Jaguars' Biggest Need Ahead of the NFL Trade Deadline Is Painfully Obvious

There is one position the Jacksonville Jaguars badly need to add to before the trade deadline is over next month.

Oct 18, 2026; London, ENG; Jacksonville Jaguars general manager James Gladstone before the game against the Houston Texans at Wembley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars are sitting in a perfectly good spot at 4-2 entering their Week 7 bye week, but things could always be better, and they could always improve.

The trade deadline is the most obvious avenue for a team to find in-season improvement, as we saw last year with the Jaguars' trade for Jakobi Meyers. And just like the Jaguars needed receiver help a year ago, it has become clear that there is one position they must target this year.

Trade Deadline Help

The Jaguars have all that they need at a few positions: they should be very happy with their linebacker play, and they clearly have the depth required, and then some, at wide receiver, tight end, running back, and quarterback. That does beg the question of a few other positions, though, and namely on the defensive side of the ball.

Jacksonville was one of the NFL's top-ranked defenses entering Sunday, but they got absolutely lit up against the Texans and their passing game in Week 6. Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud had several high-level throws and found plenty of deep and red-zone success against Jacksonville, burning them for explosive plays, efficient gains, and everything in between.

The defensive line is one position that will draw a lot of attention ahead of the deadline, especially after a day in which the Jaguars hardly pressured Stroud without sending the house on blitzes ... that Stroud then picked apart. The Jaguars' biggest issue with the defensive line appears to be the ceiling when it comes to their backups, with most of the Jaguars' backup spots consisting of cheap journeyman or young former undrafted free agents.

With that said, I think the loss to the Texans exposed the cornerback position more than the defensive line. As Coen noted after the game, and as you could see as players slipped all day, the surface was not one that exactly helped a pass-rush unit.

"The surface, obviously, I didn't feel like we were under a ton of duress, either. I think that venue benefits the offense in a lot of ways in terms of the pass rush. If we weren't feeling them, they probably didn't feel us," Coen said.

The cornerback group can't say the same thing, however. Jarrian Jones and Jourdan Lewis each struggled and allowed big plays at times against the Texans, with Lewis allowing a red-zone touchdown and Jones allowing an explosive play to set the Texans up in the red-zone before the end of the half. Travis Hunter was beat by Nico Collins twice, too, but he also managed to intercept Stroud and proved to be a more effective coverman than anyone else in the cornerback room on Sunday.

But then you have to consider the Hunter experience. Hunter also starred on offense in limited snaps on Sunday, and with Brian Thomas Jr.'s recent struggles it would make sense for Hunter to start getting more and more snaps on offense eventually. It is hard to afford to do that when dealing with injuries and up-and-down play at the cornerback position, though.

I mean, the Jaguars added two cornerbacks to the active roster two weeks ago for a reason in Jaylon Jones and Alijah Huzzie, but those are special teams and depth options. The Jaguars need someone who can step in and play, and they can't just hope Montaric Brown's hamstring suddenly heals and he reverts back to his 2025 form.

The Jaguars need at least one more solid cornerback to be the complete team they want to be. This was clear in Week 2 when they gave up too many explosives. It was clear in Week 5 when the same thing happened. Then more explosives have hit over the last two weeks, and the need has started to become a screaming red flag.