In Week 6, the Jacksonville Jaguars had a prime opportunity to strengthen their case as one of the best teams in the NFL. They weren't able to seize it.
The Seattle Seahawks left Duval with a win. They crafted a defensive game plan to neutralize Trevor Lawrence and the offense. Meanwhile, the Jacksonville defense wasn't able to pick up the slack. Simply, Sam Darnold and the Hawks proved to be too much to handle. And now, head coach Mike Macdonald is 10-1 on the road.
With this in mind, here are the four critical observations from the discouraging 23-12 loss to the Seahawks.
The Jaguars O-Line couldn't hold its own vs. the Seahawks pass rush
The Jaguars had one of the best offensive lines early in the 2025 season, but you wouldn't be able to tell based on their performance against the Seattle Seahawks. By the fourth quarter, they had allowed seven sacks.
According to Michel DiRocco of ESPN, Trevor Lawrence was pressured on 16 of his 25 dropbacks in the first half. That 64 percent pressure rate is the most a quarterback has faced since Patrick Mahomes in 2020.
Anton Harrison has stepped up this season, which is why it was baffling to see him struggle. In Week 6, he was flagged twice. Say what you want about Trevor Lawrence, but it's hard to complete passes when you routinely have defenders on your face by the time the center snaps the ball.
Lawrence went 27-of-42 for 258 yards with two touchdowns.
The usually reliable Cam Little cost the Jaguars four points
Back in Week 4, Cam Little missed a field goal. Following the game, head coach Liam Coen said that he wasn't worried, but maybe he should be after the Seahawks game. First, the former Arkansas Razorback failed his extra-point attempt. He then missed a try that would've made it 10-9.
Then, after the Jaguars' second score, they went for the two-point conversion instead of letting Little go for the extra point. That might've been a strategy or maybe a sign that the team wasn't confident in the kicker.
Now, kickers miss field goals all the time, but the fact that Little isn't in a funk should most definitely be a reason for concern. This doesn't mean that the Jaguars need to release him but must find what's behind the sophomore's struggles.
The Jaguars seemed uninspiring after the win vs. the Chiefs
The Seahawks deserve plenty of praise for coming up with a game plan to neutralize the Jaguars offense. That said, Jacksonville must also shoulder some of the blame for the underwhelming performance.
After all, the Jags have shown that they can keep up with the best in the NFL. They were riding a three-game winning streak and coming off victories over playoff teams. On top of that, the game was at EverBank Stadium, so Jacksonville had several things going in its favor to win.
There were spurts on offense every now and then, but the Jaguars couldn't build any momentum throughout the game. The defense, for its part, had no answers for Sam Darnold and couldn't create any takeaways to make up for their shortcomings. When you add it all up, it's easy to see why they lost.
Penalties once again held the Jaguars back
Leaving aside the fact that the Jaguars couldn't make plays on either side of the ball, penalties once again plagued them. They were credited with nine for 72 yards. What's infuriating is that all they stemmed from sloppy execution: Offsides, false starts, you name it.
Ultimately, the loss to the Seattle Seahawks was a reminder that the Jaguars have indeed make progress under Liam Coen but still have their work cut out.
Now, the Jaguars must go back to the drawing board, so they don't lose two in a row when they face the Los Angeles Rams.