After a successful season that ended with a trip to the playoffs, the Jacksonville Jaguars will have plenty of work to do in the upcoming months. They'll need to make upgrades across the roster if they want to pick up where they left off last year. Some positions need more help than others, and it's abundantly clear that the pass rush should be among their top priorities.
The Jaguars weren't able to pressure quarterback Josh Allen in the playoff loss to the Buffalo Bills. If they want to avoid being one-and-done in 2026, the pass rusher should be their top priority. However, general manager James Gladstone doesn't think the issue is as worrisome as it appears to be.
James Gladstone doesn't sound worry about the Jaguars pass rush
James Gladstone talked to reporters after the season ended and said that he was pleased with the improvement the pass rush showed towards the end of the year, noting that the team's brass will look for ways to improve the pressure up front.
"Sacks in particular are never a true indicator, pressures are probably a better indicator of whether or not, you're impacting the QB," Gladstone told the local media. "I think the way in which our scheme will evolve will have a role in how we address it from a personnel standpoint. But clearly, I think we saw by season's end that there was an uptick in what may have not necessarily been a superpower of our defense on the front end of the season, became more impactful by season's end."
Gladstone continued, "And I think we saw evolution of usage, and I do expect that our scheme itself will evolve and not necessarily be the exact same. But yeah, there's going to be some preliminary discussions that take place over the course of the latter weeks in January. Our coaching staff won't return until mid February, at which point we'll dive into that stuff in greater detail."
Below is Gladstone's exchange with the local media. His remarks about the pass rush start at the 3:24 mark.
Of course, James Gladstone wasn't going to tell that the sky is falling, and he didn't necessarily deny that the pass rush is a concern heading into the offseason. That said, he kind of downplayed the fact that the front four wasn't able to consistently bring the heat last season.
The Jaguars ranked eighth in points allowed and 11th in total yards among NFL teams last year. However, their pass-rush win rate of 38 percent was 14th, and their 32 sacks were 27th.
As Gladstone noted, sacks aren't the only way to measure a pass rush's success. That said, they're the kind of play that can stall drives and momentum. On the other hand, you can apply pressure, and the quarterback can still make a play. Granted, a pressure can lead to a turnover, but the best defenses generally turn them into sacks.
Either way, the Jaguars need to do a better job of bringing the heat next season, and bringing in reinforcements would most definitely help.
Related: 5 players who definitely won't be back in Jacksonville in 2026
The Jaguars have options to bolster the pass rush
The Jaguars have a dominant pass rusher in Josh Hines-Allen, but they need more playmakers in the trenches. Toward the end of the year, Travon Walker began to get playing time inside, with positive results. That paved the way for undrafted rookies Danny Striggow and B.J. Green II to get more playing time opposite Hines-Allen.
Striggow and Green should keep making strides in Year 2, but that shouldn't deter the Jags from bolstering the rotation. Ryan O'Hallaran of The Florida-Times Union suggests Jacksonville trades for Maxx Crosby, but the pitch he makes is somewhat unrealistic. Another option would be T.J. Watt, who's seemingly frustrated with the Pittsburgh Steelers' dearth of postseason success.
Trading for Watt or Crosby wouldn't come cheap. If the Jaguars don't want to allocate resources to acquiring either, they pursue Trey Hendrickson in free agency or turn to the draft for a pass-rush prospect.
It's worth noting that the Jags are $17 million over the cap. That may hinder their ability to make a splash move to fortify the pass rush. Nevertheless, they will have options in free agency and the draft.
The point is that the Jaguars have no excuse to neglect the pass rush, and they'll need to take care of it if they want to pick up where they left off.