Latest / Duval Daily: A Jacksonville Jaguars Podcast / Jaguars Greatest Strengths in 2026!

Transcript

Jaguars Greatest Strengths in 2026! · Duval Daily: A Jacksonville Jaguars Podcast

0:00
[SPEAKER_00]: Jacksonville Jaguar's fans, welcome and to do Vault Daily, presented by GenJag.com and Fueled by Brass Tax Coffee.
0:05
[SPEAKER_00]: It is Tuesday, September 1st.
0:07
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm your host, Jordan, Lugo.
0:07
[SPEAKER_00]: Thanks so much for being here right now.
0:10
[SPEAKER_00]: We are getting into the Jaguar's strengths.
0:13
[SPEAKER_00]: These are the areas of the team, of the organization that I feel are unquestionably strengths heading into the 2026 season.
0:24
[SPEAKER_00]: We'll also do a show
0:25
[SPEAKER_00]: Now that training camp is wrapped up, and the Jaguars are full steam ahead towards, you know, week one, September 13th, hosting the Cleveland Browns.
0:34
[SPEAKER_00]: We'll also do a show on the weaknesses, but right now, focusing on the strengths of this team.
0:40
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm excited to get into it.
0:42
[SPEAKER_00]: I think a lot has changed over the last couple of years.
0:45
[SPEAKER_00]: And so, yeah, I just think it's worthwhile to kind of
0:49
[SPEAKER_00]: dissect what the greatest areas of of strength are for this football team.
0:55
[SPEAKER_00]: Really appreciate y'all being here.
0:56
[SPEAKER_00]: If you enjoy the content, please like and subscribe, you can also hit that high button.
1:00
[SPEAKER_00]: So, Jack Wars, I think their greatest strength is their run, defense, like that.
1:09
[SPEAKER_00]: So we'll start with on the field, like just based on what we have seen
1:18
[SPEAKER_00]: And then heading into 2026, what we've seen so far.
1:23
[SPEAKER_00]: And I still think that the Jaguars run defense.
1:27
[SPEAKER_00]: should be, like if you're just breaking things down, I think that they should be ranked as the number one run defense and football heading into this 20, 26 NFL season.
1:39
[SPEAKER_00]: They were the best run defense in the NFL last year.
1:41
[SPEAKER_00]: They had a huge test in the first playoff game last year that they ultimately ended up losing.
1:49
[SPEAKER_00]: But, uh,
1:51
[SPEAKER_00]: That run defense was not the reason they lost the game.
1:54
[SPEAKER_00]: The run defense was still a league against James Cook who had an incredible year in 2025.
2:03
[SPEAKER_00]: And it didn't matter.
2:04
[SPEAKER_00]: Like he was the NFL's leading Russia and the Jaguar is completely shut down the bills running game.
2:12
[SPEAKER_00]: And you go into like just all the different metrics.
2:15
[SPEAKER_00]: They were easily one of the best run defenses
2:21
[SPEAKER_00]: And then you also have the fact that like teams just kind of quit, quit trying, right?
2:31
[SPEAKER_00]: Teams would come out, they'd try to run a little bit, they couldn't get anything going, and then the Jag war is just dominated, they allowed 3.9 yards per carry, they allowed 85 yards a game.
2:46
[SPEAKER_00]: They were incredible against the run and I don't think anything has changed in that regard.
2:52
[SPEAKER_00]: If anything, maybe they've gotten a little bit stronger against the run when you look at the roster, I think that they added more depth, quality depth on the interior of the defensive line.
3:06
[SPEAKER_00]: They have the same depth if not better depth at edge right now.
3:15
[SPEAKER_00]: Trayvon Walker was playing injured last year.
3:18
[SPEAKER_00]: I think he's going to be a higher impact run defender, even in past Russia, too, but we're just talking about run defense right now.
3:24
[SPEAKER_00]: Those are two of the, like, as a duo,
3:27
[SPEAKER_00]: One of the best duo's in football at Edge, just in general, but then you talk about the run defense specifically, it might be the best run defending Edge duo in the game.
3:38
[SPEAKER_00]: They're excellent.
3:39
[SPEAKER_00]: And then you talk about the interior, it's anchored by Devon Hamilton, who is often referred to by this team as the best nose tackle in the game.
3:51
[SPEAKER_00]: I wouldn't put him up there, but if you're just talking run defense, yeah, he is, he is right up there.
3:58
[SPEAKER_00]: And then Eric Armstead is a good run defender.
4:03
[SPEAKER_00]: Matt Dickerson is a good run defender.
4:05
[SPEAKER_00]: You add Albert Regist to that mix, you add Rooker or Rooker to that mix, and they've got a really good looking front against the run.
4:12
[SPEAKER_00]: And then at the second level, foyer Luke and has always been a
4:18
[SPEAKER_00]: Uh, who I think the Jaguars would have as their base down, you know, type of run defender, uh, next-of-way, Luke and is a great thumper at Lionbacker.
4:30
[SPEAKER_00]: Um, that is the strength of his game.
4:32
[SPEAKER_00]: And the secondary, all their guys are willing to tackle and do their part.
4:37
[SPEAKER_00]: Antonio Johnson, Eric Murray, you know, Buster Brown, Travis Hunter, even.
4:44
[SPEAKER_00]: Jarring Jones and Jordan Lewis.
4:45
[SPEAKER_00]: None of those guys shy away from that part of the game.
4:48
[SPEAKER_00]: So I think all of that combined with, you know, Anthony Campanile is defensive scheme and they're folk, like that is their focus.
4:55
[SPEAKER_00]: Obviously they want to be a better past defense over all this year.
5:01
[SPEAKER_00]: But like the number one thing with this defense, the number one focus is stopping the run.
5:07
[SPEAKER_00]: And you know, there's the adage, you know, stop the run, then you can have some fun, you know, trying to get after the quarterback and force turnovers and all that stuff.
5:15
[SPEAKER_00]: I just, I look at it and I, I see what should be a strength of this team once again in 2025, or 2026, excuse me.
5:26
[SPEAKER_00]: I think, you know, people talk about turnover as being not sticky year to year, but it seems like this group.
5:38
[SPEAKER_00]: will have the ability to be another defense that forces turnovers at a high level in 2026, the same way they were in 2025, right?
5:49
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, they had 31 turnovers forced last year.
5:53
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, they have 31 again this year, who knows?
5:55
[SPEAKER_00]: Who knows what the number will be?
5:57
[SPEAKER_00]: But I still think they're gonna be a team that has the ability to force turnovers because they focus on it.
6:03
[SPEAKER_00]: That is a main coaching point, a main emphasis for this defense is to force turnovers and it's not just jumping routes and picking off passes.
6:13
[SPEAKER_00]: It's stripping the ball when you get to the quarterback.
6:16
[SPEAKER_00]: It's punching the ball out when you arrive at the ball carrier, things of this nature.
6:21
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't think that that's going anywhere personally.
6:23
[SPEAKER_00]: So I think those are the two clear strengths of the Jaguar's defense right now.
6:27
[SPEAKER_00]: And again, I think run defense is the strongest aspect of the Jaguar's team right now.
6:34
[SPEAKER_00]: I'll say the second strongest aspect of the Jaguar's team right now, just again, on field is the passing offense.
6:41
[SPEAKER_00]: I think very clearly they exploded down the stretch.
6:45
[SPEAKER_00]: Trevor Lawrence got comfortable in Liam Cohen's system.
6:50
[SPEAKER_00]: And, you know, I include Trevor Lawrence as a runner, you know, in scramble mode, as part of the passing offense, like yes, it counts as a rushing stat.
6:58
[SPEAKER_00]: But that's part of the threat of the passing offense is if Trevor Lawrence gets through his first couple reads and there's an open lane, he can absolutely take off and get you big, big chunks of yardage, get you touchdowns in the red zone, things of that nature.
7:13
[SPEAKER_00]: But when you look at how comfortable Trevor got,
7:16
[SPEAKER_00]: Throwing over the middle, thanks to the arrival of Jacobi Myers, the ascendant of Parker Washington, Britain's strange returning to the lineup.
7:27
[SPEAKER_00]: The passing offense, especially out of 11 personnel, is lethal.
7:31
[SPEAKER_00]: You've got Brian Thomas Jr., who can stretch the field in multiple ways.
7:36
[SPEAKER_00]: You've got Jacobi Myers, who can be a safety blanket security valve of sorts.
7:41
[SPEAKER_00]: Britain's strange who can be that as well, but also can,
7:46
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, be explosive down the field, be a yak guy, and then Parker Washington, I think, is now the key to it all.
7:53
[SPEAKER_00]: I think he will lead the Jaguars in targets and receptions, and he can win at all three levels of the field, thanks to, you know, he's strong, he's detailed oriented, he's extremely focused, and then you have his contested catchability, which part of that is body control,
8:15
[SPEAKER_00]: he can go up and get the football.
8:17
[SPEAKER_00]: He's a really good yak guy, which you see as a part returner, but you also see when he gets the ball in his hands and space, he makes people miss, he gets extra yards.
8:28
[SPEAKER_00]: So you have all those things combined.
8:31
[SPEAKER_00]: Plus you add Travis Hunter into that mix, and Liam Cohen talked about it yesterday.
8:36
[SPEAKER_00]: The main focus right now is defense for Travis Hunter, but he's going to play offensive snaps too.
8:41
[SPEAKER_00]: They want to get him involved.
8:42
[SPEAKER_00]: They know how talented he is.
8:45
[SPEAKER_00]: And they added some good young talent, you know, in the past catching department this year when you talk about Josh Cameron, CJ Williams, Tenercos, you'll an even neighborhood trip.
8:54
[SPEAKER_00]: So I think that the Jaguar is passing offense and part of this too is just like the design of the passing offense with Liam Cohen and then obviously like they're a pretty pretty good pass protection group.
9:07
[SPEAKER_00]: I think overall, when you look at Anton Harrison, Covan Land, and that's a good pass protecting offensive tackle duo.
9:14
[SPEAKER_00]: Ezra Cleveland has been an underrated player for the last couple years at guard, and manual pregnon looks like a brick wall, and Robert Hainesy.
9:23
[SPEAKER_00]: While I don't think he is a Supreme Talent and any stretch of the imagination, I do think he provides a lot of leadership communication and helps with the operation up front.
9:33
[SPEAKER_00]: Then Liam Cohen, just his ability to scheme things open, is pretty impressive.
9:39
[SPEAKER_00]: You do talk about the loss of Travis ETN in the past game.
9:42
[SPEAKER_00]: There's no question he was a very good past down and past receiving back for them last year.
9:47
[SPEAKER_00]: But Liquid Allen is a very good receiving back and I think Bacial Tutan has shown a lot in that regard too in limited opportunities last year but then carrying over into training camp this year.
9:58
[SPEAKER_00]: So I definitely think passing offense, run defense, two huge strengths.
10:02
[SPEAKER_00]: I still think turnovers will be a strength of the Jaguars as well.
10:07
[SPEAKER_00]: So yeah, you look at those three things on the offensive and defensive side of the ball and I think,
10:14
[SPEAKER_00]: That's a solid foundation for them on those sides.
10:18
[SPEAKER_00]: And then I also think you look at the specialists.
10:21
[SPEAKER_00]: The special teams in general, that is absolutely should be viewed as a strength.
10:26
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, Cam Little is a weapon who you can deploy pretty much anywhere on the field.
10:32
[SPEAKER_00]: It feels like, as a field goal kicker, you have Logan Coke, who's one of the best punners statistically in the NFL that we've ever seen.
10:40
[SPEAKER_00]: And you have Ross Matasic, who is a perennial pro bowl slash all pro type of player.
10:46
[SPEAKER_00]: As your long snapper, you have Heath Farwell as a great special teams coach.
10:51
[SPEAKER_00]: You have all sorts of guys who can contribute at a high level on the coverage units, field goal block, field goal protection, all that stuff.
10:59
[SPEAKER_00]: So those are the areas just of on field roster type of stuff that I think is really a big time strength for the Jaguars right now.
11:08
[SPEAKER_00]: But there there's certainly a good bit more to get into, but I did want to remind y'all to lock it in over at my bookie They're lock at the season as back the first one is an absolute no-brainer Patriots in Seattle for NFL kick off my bookie is asking one simple question will the seawks raise their championship banner that night The answer is of course they will you're getting that bed at plus money odds You're getting paid to say yes the seawks will do the thing the entire night is built around, right?
11:34
[SPEAKER_00]: Um, that's the first my bookie lock this season.
11:38
[SPEAKER_00]: There'll be more coming all season long.
11:40
[SPEAKER_00]: Get in before kickoff, sign up at my bookie with my promo code Duval.
11:43
[SPEAKER_00]: Do you VAL all caps start your season off with a win any time anywhere that's my bookie code Duval must be 21 plus 18 plus and select jurisdictions, terms and conditions apply.
11:53
[SPEAKER_00]: Gambling problem call 100gamler or visit 100gamler.net for free, confidential support available 24.7 so I think,
12:01
[SPEAKER_00]: Beyond just that stuff we mentioned, I think James Gladstone is absolutely a strength of Jaguars and I know a lot of people out there trying to say he's not good at drafting this that I think the way he built up the floor of the roster and is still continuing to do so.
12:15
[SPEAKER_00]: is super impressive, but the most impressive thing to me about James Gladstone is at every turn, at every moment in the off-season during the season, training camp, the draft, he is willing to adjust, he is willing to leave no stone unturned.
12:35
[SPEAKER_00]: I'll tell you what, it would be absolutely shocking if
12:40
[SPEAKER_00]: a GM, here prior to James Gladstone, would have ever let a fourth rounder go to the practice squad the year after drafting them.
12:48
[SPEAKER_00]: And you can criticize Gladstone for drafting a fourth rounder that you don't feel like should be on the act of roster, but I think you can also say the willingness and we're talking about Jack Kaiser, obviously.
13:00
[SPEAKER_00]: The willingness to not be so stubborn with this coaching staff in this front office,
13:08
[SPEAKER_00]: I think it's pretty impressive.
13:10
[SPEAKER_00]: Like they put Jack Kaiser on the practice squad.
13:12
[SPEAKER_00]: They have Jalani Tavai who they just brought into her three weeks ago, making the active roster.
13:17
[SPEAKER_00]: That type of maliability and flexibility, I think is really impressive.
13:21
[SPEAKER_00]: But then also, just like, there's never a moment where James Lazzone is not looking to upgrade the roster.
13:28
[SPEAKER_00]: You have to be strategic about it.
13:30
[SPEAKER_00]: But like, at every turn, he's done it.
13:32
[SPEAKER_00]: Like the Daniel Fall later, I know that was widely like
13:38
[SPEAKER_00]: that improved their roster during training camp.
13:41
[SPEAKER_00]: You look back at last year, trading up for Travis Hunter.
13:44
[SPEAKER_00]: That was obviously a huge adjustment, a huge move.
13:47
[SPEAKER_00]: And I think it's going to pay dividends for them.
13:49
[SPEAKER_00]: You look at trading for Tim Patrick.
13:52
[SPEAKER_00]: You look at adding certain guys at certain spots throughout training camp to end it up making an impact.
13:58
[SPEAKER_00]: You look at trading for Jacobi Myers during the season.
14:01
[SPEAKER_00]: That was a trade that paid huge dividends for them.
14:05
[SPEAKER_00]: And there's just so many examples of the different ways that James Gladstone is willing to pivot, willing to adjust, willing to try to improve the roster at any moment that I think does make the Jag war as more of a threat always.
14:20
[SPEAKER_00]: I really do.
14:21
[SPEAKER_00]: I love that about Gladstone in the way.
14:23
[SPEAKER_00]: He approaches things and we will hear from James Lathstone later today, 415.
14:29
[SPEAKER_00]: I believe he's scheduled to meet with the media coaching.
14:35
[SPEAKER_00]: I mentioned it a few times already but like the coaching
14:39
[SPEAKER_00]: from Liam Cohen to Anthony Camponele to Heath Farwell and to all of the assistance.
14:47
[SPEAKER_00]: There is an intentionality, a level of focus, a level of work that they are willing to put in, but I think
14:56
[SPEAKER_00]: is basically unparalleled in the history of the jag wars.
14:59
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, you go back to Kaufflin like since then, you have not seen anything like this in terms of the work ethic, the dedication, all that type of stuff.
15:06
[SPEAKER_00]: And I think they're just a really forward-thinking unit.
15:09
[SPEAKER_00]: Like, Grant Yudinsky, he's going to be a head coach.
15:11
[SPEAKER_00]: It feels like Anthony Camponele is going to be a head coach.
15:14
[SPEAKER_00]: It feels like, and you've got just
15:18
[SPEAKER_00]: through the ranks, good coaches.
15:20
[SPEAKER_00]: I know everybody made fun of the Jaguars when they brought Shane Waldron in, but he has helped them significantly.
15:26
[SPEAKER_00]: And now has gotten a bump in title, as well, this offseason.
15:34
[SPEAKER_00]: He's far well, just one of the best special teams, coaches in football, high energy, now assistant head coach.
15:42
[SPEAKER_00]: And this is a coaching staff that really gets it.
15:47
[SPEAKER_00]: They know how to connect with their players, Liam Cohen knows how to motivate his players, and I think you can say that throughout the ranks.
15:54
[SPEAKER_00]: And then the final thing, which kind of goes back to James Gladstone, I think that the depth is a strength of the Jaguars.
16:00
[SPEAKER_00]: One of the reasons the Jaguars fell apart in 2023 among other things was depth was a major problem.
16:08
[SPEAKER_00]: And if the Jaguars faced the same amount of injury,
16:14
[SPEAKER_00]: at certain spots as they did in 2023, they might be in trouble again.
16:19
[SPEAKER_00]: They probably would be, I think, most teams would be.
16:22
[SPEAKER_00]: But I think that they're better built to handle more injuries now than they have been really in a very, very long time.
16:30
[SPEAKER_00]: I just think the depth that they have created throughout the roster.
16:34
[SPEAKER_00]: Like, you look at, I mean, they just went and got Quinn Yures.
16:37
[SPEAKER_00]: I think he's going to be better depth for them than they've had at quarterback in a while.
16:41
[SPEAKER_00]: You look at running back.
16:42
[SPEAKER_00]: That is an incredibly deep group.
16:44
[SPEAKER_00]: It looks like you look at wide receiver.
16:48
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, of Josh Cameron and CJ Williams and Travis Hunter all has like backup receivers right now.
16:54
[SPEAKER_00]: That's a good group, a talented group.
16:57
[SPEAKER_00]: They're deeper at tight end than they've been.
16:59
[SPEAKER_00]: You look at the offensive line and you've got depth, eventually Patrick McCarray is expected to be back, right?
17:04
[SPEAKER_00]: He'll be depth for you, but you have Walker Little as, you know, he was a starting tackle for the Jaguars in turn last year.
17:11
[SPEAKER_00]: Now he's a depth player.
17:12
[SPEAKER_00]: You have Jonah Monheim as a good-looking young center, you know, out of USC last year.
17:19
[SPEAKER_00]: Why am I loom as depth?
17:22
[SPEAKER_00]: Daniel Falele as depth.
17:26
[SPEAKER_00]: And then the defensive, on the defensive side, like there's depth all over the place.
17:30
[SPEAKER_00]: They have five safeties that they really like.
17:32
[SPEAKER_00]: They have, you know, at linebacker behind FOIA and Ventrel, Branson Colms is a player that they really like on the defensive front.
17:43
[SPEAKER_00]: The guys behind, the guys behind those starters,
17:49
[SPEAKER_00]: Danny Strigo, B.J.
17:50
[SPEAKER_00]: Green, Brian Thomas Jr., Rooka Roarrow, Albert Regis, there's depth there.
17:57
[SPEAKER_00]: Again, most teams cannot afford to lose a ton of their starters.
18:00
[SPEAKER_00]: And then at corner, you have a bunch of just really good guys that you can all look at as starters.
18:08
[SPEAKER_00]: Travis Hunter, Buster Brown, Jordan Lewis, Jarring Jones, the fact that Jarring and Jones, you might argue it's your fourth corner.
18:15
[SPEAKER_00]: It's pretty darn good.
18:17
[SPEAKER_00]: And then you also have obviously Christian Brasswell who has some experience for you.
18:20
[SPEAKER_00]: But I think depth is a strength of the team.
18:23
[SPEAKER_00]: And you hope to not have to rely on it too too much because any team that has to rely on it too much is probably going to be in trouble.
18:31
[SPEAKER_00]: But,
18:32
[SPEAKER_00]: I think that they've created a roster that looks like it has the ability to withstand a little bit more than what they have had in the past.
18:41
[SPEAKER_00]: So that's kind of where I'm at with the Jaguar's strengths heading into 2026.
18:46
[SPEAKER_00]: Let me know what you think in the comment section below about their strengths.
18:48
[SPEAKER_00]: We will talk about
18:50
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, I mentioned weakness is I think it's probably more like question marks potentially heading into 2026, probably tomorrow or later this week, but really appreciate y'all tuning in.
19:01
[SPEAKER_00]: If you enjoy the content, please like and subscribe, y'all have a great one.