Two-way star Travis Hunter is the talk of the town, but opposing teams cannot overlook Brian Thomas Jr. when they face the Jacksonville Jaguars next season. In fact, he made the cut on an illustrious list that includes the cream of the crop in the NFL. Then again, his place is surprisingly lower than it should be.
Jonathon Macri of Pro Football Focus drew up a list of the top 25 NFL players under 25 and included Thomas at No. 20, citing his elite production and his Win Above Replacement grade as the reasons why.
"Thomas led all rookies in receiving yards in the 2024 regular season (1,282) and ranked third in the entire league. He emerged as a top weapon and the Jaguars' most valuable player, according to PFF WAR."
However, Macri ranked Thomas one spot below fellow receiver Ladd McConkey because he came through for the Los Angeles Chargers in last year's playoffs.
"The first-round pick did finish with a higher PFF overall grade in the regular season than Ladd McConkey, but the one massive playoff game for the Chargers' top wide receiver puts him ahead for now. Still, both players put together incredibly promising rookie seasons to earn spots on this list."
McConkey certainly deserves praise for his production as a rookie. That said, it was a bit odd to see Macri punish Thomas for something he had no control over. But wait, there's more! Three other receivers aside from McConkey also popped up ahead of him on the list.
Puka Nacua (Los Angeles Rams) got the highest spot at No. 2. Drake London (Atlanta Falcons) ranked 11th, and Malik Nabers got the 15th spot. Sure, Nacua had a head-turning rookie campaign in 2023, but London and Nabers weren't nearly as dominant as Thomas was last year.
You could make the case that Nabers deserves a higher spot because he caught passes from Daniel Jones and Tommy DeVito in 2024. However, Thomas played with the unremarkable Mac Jones for nearly half the season, so you can most definitely argue that they were on equal footing.
Surprisingly, Thomas was the fourth receiver off the board in last year's draft. Although he had a group of supporters and was projected to go in the first round, he wan't as highly touted as Nabers, Rome Odunze, or Marvin Harrison Jr. But that didn't stop the Jags from selecting him with the No. 23 overall pick, and they're surely glad that that they did.
The Jaguars wouldn't change Brian Thomas Jr. even if he was overlooked on PFF's list
All things considered, Brian Thomas Jr. deserved a higher spot in PFF's under-25 ranking. The fact that he was the victim of Doug Pederson's unimaginative playcalling and he often dealt with double teams makes his impressive rookie campaign even more noteworthy. But as good as the Louisiana native was, the best is yet to come.
Thomas will benefit from the attention Dyami Brown and Travis Hunter will get. Granted, they'll take away some of his targets, but he should be able to find more favorable matchups with opposing teams no longer able to zero in on him. Having a healthy Trevor Lawrence behind center should also help, even if he's still recovering from shoulder surgery.
Perhaps Brian Thomas Jr. isn't getting as much love as he deserves because the Jacksonville Jaguars finished 4-13 last year, but if they start to rack up wins next season, it will no longer be possible to overlook him, and his place in all rankings will be higher.
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