Jaguars' Tyson Campbell Enters Critical Season

The Jacksonville Jaguars defense will be under a mircoscope in 2025 as they look to drastically improve from being one of the worst defenses in the NFL to, at worst, an average unit.

Despite what the box score and statisitics may say from last season, the Jaguars do have a talented defense heading into the year. They have two ample pass rushers in Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker while having a quality group of linebackers in Devin Lloyd and Foyesade Oluokon.

This offseason, general manager James Gladstone added former Dallas Cowboy Jourdan Lewis to the roster as the starting nickel defender and overall No. 2 defender at cornerback while also signing safety Eric Murray and drafting two-way defender Travis Hunter. All of these signings and the amount of talent added to the roster give defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile plenty of pieces to work with.

That also includes top cornerback Tyson Campbell, arguably one of the five best players on the roster when healthy. A former second-round draft choice from Georgia, Campbell's biggest concern coming out of college was playing with more discipline to match with his physical and athletic attributes. Since 2021, he has been a quality player with six career interceptions with 36 passes defended, including 25 in his first two seasons.

However, as Campbell enters his fifth year in the NFL, he has not been available for the team. A hamstring injury in 2023 and a thigh injury last season have caused him to miss 11 games over the last two years while his play has shown a level of decline in terms of consistency on a down-to-down, game-to-game basis. This makes Campbell's 2025 season is most critical.

Last offseason, Campbell signed a four-year, $76 million contract extension that will keep him in Jacksonville until 2028. He has to prove he is worth the $19.1 million average per year by staying healthy and returning to pre-injury form. It's clear these have had an impact in his play and limited what he can physically do in some regards.

The hope is that the former Georgia standout can recapture the magic below. This is a talented player with the ability to be a great cornerback in this league. He can help transform the Jaguars defense into an outstanding until.