Even though the Jacksonville Jaguars went 4-13 in 2024, not everything was doom and gloom. One reason for optimism was Brian Thomas Jr.'s impressive play. From the get-go, the former LSU Tiger gave the Jags an element of verticality their offense had been missing for years. And following a promising rookie campaign, he was expected to take the leap in 2025. However, that hasn't been the case. Heck, you could even make the case that he's regressed.
Thomas was relatively quiet in the season opener, hauling in one reception for seven yards. No biggie, right? After all, it was just a game, and he did score a rushing touchdown, so there's that. On the other hand, he looked underwhelming in the 31-27 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Leaving aside that Thomas caught just four passes for 49 yards on 11 targets, his rapport with Trevor Lawrence seemed off. What's concerning is that the issue was evident in training camp, but the duo was expected to figure it out. Two weeks into the regular season, it hasn't happened.
Brian Thomas Jr. played a role in the Jaguars loss to the Bengals
Following the loss, head coach Liam Coen met with reporters. He said that he needs to watch the tape of the game to find out what went wrong.
"Yeah, we gotta, I gotta go watch it, and just go figure out what it was all bout, and what it looks like," Coen said (7:23 mark).
You could make the case that Coen was being polite, as you don't have to watch the film to see that Thomas lacked effort. There were a couple passes where it looked like he was actively trying to get hit. Here's one where he could have reeled in the pass but didn't make an attempt, via TheOLineGuy on Twitter.
Like, are you being serious? https://t.co/qy62E0UI3q pic.twitter.com/0OrNLy7j2B
— The OL Guy (@TheOLineGuy) September 14, 2025
And here's another angle of Thomas dropping another pass, via Twitter user @LaurieFitzptrck.
BTJ with a huuuuuge drop pic.twitter.com/Z0dAc2sTgy
— Fitz (@LaurieFitzptrck) September 14, 2025
Related: 4 crucial observations from the Jags' crushing loss to the Bengals
Trevor Lawrence acknowledges his connection with Brian Thomas Jr. must improve
While Thomas Jr. didn't speak to the media in the aftermath, Lawrence did and made it clear that their connection is a work in progress, pointing out that they need to keep working on it as the season progresses.
"I thought we made some plays on the field where we had some big chunks," Lawrence said (1:02 mark). "There's definitely stuff that we left out there again this week. It's a long season, and that's obviously important to our success as an offense is me being dialed in and be on the same page. We're getting there, and we gotta keep working. It's like I said, it's not all said, not after one game. So we gotta continue to build, and I thought there were some improvements we made this week, and we've gotta continue to get better."
Lawrence goes on to say that trying to get Thomas the ball is a no-brainer since he's a playmaker. Based on his impressive rookie season, it's hard to disagree with that assessment,
Having said that, Lawrence and Thomas had better get their connection going ASAP. Otherwise, the Jaguars are going to struggle scoring touchdowns like they did against the Bengals.
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