurtunity, and it is clear that there are jobs up and down the running back depth chart that will have to be won. With that said, the room was a bit incomplete on Tuesday as veteran running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. was not on the field.

It is important to note that the jobs will not be won here and now, so Rodriguez's abscence is not a big deal in the slightest. Coen said that it is hard to truly evaluate running backs without pads on, but even in that context it is worth noting that Bhayshul Tuten had an impressive first day of OTAs. He had several productive runs on the perimeter, including one where he broke into open space, caught his balance after nearly slipping. and then raced Antonio Johnson to the end-zone.

LeQuint Allen got plenty of reps as well, and it is already easy to see the role he will play in his second season. Behind them, J'Mari Taylor had a few impressive runs, including one that got him to the third level at the end of practice. DeeJay Dallas and Ameer Abdullah caught a few short passes out of the backfield, but it was Tuten who stole the day.

Trevor Lawrence's Day

Trevor Lawrence has a chance to make a massive leap in his sixth season, and all expectations are that he will hit his ceiling under Liam Coen. He took his first steps toward doing so at Tuesday's OTAs, with Lawrence having a solid practice all things considered. Lawrence did have one poor pass early in practice that was picked off by Eric Murray, but otherwise he was able to put together a consistent day without any questionable decisions.

Lawrence made several noteworthy throws on Tuesday, including a terrific seam pass to Jakobi Meyers that zipped past Murray's head. Lawrence was accurate to all levels of the field, took check downs when nothing developed and, outside of the one underthrown deep ball, did not put the ball in harm's way. It was a strong start to the offseason for No. 16, whose hair was very much intact, by the way.

The Top Defensive Performance

VENTRELL MILLE — Jan 4, 2026; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Ventrell Miller (51) after the game against the Tennessee Titans at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images | Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images

For all of the narratives this offseason about the Jaguars set to suffer from the loss of Devin Lloyd, Tuesday was a heck of a start to the Ventrell Miller era. Miller was the standout defensive player of the practice, even with Eric Murray and Preston Hodge both recording interceptions. Miller flew around from sideline to sideline, ending the day with multiple pass breakups in coverage and several plays where he would have had a running back stopped for either a loss or a short gain.

If Miller truly takes the next step in his development and is able to replace even a portion of what Lloyd provided the Jaguars last season, then the Jaguars' defense will be in good shape. One OTA practice does not answer the questions facing the linebacker room, but it was as good of a start as you can imagine for Miller.

Brian Thomas Jr., Parker Washington Stand Out

The Jaguars' two best wide receivers in the pass-happy day were Brian Thomas Jr. and Parker Washington. Thomas got behind the defense a few times, including on a deep touchdown where he left Christian Braswell in the dust before securing the long pass from Lawrence. He did not have any drops and also made a nice adjustment on a diving catch in the intermediate part of the field.

With that said, I do not know if there was a player who had a more productive practice on Tuesday than Parker Washington. His price is only going to go up, and the long-time offseason MVP looked like he has hit a new level just based on Tuesday's practice. He caught everything thrown his way and very much so looked like he got the most volume out of the top wideouts.

Travis Hunter Makes an Appearance

Remember when everyone was worried that Travis Hunter wouldn't play on offense? That was a funny few months, and it became even funnier when you could see just how close Hunter was to the offense during the first OTA session. Hunter did not practice on Tuesday, as he was off to the side throughout the day, but he did don a wide receiver jersey and spend his afternoon tied at the hip to the receiver unit and offense.

Trevor Lawrence joked that Hunter is practically in the huddle as a 12th man, while Liam Coen said Hunter had a walkie-talkie to hear all of the offensive calls. This means nothing in terms of Hunter's usage or status, but it is worth noting that he was not wearing a knee brace on his right knee. Hunter will clearly get more mental work than anything else during the offseason, but it was good to see him still involved and present in the meantime. Do not expect to see Hunter doing much more until training camp, though.

Play of the Day

The play of the day has to go to Jaguars veteran safety Eric Murray. The defense flew around the early portion of practice, and the highlight of it was an interception by Murray during the first 7-on-7 session. Lawrence uncorked a deep pass for Brian Thomas Jr. that Murray made a great play on in the air, ending up with an interception on what looked like a sure touchdown.

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