![Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington (11) tip toes the line as he is forced out of bounds by Buffalo Bills defensive end Joey Bosa (97) during the fourth quarter of an NFL football AFC Wild Card playoff matchup, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. The Bills defeated the Jaguars 27-24. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_1160,y_0,w_3333,h_1874/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/55/01keqv7f1tfpzp7asc19.jpg "Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington (11) tip toes the line as he is forced out of bounds by Buffalo Bills defensive end Joey Bosa (97) during the fourth quarter of an NFL football AFC Wild Card playoff matchup, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. The Bills defeated the Jaguars 27-24. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]")
After a successful turnaround in 2025, the Jacksonville Jaguars saw their season come to an end when they fell to the Buffalo Bills in Round 1 of the playoffs. But as much as the loss stings, they should head into the offseason with their chin up.
After all, the Jags had the Bills against the ropes, and even though they'll be watching the remainder of the playoffs from home, nobody can take away everything they accomplished throughout the year. Josh Hines-Allen, for his part, is proud of everything the team did.
Josh Hines-Allen is thrilled with how far the Jaguars went in 2025
Hines-Allen met with the local media and praised his teammates and the coaching staff, noting that the Jags have work to do but are here to stay. Here's the skinny.
"First and foremost, man, shout out to my team. We fought all year. We battled. This was the most fun I've had in a very long time," Hines-Allen told the local media. "And I got a lot of guys that could say the same thing, but I'm out here to speak for all those guys. The coaching staff did a great job preparing us, putting us in the right position. Obviously, there's some calls we can have back, there's some plays that we can have back player-wise, and that goes for everybody."
Allen continued, "But this is a growing step for us, a growing moment. And obviously, this team's not going to be the same next year. And this is, we felt like in the moment. This was our opportunity to go take advantage of it, and we didn't, but we got a lot of guys that's hungry, and we're going to attack this offseason, grow from this offseason, and come back ready to win the whole thing next year."
Allen isn't wrong. The Jags will need to continue to address the larger scale roster in the offseason but most definitely have the talent in place to return to the playoffs next year. With this in mind, here are the biggest winners and losers from the Wild Card Round of the playoffs.
Jaguars loser, kicker Cam Little
The Jaguars were trailing 13-10 near the end of the second quarter, but the Jaguars had one last chance to score when the whole team drove to Bill territory to put Cam Little within field goal distance. Given that he nailed attempts of 68 and 67 yards in the regular season, this one of 52 yards seemed like a piece of cake for comparison. However, he missed it, and Jacksonville went into halftime trailing.
The final score was 27-24, so it's fair to say that those three points would have come in handy in the second half.
Jaguars winners, running backs Bhayshul Tuten and Travis Etienne
Travis Etiennne and Bhayshul Tuten are grouped together on this entry because both of them thrived against the Bills, but the coaching staff didn't use them nearly enough. The duo combined for 118 rushing yards and averaged a jaw-dropping 7.71 yards per tote. On top of that, Etienne hauled in five catches for 49 yards with a touchdown.
When you take into account that the Bills struggled to defend the run entering the game, it was a bit puzzling not to see Etienne and Tunen being more involved, especially after their early success
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Jaguars loser, cornerback Jarrian Jones
After being benched early in the season, Jarrian Jones bounced back and went on to become a key cog on the Jacksonville defense. However, he struggled against the Bills, giving up seven completions on eight targets. Fellow cornerback Greg Newsome didn't fare much better, allowing six passes on six receptions for 74 yards.
While Jones did an excellent job filling in for Jourdan Lewis in the second half of the season, don't be surprised if he has to compete for playing time in the offseason.
Jaguars winner, receiver Parker Washington
On a day in which the Bills made it difficult for the Jacksonville offense to move the ball, Parker Washington came through. Even though he left briefly to get checked for a concussion, he returned to the game and hauled in seven receptions for 107 yards with a touchdown.
Washington routinely moved the ball and gave the Jags a chance to win. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to come out triumphant.
Jaguars loser, Walker Little
Walker Little was benched at the midpoint of the season, but saw playing time at right tackle while Patrick Mekari was unavailable. He then had a chance to show he deserved to have a featured role next season when Cole Van Lanen wasn't good to go against the Bills.
Despite the golden opportunity, Little came crashing down, getting flagged twice for a false start. Had the Jags advanced to the divisional round, Van Lanen would have returned to the starting lineup, and Little would have remained on the sidelines the rest of the way. Heading into the offseason, his future in Jacksonville is in doubt.