The Jacksonville Jaguars opened their 2026 season on Sunday against the Cleveland Browns at EverBank Stadium. The Jaguars are coming off a successful first season under Liam Coen that saw the team finish 13-4 and end the regular season on an eight-game winning streak.
This season represents perhaps the most offensive continuity Jacksonville has had since quarterback Trevor Lawrence was drafted by the team in 2021. That continuity was obvious in the team’s 34-10 thrashing of the Cleveland Browns.
From the opening possession of the game, the Jaguars were the more prepared team, and it showed through their execution from the opening kickoff to the final whistle. Linebacker Foyesade Oluokun opened the season with a first-drive interception of Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Watson and the Browns’ offense struggled to find any rhythm in the game as they were held to 272 total yards, 46 of which came on a garbage-time touchdown to rookie receiver Denzel Boston.
The Jacksonville defense swarmed the Browns, forcing two turnovers while also recording five sacks and six tackles for loss. The Jaguars’ defense was second in the league in takeaways last season with 31.
Ventrell Miller entered the season as a full-time starter for the first time in his career after replacing Devin Lloyd, who left Jacksonville in the offseason. Miller played brilliantly, accounting for six tackles, three assists, two tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble. He was also the highest-graded Jaguars player according to Pro Football Focus with a grade of 94.5.
As great as the Jacksonville defense was, the story of the game was the Trevor Lawrence-led offense. During a historically high-scoring Week 1 across the league, Lawrence led all quarterbacks in touchdown passes, passer rating, EPA/play, and completion percentage over expected.
These numbers are a fancy way of saying Lawrence was incredible. The Jaguars’ offense went up and down the field throughout the first half as Jacksonville utilized all of its weapons beautifully. Parker Washington started the scoring with a spectacular diving catch in the end zone, followed by a touchdown catch from rookie Josh Cameron. Tight end Brenton Strange got into the action next with a 14-yard touchdown catch, and Lawrence and the Jaguars capped off their touchdown barrage with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Lawrence to Jakobi Meyers.
Running back Bhayshul Tuten impressed on the ground, averaging 4.4 yards per carry on 15 attempts. Of Lawrence’s 18 completed passes, eight different Jaguars recorded a reception, showing how effectively he spread the ball around.
Jacksonville accounted for 360 yards of offense on the day, while Lawrence and several other starters were eventually pulled with the game out of reach in the fourth quarter. Coen was complimentary of Lawrence and the offense’s play. “I thought he spread the ball around,” Coen said. “Trusted the guys to make plays… he did some really good stuff off schedule again today especially, the touchdown to Jakobi I thought was a phenomenal throw and play.”
This was a good starting point for the Jaguars, who will face a gauntlet over the next five weeks, playing against the Broncos, Patriots, Bengals, Eagles, and Texans before hitting an early Week 7 bye.
The Jaguars will travel to the Mile High City next week to take on the Denver Broncos. The game will kick off at 4:05 p.m. EST and can be watched on CBS.
