It takes a whole team to win football games, but you can make the case that a few positions have a bigger impact than others. Quarterback is the first one that comes to mind, but having a good left tackle that can neutralize your opponent's best pass rusher is also crucial to success. That's why the Jacksonville Jaguars didn't hesitate to give Walker Little a three-year deal worth $45 million in 2024.
The decision paid off early on, as Little was an immediate upgrade over Cam Robinson, who was traded to the Minnesota Vikings before the 2024 deadline and hasn't found much success ever since.
With Robinson out of the mix, Little was expected to elevate his game in 2025. Working in his favor was that this was the first time in his career that he began the season as the starter at left tackle. However, his poor outing against the Seattle Seahawks showed that he might be Jacksonville's weakest link in the offensive trenches.
The Jaguars need Walker Little to bounce back from a poor outing vs. the Seahawks
The Jaguars had one of the best offensive lines early this year. However, the group hasn't been nearly as dominant the past two games. Against the Seattle Seahawks in particular, Jacksonville gave up a concerning 33 total pressures and an alarming seven sacks. Walker Little gave up four of those sacks.
When you've got the right protection dialed up for the blitz but it's just not your day pic.twitter.com/41Ls3zjyC4
— Seth Payne (@SethCPayne) October 13, 2025
For the year, the former Stanford Cardinal has already surrendered five sacks and 22 total pressures on 254 snaps. For context, he allowed just two sacks and 13 total pressures on 316 snaps.
This is concerning when you take into account that Little was firmly entrenched as the starting left tackle in the offseason, so he had ample time to get ready for the season.
What will the Jaguars do if Walker Little continues to struggle?
At this point, it's hard to tell whether the Jaguars will bench Walker Little, but he may leave them no option if he fails to turn the corner. It's also worth considering that the new regime hasn't been afraid to move on from underperforming veterans regardless of the cap repercussions.
After the draft, the Jags released wide receiver Gabe Davis. More recently, they traded Tyson Campbell to the Cleveland Browns. But players left a significant amount of dead money behind, but that didn't stop general manager James Gladstone from pulling the trigger. Who is to say Little isn't next?
It may not be feasible to move Little this year, given that Jacksonville is in a cap crunch even after restructuring his and wide receiver Dyami Brown's contracts. In the meantime, though, it wouldn't be that far-fetched to see right tackle Anton Harrison or even rookie offensive guard Wyatt Milum get playing time at left tackle if Little continues to struggle.
The bottom line is that the Jaguars need to fix things up front, and if Walker Little isn't part of the solution, they must find a quick fix. Otherwise, their playoff hopes may be at risk of quickly diminishing.