Can the Jaguars Standout Receiver Recover From a Sophomore Slump?
The 2025 NFL Season was one to forget for Pro Bowler Brian Thomas Jr. The wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars was unable to repeat his rookie success after a sluggish start to the season. Thomas would end up finishing the year with 48 receptions for 707 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Although it was only three fewer games than his standout 2024 season, the star ended up with a little more than half of the receptions that he had in his rookie year. There was a concern with Thomas, especially at the start of the campaign, about his slow start. His dropped passes plagued his routes, causing less confidence from offensive coordinator Grant Udinski and head coach Liam Coen to keep targeting him. Thomas would end the season with 10 dropped passes, beating out his rookie season number of seven.
However, as easy as it is to write a player off after one bad season, the Jaguars’ phenom is only entering his third season. An ankle injury during the 2025 season certainly didn’t help anything for Thomas, and the team trading with the Las Vegas Raiders for veteran Jakobi Meyers took some opportunities away. If anything, the Jaguars had too much reliance on Thomas entering the season, and opposing defenses picked up on that fast. The former LSU Tiger entered the season as the team’s top wideout option, and quarterback Trevor Lawrence learned quickly that defenses were going to cover that route all day long. Now entering the offseason, Thomas will have time to reflect on what went wrong in 2025 and come back from his mistakes, even if they all weren’t in his control.
The Jacksonville Jaguars front office has considered Thomas as a potential trade piece after his disappointing performance in the regular season. However, Liam Coen has repeatedly said his belief in Thomas is firm, and the team expects him to return next season. If anything, Thomas wasn’t comfortable from the jump in Coen’s new offensive scheme that he brought to Duval County. In training camp, the wide receiver couldn’t connect with his quarterback, causing frustration that obviously leaked into the regular season. After acquiring Meyers, some stress was taken off of Thomas, since the team now had another option after rookie Travis Hunter went down with an injury. Thomas ended the season strong, seeing an increase in yards per catch and only dropping one pass in the final six games. With the same offensive scheme returning to Jacksonville in 2026, it can be safe to say that Brian Thomas could definitely make a comeback to his former glory from his 2024 rookie season.
