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Jaguars Must Capitalize on Unusual 2025 NFL Season
Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) looks on from the sideline during the second quarter of an NFL football matchup, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025, at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Seahawks defeated the Jaguars 20-12. Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Not many outside of Duval are looking at the Jacksonville Jaguars as legitimate contenders in the 2025 NFL season. That's a mistake. Head Coach Liam Coen has led his team to a 4-2 record to begin his first year at the helm.

Not only is that an impressive start to the campaign, but it's even more encouraging when diving into the schedule. The Jaguars have already knocked off last year's AFC South champions, a resurgent San Francisco 49ers team that is currently 4-2 as well, and the Kansas City Chiefs, giving them their only loss in a full game with Xavier Worthy so far this season.

The schedule's about to get a bit lighter for Jacksonville, as they've already taken on many of their most daunting opponents in 2025. If they can escape London with an upset win over the Los Angeles Rams, it might be time for everyone to start treating this team like a true title threat this winter. Not only are the Jaguars more surprisingly competitive than expected, but the NFL as a whole seems more wide open than it's been in years.

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

This could be the Jaguars' year

The Jacksonville Jaguars didn't come into the 2025 NFL season with realistic title aspirations. With them completely overhauling their sideline and a significant chunk of their personnel in the offseason, many expected this to be a small rebuilding year, hoping for some signs of improvement under Head Coach Liam Coen, but not to truly contend for the Super Bowl. Those expectations have shifted in a major way, not only because of Jacksonville's early success, but also due to the league not having any overwhelming favorites right now.

The reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles are currently in the midst of a two-game backslide and have one of the worst offenses in the NFL. The Buffalo Bills are also on a two-game losing streak, and major questions have been raised about their defense, coaching, and even offense outside of Josh Allen and the rushing attack. The Baltimore Ravens are 1-5, and most of their stars have spent time on the injury report, including quarterback Lamar Jackson.

Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are likely at the top of most power rankings right now, and they're 3-3 on the year! This season, no team was undefeated after Week 5. The last time that happened was in 2014. Trevor Lawrence doesn't want his team thinking that way, though:

"Yeah, I wouldn't say that's how we look at it... That's just the NFL, and I think it's showing even more this year. It’s just any given Sunday, you have to play well, no matter who you're playing. No matter how many games you've won, you have to show up and play every week because any team can beat you, and there's a lot of good football teams out there. So, I think it's just showing that more than anything."

"For us, we have to take it one game at a time, and we'll look up at the end of the season and see where we're at, see how many games we've won to put us in position for the postseason and all that stuff. But I think you have to keep that narrow focus, and you can't look at the other teams and what they're doing and teams that are usually contenders that are losing. I think you start doing that, and you start losing focus of what's in front of you, because all these games are so important. When it gets to the end of the season, you need to obviously win as many of these as you can to put yourself in position."


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

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