The Silver Lining of the Jaguars' Injuries This Season

Every NFL team suffers injuries throughout a season. Some teams deal with them better than others.

Jacksonville Jaguars Defensive Coordinator Anthony Campanile, left, walks off the field with Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) after the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 18th and final training camp practice at Miller Electric Center in Jacksonville, Fla. Wednesday August 20, 2025. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union] | Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Jacksonville Jaguars have been hitting their stride at the perfect time. They've won their last five games to climb to the top of the AFC South and put themselves within arm's reach of even the No. 1 seed in the conference, and with it, the first-round bye.

Their hot streak has been a combination of a lighter schedule in the second half of the season, the team getting more comfortable on both sides of the ball, and, perhaps most importantly, getting healthier.

Like every NFL team, the Jaguars have had to deal with injuries this year. Several starters have missed multiple games, including Brian Thomas Jr., Travon Walker, and Eric Murray. They lost second-overall pick Travis Hunter Jr. for the season with an LCL issue, which forced them to reshuffle their rotation on both sides of the ball.

Nov 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Cam Little (39) celebrates a field goal with offensive lineman Cole Van Lanen (70) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Jaguars endured through their injuries

With my fingers crossed and my knuckles knocking on wood as I write this, the Jacksonville Jaguars have had some good injury luck this season. While they've had to deal with their absences, they're getting healthy at the perfect time. According to Spotrac, Jacksonville has the least amount of money allocated to players on the injury report of any team in the NFL right now.

They've actually kind of benefitted from their injuries. Travis Hunter Jr. going down for the season might have been a huge factor in the Jaguars' decision to trade for Jakobi Meyers, who has been a revelation for this offense. Various offensive linemen going down led to them discovering the talent and versatility they had with Cole Van Lanen.

They've had several depth pieces step up big time and earn larger roles in place of injured teammates, as Defensive Coordinator Anthony Campanile outlined:

Great Cole Van Lannen video from @thecavemannfl.

He’s so clutch for the offense. pic.twitter.com/PAuMV9xedl

— Jaxson De Ville (@JaxonDeVille) December 17, 2025

"You find out who does what well, and you also find out who’s ready. And to your point, it develops your depth. There’s nothing like experience. There’s nothing like repetition. I used to coach for Coach [Jim] Harbaugh at Michigan, and he used to say, ‘There’s only one way to get better at football, and that’s playing more football.’"

"So, when guys get to play a lot of football, that’s a great thing for them. That’s how you get better. In this league, I think people think, ‘Well, oh, the guy’s a pro. How much better is he going to get?’ Everybody gets better, and we have a lot of young guys who I feel like have developed and gotten better. And they’ve gotten that opportunity through getting a shot to play on the field when the lights go on."

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