The Jacksonville Jaguars addressed nearly all their needs and acquired a handful of playmakers in the offseason. They'll get to test their acquisitions in a gauntlet of matchups against a handful of playoff teams early in the regular season. All games will be tough, but the one against the Kansas City Chiefs stands out the most.
The Chiefs lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 59, but they're still among the best teams in the league. Heck, who else has made it to Championship Sunday four times in the last five years and won it three times? As long as Patrick Mahomes remains behind center and Steve Spagnuolo coaches the defense, Kansas City will have a realistic shot.
Meanwhile, the Jaguars finished 4-13 last year and are flying under the radar ahead of the 2025 season. Then again, they made enough changes the past few months to make you think that they can be a surprise team.
For starters, Jacksonville cleaned house and hired Liam Coen and James Gladstone as the head coach and the general manager, respectively. Coen will be able to get the most out of the team he inherited, while the latter has made an aggressive effort to raise both the roster's floor and ceiling. So far, the early results are promising. However, they need to win a few games before they can be taken seriously, which is precisely why the game against the Chiefs is so important.
The Jaguars will get the chance to play the Chiefs in front of an national audience
As noted before the Jacksonville Jaguars will deal with a gauntlet of tough opponents from Weeks 2 to 5, but the game against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 5 could define how they're perceived across the NFL. It will be on Monday Night Football, the only primetime they got this year.
You could make the case that the Jags should have gotten more prime time bouts because of Travis Hunter or Trevor Lawrence, but they cannot change that. Instead, they'll need to get the most out of the one they got. Jacksonville is among the smallest NFL markets and doesn't get nearly as much exposure as the Dallas Cowboys or the Pittsburgh Steelers. That's why they need to get the most out of their only appearance in front of a national audience in 2025.
Will it be tough to come out on top? You bet, but the Jaguars have a few things working in their favor. For starters, Trevor Lawrence should improve under Liam Coen's tutelage. His mechanics and decision-making took a dip last year. The new head coach should help him fix both areas. Moreover, No. 16 will now get to throw to Travis Hunter, who should draw coverage away from Brian Thomas Jr. and help him see more favorable matchups.
On defense, Anthony Campanile will lead a group that got enough upgrades in the offseason to slow down Patrick Mahomes. Of course, Kansas City won't let the Jaguars roll over them, so they'll need to be prepared to give it their all.
The bottom line is that beating the Chiefs will be a tall order, but if the Jags pull it off, it will help them get the recognition they deserve.