The Jacksonville Jaguars needed to revamp the roster in the offseason because they were lacking depth and talent. That said, the cupboard wasn't bare last year. They had a few building blocks in place that will be pivotal to their success in 2025. One of them was wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr., who's earned all kinds of intriguing comparisons. A local analyst just recently went a step further and called the sophomore wide receiver the team's best player.
Senior correspondent Brian Sexton of the Jaguars official website made an appearance on 1010 XL and told host Ryan "The Hacker" Green that Thomas was the best player on the roster.
"He is the best player on the roster, he's the best player of the 53, and that includes all the pass rushers, the quarterback. He is the best player on the roster," Sexton told Hacker (7:10 mark). "So yes, he is the most important. He will pressure a defense, stretch a defense, make a defensive coordinator lose his mind with the way that he can make a play where seemingly there is no play to be made. And you can go back to last year and think about some of those he made."
Sexton continued, "Now, the problem that defensive coordinators got is he's got to worry about Brian Thomas doing what seems to be undoable down the field, and then he's got Travis Hunter and Dyami Brown, who showed the ability to stretch the field as well. But those two guys, I think, how do I say this? I think those two guys are made that much better because Brian Thomas Jr. is on the field. That's not to say that, in his own regard that Travis Hunter won't do the exact same thing that Brian Thomas does. It's not to say that he won't eventually do the same thing."
Later in the exchange, Sexton argues that Thomas is, without a doubt, the best player the Jags have right now, pointing out that he can make the kind of play that he hasn't seen since Jimmy Smith was in his heyday.
"And there were a couple of the close practices during OTAs where everyone had their eyes on 12, and I'm watching 7 make the kind of play that I haven't seen a guy since Jimmy Smith make. It's just he is special, and I don't like to throw around best overall player without having considered it, because I have such high regard for Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen, and I don't want to take away anything from those two guys, but Brian Thomas Jr is the best player on that team," Sexton said.
It's hard to argue with Sexton. Just recently, Thomas was the only Jaguar who popped up on a Top 100 NFL players of 2025 ranking. He was the sixth receiver at No. 44, and Pete Prisco of CBS Sports, who could put together the list, strongly believes that he could join Ja'Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson as the top three receivers in the NFL.
This is a long-winded way to say that the former LSU Tiger could be even better than he was in 2025, and he was pretty good last year, hauling in 82 receptions for 1,282 yards with 10 touchdowns.
Is Brian Thomas Jr. truly the best Jaguars player right now?
You can certainly make the case, especially when compared to his peers, that Brian Thomas Jr. is the best player on the Jaguars roster right now. Sure, Trevor Lawrence will have the biggest impact on the outcome of games next year, but he's not among the best 10 quarterbacks in the NFL right now.
On the other hand, Josh Hines-Allen has wreaked havoc throughout his career, but he's not nearly as dominant as other pass rushers, nor put up the numbers to be considered elite.
Of course, there's always a chance that Brian Thomas Jr. regresses next season, but signs point in the right direction. With a healthy Lawrence behind center and the duo of Dyami Brown and Travis Hunter drawing coverage away, Thomas is in a position to join the NFL's elite.
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