Tag: Jacksonville Jaguars

Jaguars’ Travis Hunter to continue as two-way player

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Travis Hunter’s season-ending knee injury won’t keep him from playing both sides of the ball again in 2026.

Jacksonville Jaguars general manager James Gladstone said Wednesday that the plan is to continue playing the former Heisman Trophy winner at wide receiver and cornerback moving forward.

“We still expect him to play on both sides of the ball,” Gladstone said. “… The steps that he was taking by the midpoint of the season really made us feel good about what the back half of the year was going to be on both sides of the ball and what that impact was going to look like being a feature point on offense and an impact player on defense.

“It (the injury) was just disappointing timing but nonetheless feel good about where we are heading into this offseason and what next year should hold.”

Hunter, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft out of Colorado, underwent surgery to repair the LCL in his right knee on Nov. 11. He sustained the non-contact injury during practice on Oct. 30.

Hunter, 22, caught 28 passes for 298 yards and one touchdown in seven games (four starts), adding 15 tackles and three passes defensed while playing 324 snaps on offense and 162 on defense.

In his final game, he caught eight passes for 101 yards and a touchdown in a Week 7 loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

“With Travis having gotten to a place midseason where you felt like he was starting to peak and really make a real dent, and the plan for post-bye was to continue to enhance that, (it was) tough not to be able to see that come to life down the backstretch,” Gladstone said.

Hunter is expected to return to full football activities in time for OTAs in May.

“For him right now it’s about getting his rehab right and diving in mentally because of some of the limitations we’ll have throughout the offseason program,” head coach Liam Coen said. “But I’m really excited about getting back to work with Travis and continue that evolution and see what that looks like.”

–Field Level Media

Reports: Browns request to interview Jags OC Grant Udinski

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The Cleveland Browns requested an interview with Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Grant Udinski for their head coaching position, according to multiple reports Monday.

Udinski, who turns 30 Monday, just concluded his first season on the coaching staff of the Jaguars, who were eliminated from the playoffs with Sunday’s 27-24 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

Udinski broke into coaching at Baylor in 2019. Matt Rhule, then the Baylor head coach, became the Carolina Panthers’ head coach the next year and Udinski joined him.

Following two seasons with the Panthers, Udinski was hired by the Vikings in 2022 as assistant to the head coach/special projects. He became Minnesota’s assistant quarterbacks coach in 2023, and in 2024 he received the title of assistant offensive coordinator.

The Vikings wound up 12th in total offense in 2024 (346.9 yards per game) and ninth in scoring (25.4 points) thanks to a strong season from quarterback Sam Darnold.

When asked about Udinski in mid-December, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence had nothing but praise.

“I’ve never really met anyone like him. The way he approaches the preparation process, the attention to detail, just the game planning in general,” Lawrence told reporters. “The things that he thinks about. The conversations that we have throughout the whole week. It’s a very, very detailed process… There’s no stones that are left unturned in his approach with us in the QB room.”

Lawrence praised Grant’s communication with him starting in the spring all the way to in-game information.

“Grant is one of the big factors,” Lawrence said. “He’s helped me a lot, see things quicker, pick up on different tendencies a defense might have. He’s been awesome for me.”

The Browns interview will be the first for a head coaching position for Udinski. Last offseason, he reportedly interviewed for five offensive coordinator positions.

–Field Level Media

Bills overcome Jaguars 27-24 to end road playoff woes

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Josh Allen threw a touchdown pass and ran for two more scores to lead the Buffalo Bills to their first road playoff victory in 33 years in a 27-24 win over the host Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday in an AFC wild-card round matchup.

Allen, who went to the injury tent twice in the first half after sustaining head, hand and knee injuries, led a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown drives, scoring the game-winner on a 1-yard keeper with 1:04 left.

On the first play of the ensuing drive, Trevor Lawrence’s pass was intercepted by Cole Bishop off a deflection to secure the victory with 54 seconds remaining.

The Bills snapped a streak of eight straight road playoff losses at the end of a dramatic fourth quarter which saw 28 points scored — more than the 23 scored in the first three quarters. Four fourth-quarter lead changes were tied for the most in a postseason game in NFL history.

Allen completed 28 of 35 passes for 273 yards and ran for 33 yards, leading the Bills to their sixth straight win in a playoff opener. Khalil Shakir caught 12 passes for 82 yards, and Brandin Cooks had three receptions for 58 yards, including a 36-yard grab on the game-winning drive.

NFL rushing leader James Cook III was held to 46 yards on 15 carries.

Lawrence threw three touchdowns, two of which gave the Jaguars a lead in the fourth quarter, along with two interceptions on 18-of-30 passing for 207 yards.

Parker Washington had a game-high 107 receiving yards and a TD on seven receptions despite missing much of the first half while being evaluated for a concussion. Travis Etienne Jr. had 67 rushing yards, 49 receiving yards and a touchdown catch for Jacksonville.

Buffalo struck first after taking over at the Jaguars’ 33 on a Shaq Thompson interception. However, the Bills were unable to pick up a first down and forced to settle for Matt Prater’s 50-yard field goal.

Jacksonville did not waste its first scoring chance, converting on a 3-yard pass from Lawrence to Brian Thomas Jr. to give Jacksonville a 7-3 lead with 14:14 left in the first half.

The Jaguars had a prime chance to extend that lead when they forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff but came up just short on Lawrence’s fourth-down keeper in the red zone.

Buffalo delivered a 10-play, 92-yard drive finished with a 2-yard Allen TD run to take a 10-7 lead with 5:37 left in the half. Jacksonville’s Cam Little missed a field goal just before halftime.

The teams traded field goals to begin the second half before Jacksonville forced a punt and reclaimed the lead at 17-13 with 12:55 left on Washington’s 6-yard touchdown catch.

Buffalo responded with a touchdown drive of its own, with Allen finding Dalton Kincaid for a 15-yard score to take a 20-17 lead with 8:56 left.

Jacksonville moved back in front on a 14-yard catch by Etienne with 4:03 left.

–Field Level Media

Jaguars seek to clinch AFC South in finale vs. Titans

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Even before he finishes his first regular season with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Liam Coen has made NFL history.

With last week’s 23-17 win at Indianapolis, he became the first first-year head coach in league history to inherit a team which won four or fewer games the prior season and lead it to 12-plus wins.

He’ll look to add another notch to his belt Sunday when the Jaguars (12-4) host the Tennessee Titans (3-13) with the ability to clinch the AFC South and at least one home playoff game with a win.

A Houston Texans home loss to the Indianapolis Colts would also clinch the division, but the easier and likelier path is a Jacksonville victory.

The Jaguars enter the Week 18 finale on a seven-game winning streak. That’s been a necessity to preserve their one-game division lead over the Texans, who have won their last eight games.

“We had to win all those games to get to this point to have the opportunity to continue to control the division and keep it in our hands,” Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence said. “That’s what we did. None bigger than this (game).”

A Jacksonville offense which had scored 34-plus points in its last three games and 24-plus points in eight straight hit a bit of a wall against the Colts. The offense amassed 370 yards — its fourth most in a game this season — but three turnovers inside the Colts’ 25 stymied the Jaguars’ scoring.

Lawrence threw his first interception in five games and had just his third game without a touchdown this season, his first since Week 9 vs. Las Vegas.

Jacksonville’s defense picked up the slack, allowing just seven points over Indianapolis’ final nine possessions after Indianapolis leapt out to a 10-0 lead on its first two drives.

With two fourth-quarter interceptions, the Jaguars defense is up to 21 on the season, tying the franchise record and the second most in the NFL.

That defense will be tested by talented rookie QB Cam Ward. who appears to be coming into his own as his first season with the Titans comes to an end.

The No. 1 overall pick had no games with multiple passing touchdowns through his first 12 starts, racking up seven TD passes and six interceptions.

He enters his rookie farewell with two TD passes in each of his last four games with just one interception over that span.

“The key is to be playing your best football at the end of the year so when you walk off the field at the end of the year, you know you got better every week and you’re (trending up),” Titans interim coach Mike McCoy said. “That’s what (Ward) is doing.”

Rookie receivers Chimere Dike and Elic Ayomanor each have two touchdowns over the last four games to remain tied for the team lead with four, as Tennessee’s youth movement starts to show some fruit for whoever is hired to replace Brian Callahan.

The Titans have won two of their last four games since a 1-11 start, nearly finding their first winning streak of the season last week before blowing a 13-0 lead in a 34-26 loss to New Orleans.

Even with the loss, Tennessee lost its path to a second-straight No. 1 overall pick last week. The Titans enter Week 18 in position to have the No. 4 overall pick. Unless the Giants or Jets pull off an upset, that’s likely the spot they’ll remain in due to strength of schedule.

Jacksonville was down two starting offensive linemen in center Robert Hainsey (groin) and right guard Patrick Mekari (back) last week. Hainsey was limited in Wednesday’s practice while Mekari was out. Right tackle Anton Harrison (illness) also didn’t practice Wednesday.

Seven Titans missed Wednesday’s practice for non-rest reasons, including starting linebacker Arden Key (hip) and starting cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis (Achilles).

–Field Level Media

Reports: Jaguars CB Jourdan Lewis (foot) out for season

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Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jourdan Lewis (foot) was placed on injured reserve on Thursday. According to multiple media reports, he’s set to undergo season-ending surgery.

Lewis, 30, did not practice on Wednesday after sustaining the injury during Sunday’s 34-20 win at Denver.

He recorded 39 tackles, two interceptions and 10 passes defensed in 12 games (seven starts) in his first season with Jacksonville. He signed a three-year, $30 million contract ($20 million guaranteed) in March after eight seasons with Dallas.

Lewis has 12 interceptions, 10 fumble recoveries, 9 1/2 sacks and 425 tackles in 127 career games (71 starts) with the Jaguars and Cowboys (2017-24), who drafted him in the third round in 2017.

The AFC South-leading Jaguars (11-4) visit the Indianapolis Colts (8-7) on Sunday.

–Field Level Media

Trevor Lawrence totals six touchdowns in Jaguars’ rout of Jets

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Trevor Lawrence threw for 330 yards and five touchdowns while adding a sixth score on the ground Sunday as the Jacksonville Jaguars stayed atop the AFC South with a 48-20 walloping of the visiting New York Jets.

Lawrence completed 20 of 32 passes while adding a team-high 51 yards rushing despite suffering an injury to his right index finger in the second quarter. Trainers taped up his finger, enabling Lawrence to stay in the game.

Jaguars running back Travis Etienne scored touchdowns on each of his three receptions that went for a game-high 73 yards.

New York quarterback Brady Cook hit on 22 of 33 passes for 176 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions in his first NFL start. Cook got the call with Justin Fields and Tyrod Taylor sidelined due to injuries.

The result allowed Jacksonville to improve to 10-4, a game ahead of Houston in the AFC South with three weeks remaining. The Jets, who last week were eliminated from playoff contention for the 15th straight year, dropped to 3-11.

Lawrence wasted little time getting his barrage started, hitting Brian Thomas Jr. for a 4-yard scoring strike at the 10:18 mark of the first quarter. It was 14-0 less than four minutes later after Lawrence rushed for a 15-yard touchdown.

Cook got New York on the board via a 9-yard strike to Adonai Mitchell with 1:47 left in the first quarter, but Lawrence hooked up with Bhayshul Tuten for a 16-yard touchdown 46 seconds into the second quarter.

Nick Folk kicked a 41-yard field goal for the Jets with 5:03 on the clock but the Jaguars made it 31-10 at the half on Cam Little’s 33-yarder and the first of Lawrence’s three scoring strikes to Etienne, a 20-yarder.

Folk bombed a 51-yarder on New York’s first possession of the third quarter but Lawrence hit Etienne for an 8-yard touchdown pass at the 7:01 mark, making it 38-13. Little booted a 22-yard field goal with 1:43 remaining in the period.

Isaiah Davis ran 24 yards for the Jets’ last touchdown 52 seconds into the fourth quarter before Lawrence found Etienne for a 45-yard strike with 13:40 remaining.

Jacksonville outgained New York 438-284.

–Field Level Media

Jaguars throttle Colts, take sole possession of first in AFC South

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Trevor Lawrence threw two touchdowns, and Travis Etienne rushed for two touchdowns to lead the Jacksonville Jaguars to a commanding 36-19 victory over the visiting Indianapolis Colts in a matchup of the top two teams in the AFC South on Sunday.

Lawrence completed 17 of 30 passes for 244 yards. Brian Thomas Jr. caught three passes for 87 yards, while Tim Patrick had 78 yards and a touchdown on five catches.

Etienne carried the ball 20 times for 78 yards for Jacksonville (9-4), which won its fourth straight game to move into sole possession of first place in the AFC South.

Indianapolis (8-5) lost starting quarterback Daniel Jones to an Achilles injury late in the first quarter. The offense continued to move the ball at times with his backup, rookie Riley Leonard, but struggled to finish drives.

Leonard finished 18-of-29 passing for 145 yards and an interception with a rushing touchdown for the Colts, who lost their third straight game and fourth in the last five. Jonathan Taylor carried the ball 21 times for 74 yards and a score.

Indianapolis has lost its last 11 games at Jacksonville.

The Jaguars turned two first-half turnovers into 14 points, fueling their 28-10 halftime advantage. The Colts finished with three total turnovers and conceded a safety in the loss.

Devin Lloyd intercepted Jones on the Colts’ first offensive play of the game, giving the Jaguars the ball at the Colts’ 21. It was Lloyd’s fifth interception of the season, but his first in over two months.

Four plays later, Etienne punched in a 3-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead.

Indianapolis responded with a touchdown drive, capped off by a 1-yard touchdown from Taylor.

Jacksonville reclaimed the lead 2:05 later when Lawrence found Jakobi Meyers for a 14-yard touchdown.

On the first drive after Jones sustained his injury, Jarrian Jones stripped Taylor as he stretched out for a first down. The very next play, Etienne broke off a 28-yard run for his second touchdown to make it 21-7 with 12:52 left in the half.

After Leonard led a field-goal drive, the Jaguars added to their lead with a 7-yard touchdown catch by Tim Patrick with seven seconds left for a 28-10 advantage.

After the teams traded field goals, Jacksonville’s Josh Hines-Allen effectively put the game away with a safety sack and a Cam Little field goal after the ensuing safety punt, which made it 36-13 with 4:41 left.

Leonard scored his first career touchdown with 1:51 left, rushing it in from 6 yards out.

–Field Level Media

Jakobi Meyers’ best game with Jaguars lifts team to win over Titans

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Trevor Lawrence threw for 229 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Jacksonville Jaguars to a 25-3 win over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday in Nashville, Tenn.

The win moves Jacksonville (8-4) into a tie with the Indianapolis Colts atop the AFC South heading into the first of two matchups between the teams next week.

The Jaguars outgained the Titans (1-11) 272-188. Tennessee was 2-for-12 on third downs and 1-for-4 on fourth downs.

Jakobi Meyers had his best day since being traded to Jacksonville from the Las Vegas Raiders on Nov. 4 with six catches for 90 yards and a touchdown.

The Jaguars sacked Tennessee quarterback Cam Ward three times, with Josh Hines-Allen collecting two sacks.

Jacksonville scored two first-half touchdowns in 70 seconds to take an 18-3 lead at halftime.

On the Jaguars’ second drive, Lawrence took them 84 yards in seven plays for a 7-3 lead with 1:04 left in the first quarter.

Lawrence hit Parker Washington across the middle for a big first down.

Then, Lawrence found Meyers wide open on the same route for 50 yards to the Tennessee 6.

Three players later, Lawrence hit Meyers on a 3-yard quick slant for the touchdown.

Chomere Dike then fumbled the kickoff back to the Jaguars at the Tennessee 35.

On the first play of the second quarter, Lawrence found Brenton Strange wide open in the end zone for a 21-yard touchdown strike.

The Titans were called for a penalty before the extra point, so Jacksonville went for two points, and Lawrence was able to get in the end zone for a 15-3 lead.

The Jaguars were gifted a field goal to end the half.

With one second left, Jacksonville chose not to try a 61-yard field goal. Lawrence was forced to throw the ball away, but Tennessee was hit with a roughing the passer penalty.

That allowed Cam Little to nail a 45-yard field goal on an untimed down to give Jacksonville a 15-point lead at the break.

The Jaguars went up 25-3 in the third quarter when Lawrence engineered a 71-yard, 15-play drive.

The Titans helped out again when they roughed the punter to keep the drive going.

Bhayshul Tuten finished it off with a 2-yard touchdown up the middle with 6:45 left in the third quarter.

–Field Level Media

Jaguars visit Titans looking to build home-stretch momentum

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With six weeks left in the regular season, the Jacksonville Jaguars currently are positioned to make the playoffs in head coach Liam Coen’s first season.

The Jaguars are one of three AFC teams with a 7-4 record that occupy the three wild-card spots entering Week 13. Jacksonville is in sixth entering this week, behind the Los Angeles Chargers but ahead of the Buffalo Bills on a conference win percentage tiebreaker.

Jacksonville’s final six games are a mixed bag in terms of opposition. Three of the games are against teams with two or fewer wins, while the other three are versus teams with eight or more wins.

But it starts on what appears to be the easier side this weekend when the Jaguars take on the Tennessee Titans (1-10) Sunday in Nashville, the first of two matchups between these division opponents over the next six weeks.

Four of Jacksonville’s final six games are against AFC South rivals, including a pair of games against Indianapolis (8-3), which currently leads the Jaguars by one game.

Coen isn’t shying away from discussing the big picture right now with his team.

“It’s a huge opportunity for us,” he said. ” … It comes down to taking advantage of these opportunities and making the most of them.”

After a stretch of three losses in four games, Jacksonville has won its last two to restore some balance, including a 27-24 overtime victory over the Arizona Cardinals last week.

A big part of that surge has been an uptick in pass-rush success. Coen challenged his defense, which had eight sacks through the first seven games, to make a bigger impact. The Jaguars responded with 13 sacks in four games since their bye week, including a season-high six last week.

Tennessee carries a six-game overall losing streak and a 10-game home losing streak into this contest. After falling behind Seattle 23-3 last week, the Titans ended the game on a 21-7 run to cut the final deficit to 30-24.

Although the team was down two of its top three receivers against the Seahawks, Cam Ward turned in one of his better performances of the season. The rookie quarterback completed 28 of 42 passes for 256 yards and a touchdown with a team-high 37 rushing yards and his first career rushing TD.

Chimere Dike, a rookie bright spot for the Titans, scored a pair of second-half touchdowns against Seattle. He returned a punt 90 yards for his second punt-return TD of the season and caught his second touchdown pass of the season in the fourth quarter.

He leads the league in kick-return yards (1,206) and in yards per punt return (23.8).

The trend of losses hasn’t changed for Tennessee, but the last few weeks have been much more competitive. After six of the Titans’ first seven losses were by 10-plus points — including four by 18-plus points — their last three have all one-score losses.

“There’s a burning desire week-in and week-out to win,” said Titans interim coach Mike McCoy, who was previously Jacksonville’s QBs coach from 2022-24. ” … We’ve got to consistently do our jobs better and see what happens then when you play your best football for 60 minutes.”

Jacksonville receiver Brian Thomas Jr., who has missed the last three games, was limited with his ankle injury on Wednesday. The Jaguars opened safety Eric Murray’s 21-day practice window and he was a limited participant as he returns from a neck injury.

Tennessee rookie receiver Elic Ayomanor (hamstring) was also limited on Wednesday after missing last weekend’s game.

–Field Level Media

Jaguars’ defense suffocates Justin Herbert, Chargers 35-6

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Trevor Lawrence directed five touchdown drives and Travis Etienne ran for a pair of TDs Sunday afternoon as the Jacksonville Jaguars rolled to a 35-6 rout of the visiting Los Angeles Chargers, whose offense rarely was on the field.

Lawrence completed 14 of 22 passes for 153 yards before exiting in the fourth as the Jaguars (6-4) posted their most lopsided win this season after dropping three of their previous four. He helped the Jaguars hold possession for 37:55 minutes, including nearly 16 1/2 minutes on two drives that turned a 14-6 halftime lead into a rout and helped the Jaguars finish with a season-high 30 first downs.

Lawrence scored on a 1-yard run with 7:50 left in the third, then found Tim Patrick in the back of the end zone three minutes into the fourth on a 1-yard toss to give Jacksonville a 28-6 lead.

Etienne scored from 2 yards out on a direct snap with about 3 1/2 minutes left in the first half. He rumbled in for a 13-yard score to cap the scoring two plays after Anthony Johnson intercepted Justin Herbert and returned it 44 yards with 11:02 left in the game.

Etienne ran 15 times for 73 yards while rookie Bhayshul Tuten finished with 74 yards on 15 carries.

Herbert completed 10 of 18 passes for a career-low 81 yards and was lifted for Trey Lance in the fourth quarter. Herbert was sacked twice and briefly spent time in the blue medical tent after being hit by B.J. Green III with 34 seconds left in the first half.

Los Angeles (7-4) saw a three-game winning streak halted, finishing with eight first downs and 135 yards of total offense.

The Chargers took a 3-0 lead on Cameron Dicker’s 41-yard field goal with 3:35 left in first before Tuten withstood two defenders for a 4-yard run up the middle with no time left in the first.

Los Angeles settled for another field goal by Dicker after Herbert was sacked by Josh Hines-Allen for a 14-yard loss with 8:56 left. The Jaguars extended the lead to 14-6 when Etienne scored on a direct snap in the wildcat with 3:37 left in the first half.

–Field Level Media