One Question for Three Underrated Jaguars Defenders

In the NFL, there are numerous amounts of underrated players on all 32 franchises. The Jacksonville Jaguars certainly have a few following last season's horrendous showing on defense, a key reason why the team finished 4-13 despite expectations of high success in 2024.

This season, with new defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile, players who have naturally flown under the radar could see their roles increase or their play improve in a new system. Jacksonville should not be mistaken for this bad group of defenders, as they make up seven of the Top 10 players on the roster in the latest rankings, an example of how talented they are on that side of the ball.

Three defenders on the Jaguars roster have caught my eye as players who have key roles on defense that could make the unit as a whole better. That includes starting MIKE linebacker Foyesade Oluokun, cornerback Buster Brown, and defensive tackle Jordan Jefferson. Each player has at least one question needing to be answered ahead of the 2025 season.

Can Foyesade Oluokun maintain his health in 2025?

Oluokun is one of the best defenders on Jacksonville's defense, but he flies under the radar from a national perspective. When healthy, the former Atlanta Falcon is one of the best tacklers in football with great football intelligence and a knack for finding the football.

Entering his eighth season in the NFL and turning 30 years old during the campaign, Oluokun is coming off a season where nagging injuries cost him five games. It is not an ideal sign for a player in his prime who needs to play his best football in the short term. If Oluokun can stay healthy, the Jaguars have themselves a high-impact starter at linebacker.

Will Buster Brown win the CB2 job this summer?

For most of the offseason, Brown has been competing for the No. 2 cornerback role opposite of Tyson Campbell with second-year defender Jarrian Jones, a standout player from the Jaguars' lowly defense in 2024. The former seventh-round defender from Arkansas has developed into a sufficient player whose best football is ahead of him.

Will Brown win the starting job? That remains to be seen as Jones looks to bring some stiff competition during training camp. The live scrimmage on August 1 will be a great showcase for how the two defenders have grown this offseason.

Can Jordan Jefferson emerge as a starting DT by the end of the season?

It wasn't long ago when Jefferson and Jaguars teammate Maason Smith were terrorizing opposing blockers at LSU. Now, the college teammate look to do the same in Jacksonville. Jefferson showed last season to be the future stout run defender of the defense, showing good physicality and block-shedding ability with room to grow as a pass rusher.

If Jefferson were to step up as a pass rusher in 2025, could he be in the starting lineup by the end of the season, regardless of how Jacksonville is performing overall? There is an argument that the team could look to get younger toward the end of the season if the youth of the defense begins to shine. Jefferson has an opportunity to do just that this year.