Jaguars Mailbag: How Much Confidence in Week 3's Matchup With Patriots?

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars know this is a big week.

For the Jaguars to wash away last week's loss against the Denver Broncos, they will need to be at their best against the New England Patriots. To give you an idea of what we think that will look like, we take your questions in this week's Jaguars Mailbag.

Jaguars Mailbag

What are you most worried about on the Patriots defensive side of the ball
— B. (@BaderThfc) September 23, 2026

A: That one is easy: the duo of Milton Williams and Christian Barmore. I know neither has put up massive pressure numbers thus far this season, but the Jaguars really struggled with interior pressure against the Denver Broncos. Jaguars rookie guard Emmanuel Pregnon is a talented player, but Barmore and Williams are the style of defensive tackles I think he could struggle with early in his NFL career.

In your opinion, how to the Jags match up against the Patriots?
— Ed Helinski 🇺🇸🇵🇱 🌴 (@MrEd315) September 23, 2026

A: I think there are a few areas where the Jaguars match up well with the Patriots. I think they have the right passing scheme to combat the Patriots' offense, while the Jaguars' run defense is a perfect match against the under center-heavy run attack of the Patriots. With that said, I think the Jaguars could have issues with the Patriots' blitzes, interior rush, and with outside targets. This is a game of two very close teams, in my eyes.

As much as I love 7 they cannot be comfortable moving into the future with him as the “WR1”. Which begs the question. Have they seen enough now to go back to the table and bridge whatever gap with 11 to get a deal done?
— PODCAST T (@TcleanTv) September 23, 2026

A: I think this would only be the case if the Jaguars were surprised by the outcomes. We said all training camp that Parker Washington looked like their WR1, and that is how he has been deployed since the season started. The Jaguars knew Washington would do big things, so I do not think anything that has happened has changed anything.

BTJ, a 1st and a 3rd for Jeffrey Simmons? Too much? Not enough? Simmons too old? Doesn’t matter because the titans wouldn’t do it anyway? Any other realistic trade targets to get some damn interior pass rush?
— Jaxson De Ville (@JaxonDeVille) September 24, 2026

A: Do not think the Titans would ever trade Jeffrey Simmons to the Jaguars, but I like where your head is at. I think DaRon Payne would make a lot of sense just based on how many more games we can probably expect the Commanders to lose. Otherwise, it is tough to find many quality defensive tackles via a trade, because teams are not just sending them away.

I think this is a spot the Jaguars clearly need to address moving forward, and I would be surprised if they are not in the market come the deadline. But for right now, it might be closer to slim pickings

Why did it seem like Camp was slow to adjust to leaking a back into the flat. Seemed like it was there for the taking.
— Tariq (@TariqFoster2) September 24, 2026

A: I think by nature defenses will be OK with offenses taking the checkdown if it means they do not allow the big play. The issue against the Broncos is that the Jaguars allowed Bo Nix to live on checkdowns, while also hitting some explosive downfield passes at the same time. I think Sean Payton simply outschemed Campanile, which is due to happen against top offensive minds.

Do you have any potential targets by the trade deadline the team should explore in regards to a pass rushing DE or DL? Past 2 seasons this seems to be Gladstone's biggest weakness/whiff refusing to address it early in FA or the draft instead relying on late FAs & late round picks
— Bagsonville Baguars (@jags1185) September 23, 2026

A: Not right now, but check with me the closer we get to the deadline. Once we see how some times have played and whether they will wave the white flag, we will know which players will actually be available. Right now, most teams can still convince themselves they can get something out of this season.

Who would be a trade target for the Jaguars, at the DT position?

Is there another position you could see them adding to, via trade?
— Rasta Jag (@Jah4Jags) September 23, 2026

A: I mentioned Payne earlier. Maybe a guy in a contract year like Eagles' defensive tackle Moro Ojomo? Other than defensive tackle, I think edge depth and cornerback depth are two spots that would be worth taking a look at. My early gut feel is the Jaguars will be interested in making some kind of move for a defender near the deadline, because that is where they need the most help depth-wise.

Is Trevor locked on to Parker or is he there only option getting open? Surprised by how little they’ve thrown to strange and Meyers.
— p_macJag (@macabasco_p) September 23, 2026

A: I think sometimes you have to recognize the defense. Those guys get paid too, and you can understandably assume that teams would prefer the Jaguars to try to beat them on tougher outside throws than move the ball up and down the field with short passes over the middle. If the Jaguars are not throwing them the ball in Week 10, then it will be a bigger issue.

Obviously it's an overreaction, but would you trade BTJ for MHJ? Also is there a reason the CBs play so far off the line? I know Liam has hinted at that the past few pressers or am I reading that wrong
— Art (@Kick_Rocks_007) September 23, 2026

A: Absolutely not. I think Marvin Harrison Jr. looks terrible right now. The effort is not there, which has never been the issue with BTJ. BTJ is the better player by quite a decent margin. I will also say that it seems like Campanile himself agreed this week that the coverage was a bit soft at times.

Why did we add another tight end to the practice squad?

We need to be adding interior defensive lineman, and somebody that can pass walk for Trevor and not getting killed every time he drops back
— Will Turner (@WillTur37313338) September 23, 2026

A: The Los Angeles Chargers signed the Jaguars' practice squad tight end, so they replaced him. It is not any deeper than that, and that is probably how most practice squad additions need to be viewed. This is much ado about nothing.

What's the most common overreaction to the week 2 game vs Denver, in your opinion?
— NoahWhey (@NoahWhey) September 23, 2026

A: I think it has to do with Travis Hunter, honestly. I 100% agree with the fans that want to see Travis Hunter play more, because I think he should. I got an idea after the game though that people felt like Hunter played poorly in the snaps at cornerback but ... I think he played fine? Perhaps even closer to good? He had a bad DPI, but otherwise he gave up the least amount of plays of any of the Jaguars cornerback. The guy can play.

With this 4 game stretch coming up- what’s your level of concern that the last two non-Cleveland Browns games this team was on the field the QB played just OK, defense couldn’t hold leads, WRs besides Parker were non-existent, and the kicker missed a pivotal kick?
— Couch (@BCBCouch) September 23, 2026

A: The Jaguars lost two close games against arguably the two best teams in the AFC of the last few seasons in the Buffalo Bills and Denver Broncos. I felt like the Jaguars could have, and likely should have, won both games after leaving them, which I do not think would be the case had the Jaguars simply been blown out and had their doors blown off. I think it says the Jaguars are close to being really, really good, but they are still trying to figure out how to get over that hump.

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