The Jacksonville Jaguars enter the new season with cautious optimism, and it’s not hard to see why. In 2024, they had a defensive interior that PFF graded as the worst in the NFL. They had a league-worst 9 takeaways. 126 missed tackles. At times, it looked like a ‘Madden’ glitch – zero resistance and zero answers. Without blitzing, they ranked 25th in pressure rate (29.6%). So, how do you fix a broken defense unit? You start with a $150 million star like Josh Hines-Allen. With $88 million guaranteed, he’s now more than just an edge rusher for the team. He’s the leader of this defense’s identity shift. But can one guy anchor a turnaround? Head coach Liam Coen certainly thinks so. 

“His presence? Huge,” said Liam Coen. Even after a down year with just 8 sacks, the team is banking on Josh to set the tone. Is that too much to ask? Not if you ask Josh Hines-Allen. On The Rich Eisen Show, he said, “Hopefully, this is the right go-round. I’m going to go out there and do the best I can to play for Coach Liam.” That sounds like a man with something to prove. So, what’s fueling this mindset? It turns out, Josh’s fire comes from a much more personal place than just football. 

While many saw Josh Hines-Allen’s 2024 season as a “down year,” he still delivered 63 QB pressures (10th-most in the NFL). But behind those numbers was a much tougher battle. Josh recently revealed that his 7-year-old son, Wesley, had spent the past year fighting cancer. While pushing through games and practices, Josh was carrying the weight of a fight no playbook can prepare you for. With Wesley now in full remission, the experience has completely transformed how Josh approaches both football and life. 

During his recent interview with Action Sports Jax, Brent Martineau asked Josh the question many were thinking: “Are you in a good space? Do you feel like, to go have a great season with everything? A lot of emotion, it’s draining too, but you feel like you can go do what you want to do on the football field?” Josh’s answer was heartfelt and full of clarity. “A hundred percent, man. I think, you know, God works his magic when timing is needed,” he said. He also explained how the downtime has allowed him to be present for Wesley at his most critical moments, as he said, “And so now it’s just like, I have all my, every ounce of energy that I have is here.” That energy, shaped through adversity, is a promise of commitment to Liam Coen and the Jaguars. 

Josh Hines-Allen further added, “As I walk out of this chair, and I go into my next chair in that meeting room, it’s to focus on football… I have high expectations for myself this year that I know I can achieve. Right now, what I went through is only motivation for me to stay locked in and to stay on the grind. And I’m ready to have a good season.” How can you not root for a guy like that? Josh’s mindset reflects the overall energy buzzing around the Jaguars’ camp. The team wrapped up the fifth day of their training camp on Monday with the first fully padded practice, and the reports suggest that it was a really promising day in Jacksonville.

Jaguars shaping up with lots of positives at training camp

Traditionally, Jacksonville hasn’t exactly made headlines for its run game. In 2024, their run game stalled, the play-calling got predictable, and the result was a unit that ranked 27th in points per game (17.9) and 25th in yards per game (306.2). Not ideal. But this year? Things are already feeling different. With pads finally on and the heat cranked up to near 90 degrees on Monday, the Jaguars’ backfield showed signs of life, and maybe even real promise.

On Day 5 of training camp, the offense finally started clicking. Both Tank Bigsby and Travis Etienne split reps evenly and made explosive plays. Bigsby looked especially sharp behind a surprisingly strong offensive line performance. Travis Hunter also returned to offensive reps and quickly made his presence felt, getting open at will and hauling in a highlight grab against Jourdan Lewis. Joshua Cephus also had the biggest offensive play of the day with a downfield bomb. 

Still, as good as the offense looked, the defense stole the show. Josh Hines-Allen was everywhere: he logged a sack, generated consistent pressure, and even forced a holding penalty. In one-on-ones, he bulldozed past Anton Harrison so cleanly that the tackle ended up on the ground. And if that wasn’t enough, Travon Walker looked even more dangerous. He gave both Walker Little and Harrison all kinds of problems, combining speed and power in a way that finally looked polished and NFL-ready. Darnell Savage also had a near-interception off Trevor Lawrence and forced a fumble on Brenton Strange.

Therefore, Liam Coen was quick to praise post-practice as he said, “I thought it was just good quality work for both sides and got our first day of pads in.” Can this balance lead to success? There’s still a lot of work to be done before Week 1, but the Jaguars are stacking promising practices. The balance they’re building feels real and different this year. And that’s a very good thing.