The Kansas City Chiefs are fresh off perhaps their most satisfying home regular-season win in two seasons, dominating the Baltimore Ravens, but they now need to turn their attention to the 3-1 Jacksonville Jaguars.
Coming into the season, no one really knew what to expect from the Jaguars. They had a disastrous 2024 campaign, going 4-13, which led to Doug Pederson's dismissal shortly after the conclusion of their season. Pederson was succeeded by former Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen, while former Rams scouting director James Gladstone took over the reins as general manager.
The new coach-general manager duo wanted to make a splash, and that's exactly what they did. Early in the 2025 NFL Draft, they made the bold decision to trade up from No. 5 to No. 2 for a package that was headlined by Jacksonville's 2026 first-round pick as well as the 36th overall selection. Of course, they used that pick to select dual-threat WR/CB Travis Hunter out of Colorado.
The Chiefs will face a Jacksonville defense that has forced 13 turnovers in four games.
While Hunter is expected to be a fantastic player, he hasn't exactly been the story of Jacksonville's season so far. In fact, the entire passing attack has been lackluster through 2025. Trevor Lawrence has been mediocre, Brian Thomas Jr. appears to be going through a sophomore slump, and Hunter has not yet lived up to expectations. The running game, particularly Travis Etienne Jr. (394 rushing yards, averaging over 6 yards per carry across four games), has been the driving force behind their offense.
Although Jacksonville's offense has been solid, the real story in Duval has been their defense, led by pass rusher Josh Hines-Allen and linebacker Devin Lloyd. Coming into the season, expectations were humble for that unit. There were plenty of questions in their secondary, and Anthony Campanile was entering his first season as an NFL defensive coordinator.
Through four games in 2025, the Jaguars boast the best turnover differential in the NFL at +9 and have forced the most takeaways on defense by a considerable margin. They've forced 13 turnovers (nine interceptions and four fumbles), while the next closest team is Pittsburgh at 10. Jacksonville's defense has forced three or more takeaways in every game this season.
This Jacksonville defense has the potential to ruin the game, so ball security will be even more important heading into this game than most others for K.C. Although the Chiefs' offense played very well against Baltimore, they faced a Ravens defense that is reeling with injuries.
While the takeaway numbers are fantastic for Jacksonville, the context of their opponents' needs to be stated. They faced Carolina in Week 1 (below-average QB), Cincinnati in Week 2 (bad offensive line and backup QB), Houston in Week 3 (bad offensive line), and San Francisco in Week 4 (Brock Purdy was in his first game back after missing multiple weeks due to a toe injury). The Chiefs do not have a bad offensive line nor a below-average or injured quarterback.
In addition, the Jaguars' 2022 first overall pick and starting pass rusher Travon Walker left their Week 4 game early due to a wrist injury, and his status for the Week 5 game is currently unknown. He had successful surgery earlier this week, and reports said he could possibly play after being termed out for a few weeks. Walker will likely be a game-time decision.
Even though Kansas City's offense appears to have returned to form, they must tread lightly against a Jacksonville defense that has created chaos in all four games. If the Chiefs turn the ball over three or more times, this Monday night could get sketchy for them. The return of Xavier Worthy proved valuable in Week 4, but sloppiness could push them to 2-3.