These 3 Bounce-Back Candidates Can Change the Jaguars' Entire Trajectory

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- For the Jacksonville Jaguars to reach new heights in 2026, they will need a few key players to recover from 2025 seasons that were not exactly ideal.

The Jaguars had several players have career seasons for last year's 13-4 Jaguars squad, including quarterback Trevor Lawrence, wide receiver Parker Washington, cornerback Montaric Brown, and safety Antonio Johnson. But that doesn't mean it was a smooth season for all.

When it comes to the Jaguars and their ability to meet their potential this season, it will take a bounce-back year from a few key pieces.

WR Brian Thomas Jr.

When it comes to bounceback candidates, the first name that must come to mind is third-year wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. Expectations were sky-high for Thomas entering 2025 for a reason after he had the best rookie year of any receiver in a star-studded 2024 class. Thomas' numbers took a nosedive though, and there were a few reasons why.

For one, the Jaguars attempted to funnel the entire passing game through Thomas -- including plenty of in-breaking routes and throws to the middle of the field. This was not Thomas' game at LSU or as a rookie, however, and he struggled with drops while adjusting to an expanded role in the passing game. There was also the fact that once the second-half of the season began, the Jaguars' receiver room got much more competitive with the ascension of Parker Washington and the trade for Jakobi Meyers.

Despite these struggles, Thomas has gotten off to a red-hot start this offseason. The MVP of the Jaguars' entire offseason program, Thomas and Trevor Lawrence got back on the same page in the deep passing game after frequently struggling to connect in 2025, and Thomas faced no issues with drops during OTAs and minicamp. If Thomas can carry this momentum into Week 1 and beyond, the Jaguars' passing game could be even better than it was a year ago.

"The fact that he's just come out here and worked his ass off, having a great attitude, after every play, communication with either myself or Trevor [Lawrence] or EB [Wide Receivers Coach Edgar Bennett] or Grant [Udinski], whatever it is, and then making the plays. That is something that you cannot simulate in routes on air," Liam Coen said this offseason.

"You cannot simulate that type of confidence until you do it in practice. There's nobody that I've known as a player that just can only turn it on in a game. The whole gamer thing, I don't fully believe in that. I believe that guys elevate their play to go play in a game. Absolutely, but the confidence of the connection and chemistry that they're building, that's real.”

CB/WR Travis Hunter

The No. 2 pick in last year's draft, Travis Hunter certainly flashed big-time talent in his short rookie season. The Jaguars might not have picked up huge wins against the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers without Hunter making pivotal plays, and the last time we saw him on the field he recorded 100 receiving yards on the same day he had a third-down pass breakup against Davante Adams.

With that said, Hunter's rookie year ended after just seven games, and it felt like we got nowhere close to seeing what he can really do on either side of the ball. The flashes were there, but Hunter missed more than half the season with a knee injury he sustained in practice ahead of Week 9. Hunter's OTAs and minicamp participation were limited in terms of on-field work as he works back from his injury, but his return could spark a significant improvement on each side of the ball.

The Jaguars have taken unique measures to develop Hunter while he is off the field, and the hope is that every step they have taken since his injury will only help prepare him to potentially become the Jaguars' newest No. 1 cornerback.

travis huynte — Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) walks off the field after the second day of minicamp at the Miller Electric Center, Wednesday, June 10, 2026, in Jacksonville. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union] | Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"The virtual room has been really good for Travis to be able to go in there. We expanded that room downstairs to make it one big room and man, you can go in there and essentially play a game. From the defensive back’s perspective, all you see is the linebackers, the D-line and the offense, so, he can go in there in a half hour and play a game and just go," Coen said.

"Now you're not going to be able to get a ton of the routes and how they play out, but alignment, assignment, making calls, adjustments to formations have been so valuable to him. And then to get out here and be able to hear the call, go line up, say what he's got, kind of walk a few steps through. I've been very pleased with Travis in that way he looks, his upper body, the way that looks. He runs outside of my office in the mornings and he looks like he's been in the weight room, so I've been very pleased.”

DE Travon Walker

Much like Hunter, Walker is only on this list due to injuries. Despite dealing with both wrist and knee injuries a year ago, Walker still started 12 games and appeared in 14 for the Jaguars, proving his toughness and his worth before landing a massive contract extension this offseason. Still, injuries meant Walker saw a dip in tackles for loss, pressure rate, sacks, and quarterback hits last year, and this year will be about getting his production back to form.

“Yeah, I mean, anytime you deal with a bunch of injuries and don't have as much a production as you'd like… I think he's attacked it the right way," Coen said this offseason.

Coen has said time and time again he wants Walker to be the type of player who is disrupting the offense so much in practice that they have to take him off the field to just run their offense. By the end of the offseason program, Coen said he was seeing this from Walker, a potential foreshadowing for him to get back to double-digit sacks like he had in 2023 and 2024.

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