Jaguars Continue to Mourn What Could Have Been

The Jacksonville Jaguars are still absorbing their loss to the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card Round. That feeling, one that can only be bred from a rising tide of optimism that's then shot down and turned into a meteor, sticks with a team and a fanbase indefinitely. Now, General Manager James Gladstone and the rest of the brass have to find a way to turn a first-round exit into true Super Bowl contention.

It won't be an easy task. The Jaguars don't have their first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, and they won't have much cap space to work with in free agency, if any at all. They have a host of impending free agents that they'll have to find money for if they want to retain, and even letting all of them walk wouldn't open up any significant salary without other financial finagling. On the other hand, Jacksonville might not have to do as much as initially expected.

Jacksonville Jaguars, NFL, Seattle Seahawks, Trevor Lawrence — Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) calls a play during the second quarter of an NFL football matchup, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025, at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Seahawks defeated the Jaguars 20-12. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The path to the Super Bowl was there

The Jacksonville Jaguars fell just short against the Buffalo Bills, 27-24. They took the lead twice in the fourth quarter, but allowed Josh Allen to wrestle it back on two straight touchdown drives. Still, the Jaguars had a chance to either tie the game or win it outright when they got the ball back down three with just under a minute left to go. Unfortunately, Trevor Lawrence's pass on the first snap was broken up by Tre'Davious White and ultimately intercepted by Cole Bishop to seal the win for the Bills.

Losing that game, especially that way, was tough. Watching the Bills squander an opportunity to advance to the Conference Championship was even tougher. Allen practically put up a perfect performance against Jacksonville. He turned the ball over four times versus the Denver Broncos, and yet, Buffalo still had a chance to win it in overtime until he threw his last interception. The Broncos emerged victorious, but they lost starting quarterback Bo Nix in the process to a fractured ankle.

Still can’t believe they ruled this a backwards pass from Stidham. You can clearly see him throwing the ball forward
pic.twitter.com/bzCTY8NlvB
— Burch (@braden_burcham_) January 25, 2026

Still, Denver put up a fight in the AFC Championship, bolstered by the snowstorm at Mile High in the second half. They held Drake Maye and the New England Patriots to just 10 points and 206 total yards. The Pats' lone touchdown came after an untimely, controversial backward pass from Broncos' backup QB Jarrett Stidham just before intermission. Stidham and the Denver offense only managed seven points, scoring on their second drive and never again.

On the other side of the bracket, the NFC Championship saw much more exciting football, with the Seattle Seahawks outlasting the Los Angeles Rams, 31-27. Jacksonville played Seattle down to the wire back in Week 6, coming up just shy, 20-12. They were a much different team then than they finished the season as. Head Coach Liam Coen and the Jaguars would have loved to get another crack at Mike Macdonald and his guys with a much-improved offensive attack. Alas, Jacksonville can only wonder what could have been, while planning to ensure that what went wrong doesn't happen again in the future.

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