Coen ‘trending toward’ playing starters vs. CAR

According to ESPN’s Michael DiRocco, Lawrence’s offseason “was about gaining a graduate-level understanding” of coach Liam Coen’s offense. Last season, Lawrence was rehabbing an injury while attempting to change his footwork and adjust to a new play caller. He is now calmer and “can play more freely the way he did in the second half of last season.” Lawrence was the overall QB1 in total scoring from Weeks 9-18. If Lawrence and his pass catchers can carry the momentum into 2026, Lawrence can once again finish as an elite QB1, this time from Week 1 onward.

Specifically, Coen said Lawrence “did a really nice job taking care of the football,” perhaps throwing fewer than five interceptions across organized team activities and mandatory minicamp. Lawrence also performed well when “running the whole operation, managing the protections and some of the concepts on the field.” With a year of experience in Coen’s system now under his belt, Lawrence said he feels more confident going through his progressions and is doing “a lot less thinking” as plays are unfolding. Jaguars OC Grant Udinski has been impressed with Lawrence’s recall and his ability to guide teammates through concepts that the team hasn’t practiced in quite a while. Positive reports on the Jaguars’ offense continue to roll in. Lawrence warrants QB1 treatment in 2026.

The Jaguars acquired Meyers via trade in Week 10 last year. He then led the Jaguars in targets (63) and receptions (43) until their season came to a close with a Wild Card Round loss to the Bills. Fellow Jaguars WRs Parker Washington and Brian Thomas Jr. have generated buzz in recent weeks, but Meyers should not be overlooked. He still has a chance to repeat as the team’s target leader this season.

Lawrence found his groove after the team’s Week 8 bye, totaling 20 passing touchdowns, seven rushing touchdowns and seven interceptions. Coincidentally, Coen notes, their “average depth of target went up towards the second half of the season.” Coen wants to “keep pushing that envelope a little bit -– especially with [Lawrence] and BT.” Lawrence and Thomas have put a lot of work into trying to get their timing down this offseason, and Lawrence said, “it’s starting to pay off.” He feels like the two of them are “clicking more and more every day.” That’s great to hear. Thomas’ play dropped off significantly after an explosive rookie season, and trade rumors have swirled around him prior to the 2026 NFL Draft. If he can return to rookie season form, Thomas can smash his ADP this season.

Jalen Hurts and the Eagles will take on the Jaguars in Jacksonville’s annual trip to London, where they are 7-7 since the 2013 regular season. Hurts, facing internal criticism this offseason following a difficult 2025 campaign, will look to get back on track in the run-heavy Philly offense that last season ranked 13th in EPA per rush, behind the Commanders and Giants. The Jaguars will look to build off a strong 2025 season, Liam Coen’s first as the team’s head coach. The Jags had the fourth best point differential last season, trailing only the Seahawks, Patriots, and Rams.

Thomas was drafted by a previous Jaguars regime and his play fell off dramatically — completed with major effort issues — in 2025. “There has been no indication that trading Thomas is something the Jaguars are planning, but there are teams monitoring the situation in case the hypertalented LSU product has fallen far enough down the Jacksonville depth chart that the front office would consider a move,” Graziano said. ESPN’s Ben Solak named the Patriots, Bills, Steelers, and Raiders as potential Thomas suitors this offseason. As a rookie in 2024, Thomas went for 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns as an explosive threat, mostly with Mac Jones under center for the Jags. Thomas has shown vanishingly little chemistry with Trevor Lawrence, however.

The Jaguars, with an avid UK fanbase, will once again play a couple games overseas in 2026. Jacksonville is 7-7 over 14 regular season games in London since the 2013 NFL season. Last year Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars were blown out 35-7 by the Rams at Wembley stadium. Lawrence and head coach Liam Coen will look to bounce back from that loss in 2026 after a 2025 season in which they ranked 12th in EPA per play and 16th in offensive success rate.

After transforming into one of the league’s best quarterbacks over the second half of the regular season, Lawrence turned back into a pumpkin on the biggest stage. Though he did score three times, his two interceptions were both on him. The second pick was a throw into tight coverage on the Jags’ final drive that was tipped and made its way into the hands of Bills safety Cole Bishop, ending the game. It’s a nightmare ending to an otherwise triumphant season for the franchise. Lawrence’s 18 passing scores over his final seven regular season games propelled him to 29 on the year. He also punched in nine touchdowns on the ground with 359 rushing yards. He finished the year as the QB4. Lawrence finally found himself in an elite offensive system in 2025 and blossomed over the final two months. The next step will be sustaining that level of success for an entire season. Fantasy managers will be taking him in the middle of the QB1 ranks when early drafts roll around.

One of his red-zone rushing scores came on a scramble, and the other on a direct QB draw — it’s a bit of an indictment on how the Jaguars felt about Travis Etienne in a phone booth that it has come to this. Lawrence had a more up-and-down game than we’re used to over the last few weeks. The process on his pick was sound — he targeted Parker Washington against a linebacker out of a stack formation, but Colts LB Germaine Pratt made a great play on the ball and Washington wasn’t really open. He also dealt with more pressure than usual with the Jaguars down a few starting linemen. With the Jaguars needing a win over the Titans in Week 18 to clinch the AFC South, it seems likely you can count on Lawrence as a QB1 in that game.

“We haven’t changed a single thing from the moment we started coaching him,” Coen said when asked by reporters if the team’s offense had been tweaked ahead of Trevor Lawrence’s recent heater, which includes 12 total touchdowns over his past three games. “Sometimes, it just takes time to click.” Lawrence, according to Coen, showed more comfort with progressions and reads around Week 10 after a somewhat shaky start to the season. The Athletic’s Jeff Howe reports the acquisition of Jakobi Meyers has been a key to Lawrence’s emergence as an elite QB. Meyers’ “command over the middle of the field, coupled with tight end Brenton Strange’s return, has helped receivers like Brian Thomas Jr. and Parker Washington produce outside the numbers,” Howe said. “Beyond that, Lawrence’s footwork has also been cleaner, and he’s cut back on unnecessary off-platform throws. It’s all tied into confidence in his reads and progressions.” Lawrence will have a good shot to keep his hot streak going in Week 17 against a listless Colts defense that gave up 295 yards and five touchdowns to Brock Purdy on Monday night.