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Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. (7) and wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) record a social media video chanting “Duuuval!” after the game of an NFL football matchup at EverBank Stadium, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jacksonville Jaguars edged the Kansas City Chiefs 31-28. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

How the Jaguars Stared Down the Chiefs in MNF

Originally posted on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI
By Andy Quach | Last updated Oct 7, 2025 8:00 AM ET

The Jacksonville Jaguars continue to impress in the 2025 NFL season. After an unexpected 3-1 start, many anticipated that the floor would fall out beneath them in Week 5. It's not that they thought the Jaguars were secretly a bad team that would turn back into a pumpkin; it was more about the circumstances they faced in their fifth game.

The Jaguars had some extremely encouraging performances in their first four weeks, but they also left plenty of room for improvement. They notched two one-score wins over the Houston Texans and the Los Angeles Rams. Their offense was far from perfect, with the passing game especially struggling. Jacksonville needed 13 takeaways in four games from its defense to squeak out three victories.

With the Jaguars taking on Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in Monday Night Football for this one, the consensus sentiment was that they wouldn't have enough in the tank to upset a modern dynasty in a primetime slot. That proved to be false, as Head Coach Liam Coen led Jacksonville to 4-1 with a resounding 31-28 win in Week 5.

Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Jaguars weren't afraid of the Chiefs

Not only did the Jacksonville Jaguars get a huge win as the home underdogs against a historically dominant Kansas City Chiefs core, but they were able to overcome a 14-0 deficit to do it. In the past, this franchise would have absolutely rolled over as soon as things started to go bad. This team showed that it's completely different in 2025.

When asked whether their slow start was due to fear of the moment or the opponent, Head Coach Liam Coen stated that it was the opposite:

"Nah, they were just juiced. You should have heard our locker room pregame. It was mental. I didn't really have to go in and say anything before the game. Foye did that for me. They were very juiced. I think it was a little bit more to do with maybe overexcitement, over-enthused for the moment, rather than looking around scared. I don't feel like it was that by any means. I think we maybe just had a little bit too much juice going. You saw us miss more tackles than we had in weeks past. That speaks to guys just a little bit out of control."

Our favorite weekly tradition: Postgame speech pic.twitter.com/f5GHeVLceC
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) October 7, 2025

Jacksonville media also questioned if beating the Chiefs felt like a huge step forward for the team. Coen responded that this was a big win for the Jaguars, but not necessarily because of who they beat:

"It's a huge moment for our team, for our organization. We have yet to play clean for 60 minutes. Not that you always play 100 percent clean, but we did cut down on some of the penalties. We still had a few operational issues that frustrate you. But I do think we did play a little cleaner, at times, tonight. It wasn't perfect, as we know."

"We've got to go clean up a lot from the tape to go and be ready on a short week, especially, so I think this week will kind of show us a little bit more about where we're at. But, huge win. Huge win for us, especially with the one-score game thing. That team has historically won the majority of their one-score games. Something that obviously was a struggle for this team last year, and proud of the guys."

This article first appeared on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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