Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. (7) runs the ball during the 10th organized team activity at Miller Electric Center Wednesday, June 4, 2025 in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Jaguars' Brian Thomas Jr. Cracks Prominent List

Originally posted on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI
By John Shipley | Last updated Jun 18, 2025 7:00 AM ET

The Jacksonville Jaguars have a genuine star in second-year wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr.

Thomas started in 16 of 17 games played and registered 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns on 87 receptions, all rookie franchise records. Week in and week out, he made it clear he was a No. 1 wide receiver who every defense had to account for.

As a result of his stellar rookie season, Thomas is set to rank high on an abundance of lists entering the 2025 season. The latest of such lists and rankings displays just how far Thomas has come since the Jaguars drafted him in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

In CBS Sports' Pete Prisco's recent rankings of the top-100 players, Thomas lands at No. 44 as the No. 6 wide receiver.

"With all the Travis Hunter talk, people forget how dominant Thomas Jr. was as a rookie for a bad offense in 2024. With Hunter on the opposite side and Trevor Lawrence healthy, he can be even better," Prisco said.

Thomas lands one spot ahead of former LSU Tigers teammate and New York Giants star Malik Nabers.

The only receivers ranked ahead of Thomas are Ja'Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb, Tyreek Hill, and A.J. Brown.

This seems like an appropriate ranking for Thomas after what he did on a putrid Jaguars' offense last year. Thomas played with a banged-up Trevor Lawrence and a relatively middling Mac Jones, making it an incredible feat for him to produce as much as he did.

Thomas Jr. ranked first among rookies and third overall in receiving yards; first among rookies and tied-sixth overall in receiving touchdowns; and first among rookies and second overall in yards per catch (14.7; min. 75 receptions). He also became the fourth rookie since the 1970 NFL-AFL Merger to register 1,200-plus receiving yards and 10- plus receiving touchdowns (WR Odell Beckham Jr., WR Ja’Marr Chase and WR Randy Moss)

Thomas' 11 games of over 75 receiving yards were the most by a rookie in NFL history and tied with Chase for second-most in the NFL in 2024, trailing Jefferson (12). His eight games with 60-plus receiving yards and a touchdown reception tied Randy Moss for the most such games by a rookie in NFL history.