JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 Brian Thomas Jr. was supposed to be Jacksonville\u2019s No. 1 receiver, a go-to guy who would help quarterback Trevor Lawrence reach another level.<\/p>\n
After six games, it’s reasonable to wonder if he’s doing more harm than good.<\/p>\n
Thomas added another drop to his disappointing season Sunday when he botched a third-down pass over the middle in the fourth quarter of a 20-12 loss to Seattle. Thomas was wide open in space but let the ball slip through his fingers.<\/p>\n
He wiped his gloves on his No. 7 jersey afterward but made no excuses later for what\u2019s become a troubling trend in 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am going to keep pushing and keep working hard, keeping coming back each and every week, pushing and trying to be the best I can be each and every down,” said Thomas, who has 24 catches on 48 targets for 334 yards and a touchdown this season.<\/p>\n
Late last year, Thomas looked like he had the talent to be the franchise\u2019s best receiver since Jimmy Smith. He caught 50 passes for 675 yards and five touchdowns over the final seven games and made the Pro Bowl as a rookie.<\/p>\n
He showed so much promise that Jacksonville\u2019s new regime traded Christian Kirk and cut fellow receiver Gabe Davis even though the moves cost the team a combined $19 million against the salary cap.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. (7) reacts in the endzone after catching a pass for a touchdown an NFL football game against the Seattle Seahawks, Sunday, Oct. 12 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. Credit: AP\/John Raoux<\/p>\n
But the Jaguars (4-2), who travel to London to face the Los Angeles Rams (4-2) on Sunday, aren\u2019t sure what has happened to Thomas since. Is he lacking confidence? Is he feeling pressure? Is he dealing with personal issues? Is he being asked to do too much?<\/p>\n
Thomas has dropped at least five passes this season, including a fourth-down throw at the goal line in a loss at Cincinnati in Week 2. Equally concerning, he short-armed two other throws over the middle and ducked on a pass in the end zone \u2014 the kind of effort that can raise eyebrows in a locker room.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve just got to quit beating ourselves,\u201d said Thomas, who also dropped passes in practice throughout the offseason.<\/p>\n
Could benching Thomas help? Maybe, but the Jaguars have limited options because rookie Travis Hunter works solely as a slot receiver on offense.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington (11) is tackled by Seattle Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams (99) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 12 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. Credit: AP\/Phelan M. Ebenhack<\/p>\n
Trading the 23rd pick in the 2024 NFL draft wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibilities considering general manager James Gladstone dealt starting cornerback Tyson Campbell, running back Tank Bigsby, offensive tackle Fred Johnson and center Luke Fortner in the last two months.<\/p>\n
The drops also might be something the Jags have to live with until they can restart their decades-long search for another No. 1 receiver like Jimmy Smith.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s working<\/p>\n
The Jaguars converted all three fourth-down attempts against Seattle, raising their total to 6 for 9 on the season. They moved the chains twice on fourth down during a second-half touchdown drive, which made it a one-score game. Thomas\u2019 third-down drop came on the ensuing possession, the first of numerous mistakes down the stretch for Jacksonville.<\/p>\n
What needs help<\/p>\n
Jacksonville\u2019s special teams rarely get outplayed, but they did against the Seahawks. Cam Little missed an extra point and a field goal. Logan Cooke punted a season-high eight times but landed just two inside the 20. And returner Parker Washington muffed a punt that bounced out of bounds.<\/p>\n
Stock up<\/p>\n
Cornerback Montaric Brown made his first start of the season, stepping in after Campbell was traded, and played well. He had three tackles and defended two passes while playing 84% of the defensive snaps.<\/p>\n
Stock down<\/p>\n
Jacksonville\u2019s offensive line, which allowed a combined six sacks in the first five games, was abused by Seattle and now faces a Rams unit that\u2019s tied for fourth in the league with 19.<\/p>\n
Trevor Lawrence was sacked seven times and pressured on more than half his drop-backs. Left tackle Walker Little had a particularly rough afternoon, unable to handle DeMarcus Lawrence or Leonard Williams off the edge.<\/p>\n
Injuries<\/p>\n
Linebacker Devin Lloyd (calf) and center Robert Hainsey (hamstring) are concerns heading across the pond.<\/p>\n
Key number<\/p>\n
13 \u2014 Games the Jaguars have played in London, more than double any other NFL franchise. The Jaguars are 7-6 overseas, with most of those played at iconic Wembley Stadium.<\/p>\n
Next steps<\/p>\n
Jacksonville leaves for London on Monday and will spend much of the week working on playing cleaner football.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 Brian Thomas Jr. was supposed to be Jacksonville\u2019s No. 1 receiver, a go-to guy who…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":300280,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5136],"tags":[5229,3188,723,7310,8017,9006,1232,67,586,132,5230,68,2969,10190],"class_list":{"0":"post-300279","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-jacksonville","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-fl","10":"tag-florida","11":"tag-jacksonville","12":"tag-jacksonville-jaguars","13":"tag-los-angeles-rams","14":"tag-nfl","15":"tag-united-states","16":"tag-united-states-of-america","17":"tag-unitedstates","18":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","19":"tag-us","20":"tag-usa","21":"tag-wires-bot"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115367668680331941","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=300279"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300279\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/300280"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=300279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=300279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=300279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}