After their close (but convincing) 22-17 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, the Jacksonville Jaguars showed that they can go toe-to-toe against the best teams in the NFL and come out on top in a hostile environment.
Sure, the Jags gave up over 400 passing yards, but their defense ultimately made enough plays to stymie Joe Burrow. Moreover, they gave up just 23 rushing yards in Week 4, and their defense is currently the top-ranked unit in the whole league.
Understandably, Jacksonville is finally getting widespread recognition across the league, with many analysts jumping into the hype train.
The 3-1 Jaguars are getting being taken seriously across the NFL
Following the win over Cincinnati, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk posted on Twitter that the road to the AFC Championship goes to Duval, later adding that their -250 odds are the best of any team to win its division.
Get used to the possibility that the road to the Super Bowl will go through a stadium that has a capacity of 42,000 for 2026 due to ongoing renovations.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) October 4, 2026
Seth Walder of ESPN also had high praise for the Jags, noting that they're No. 2, just behind the San Francisco 49ers, in the Football Power Index. For her part, Kate Constable stated that Jacksonville continues to fly under the radar, noting that its wins have been convincing. She's right.
I said it this morning and I'll say it again... the Jaguars aren't being talked about enough pic.twitter.com/HJKSd0OYd9
— Kate Constable (@KateConstable) October 4, 2026
The Jags embarrassed the Cleveland Browns in the opener, and they've since gone on to win three in a row. On the other hand, their wins against the New England Patriots and the Bengals were decisive. Jacksonville's only loss of the season came against the Denver Broncos in Week 2, and even then, it wasn't pretty close.
Simply put, the Jaguars are taking care of business, and the more they continue to win, the more analysts will keep talking about them.
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The more the Jaguars win, the more they'll keep getting recognition
Back when the Jaguars beat New England, the conversation mostly centered around how the Patriots and Drake Maye collapsed. While you'll probably hear that Joe Burrow put up a strong showing in the loss to Jacksonville, most of his yardage was empty calories, as he failed to come up clutch in the end. Understandably, the Jacksonville defense is getting its flowers for containing the Bengals' offense.
All-Pro voter Adam Schein of CBS Sports is showing that the narrative is changing for the better. After Week 4, he acknowledged the win over Cincy and called the Jaguars a Super Bowl contender.
Excellent win by Jags. Team looks like true SB contender
— Adam Schein (@AdamSchein) October 4, 2026
Of course, there's still a long way to go, and Jacksonville isn't the only team that's catching fire. The Kansas City Chiefs remain undefeated after defeating the Las Vegas Raiders. The Browns, the Buffalo Bills, and the Seattle Seahawks are, like the Jags, 3-1.
Having said that, the Jaguars have more than enough talent on both sides of the ball, and a superb head coach in Liam Coen to keep winning games. Heck, at this point, a regression is highly unlikely, especially when you take into account that the Jags are 11-1 in the regular season dating back to Week 11 last year.
Expect to keep hearing about the Jaguars the remainder of the season, and who knows, maybe we'll be talking about them late in January and early February.
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