With the draft in the books, everyone is turning their attention to the NFL Schedule release for 2025. The issue is that if you're a fan of the Jacksonville Jaguars, not many games have been confirmed outside of their Week 7 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams and the opener against the Carolina Panthers. Having said that, there appear to be a few intriguing leaks. One of them suggests that the Jags will deal with a gauntlet early in the season.
Twitter users @NerdigonNFL and @OzzyNFL are collecting leaks, and one of them hints at Jacksonville facing off against the Cincinnati Bengals, the Houston Texans, the San Francisco 49ers, and the Kansas City Chiefs from Weeks 2 to 5. Here's how the potential schedule looks.
An NFL schedule leak suggests the Jaguars will have a gauntlet from Weeks 2 to 5
Week 2 @ Cincinnati
Week 3 vs. the Texans
Week 4 @ San Francisco
Week 5 vs. the Chiefs
The silver lining is that two of those games will be at home, so that could give the Jags a slight edge. Then again, it won't be of any use if they get off to a slow start. Circling back to their opponents, why is it that this four-week stretch would be a gauntlet? Here's a look at why the Jaguars could have a tough time handling these four teams.
Week 2 @ Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals barely missed the playoffs, and Joe Burrow will be at full strength after having to deal with injuries in 2023 and his subsequent recovery last offseason. On top of that, he'll have his two top targets back at his disposal. As long as Cincy has Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins in the mix, they can light up the scoreboard.
The only thing that could demoralize the Bengals is the contract impasse with star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson. Leaving aside that he's their best defender, the fact that they're mishandling their relationship with him could affect the locker room. Either way, the Jaguars cannot take Cincinnati lightly.
Week 3 vs. Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are the team to beat as long as they hold the division title, which they've done the past two years. You could argue that the Jags have split the series each of the past two seasons, but only the Texans have made the playoffs.
While Houston may not have done enough to revamp their offensive line, the addition of Nick Caley as the offensive coordinator should give his unit a spark. On top of that, their defense comes back nearly intact, and that could give the Jaguars offense trouble.
On a related note, the Jaguars will face a familiar face in Christian Kirk, who crossed enemy lines after getting kicked to the curb in the offseason.
Week 4 @ San Francisco 49ers
Surprisingly, this could be the easiest matchup of the bunch. After paying top-market money to some of their top players, the San Francisco 49ers failed to qualify for the postseason in 2024. On top of that, Linebacker Dre Greenlaw left in free agency. On the other hand, the nucleus that made it to the Super Bowl in 2023 remains in place, so nobody would bat an eye if they bounce back next season.
It's also worth noting that the Jags have been pummeled in their last two encounters against San Francisco, one time at Santa Clara and the other at the Bank, so it doesn't really matter where they play as long as they're ready for the challenge.
Week 5 vs. Kansas Chiefs
It feels like forever since the Jaguars faced Kansas City in the divisional round of the 2022 playoffs. Part of that is that they lost again in Week 2 of the 2023 season. And while the Chiefs have appeared in the last two Super Bowls, Jacksonville has failed to make the postseason in consecutive years.
Although the Chiefs were embarrassed in the Super Bowl, they're still a dangerous team, one that the Jags cannot afford to overlook despite the fact that the Week 5 bout will tentatively be a home.
Final thoughts
As noted at the very beginning, this is a leak, and there's a chance a few of the dates could change. But for the sake of the argument, let's say this is the official slate of opponents. The Jaguars have a realistic shot at beating Carolina in the opener, but it will be hard to split their Week 2-5 gauntlet. Worst-case scenario, Jacksonville goes 1-3 in that four-game span.
The silver lining is that if the Jags beat the Panthers in the opener and win at least one of their next four games, they could be 2-3 by Week 6. That's not necessarily a bad start. Of course, a 3-3 record would look much better and take some pressure off their shoulders.
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