Are the Jaguars' Hated AFC Rival Waving White Flag?

The Jacksonville Jaguars' most bitter AFC South rival is throwing in the towel on the 2024 season after the Tennessee Titans traded DeAndre Hopkins.

Tennessee Titans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins (10) greets fans after defeating Jacksonville Jaguars 28-20 at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024. / Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK

The AFC South has officially become a three-team race.

The 2-5 Jacksonville Jaguars have plenty of room to make up after their poor start, with the 4-3 Indianapolis Colts ahead of them by two games and the 5-2 Houston Texans ahead of them by three games.

There is still plenty of time left in the season, though, and the Jaguars have clearly yet to throw in the towel.

The same can not be said, however, for the Jaguars' most bitter AFC South rival in the Tennessee Titans. The Titans kicked off yesterday by trading star veteran wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Kansas City Chiefs, a move that can only signal a realization of where the Titans' 1-5 start has gotten them.

The Titans made one thing clear Wednesday morning: they are waving the white flag on the 2024 season and are officially looking ahead to 2025. They would not be making their offensive actively worst in exchange for a conditional Day 3 pick if they weren't.

Simply put, the Titans offense was already a dumpster fire before the Hopkins trade. It wasn't for a lack of weapons, either, with Hopkins and Calvin Ridley being more than good enough for a passing game to at least keep their heads above water.

The root issue with the Titans offense and their lack of passing production is struggling second-year quarterback Will Levis. First-year head coach Brian Callahan -- who might be coaching for his job at this point -- has been openly frustrated with the mistake-prone Levis throughout the year. Now, it seems as if that frustration has boiled over.

Perhaps Levis gets back into the starting lineup over Mason Rudolph when he recovers from his shoulder injury, but the Titans have made it clear that it doesn't really matter. With this trade, they are saying the season is longer about developing Levis and evaluating him -- instead, that evaluation is already done.

If it wasn't, the Titans would not have dumped his top target for a Day 3 pick. The Titans are facing the cold reality of their 2024 season, and this week's trade of Hopkins makes that clear to the NFL world at large.

For the Jaguars, they can firmly set their focus on the two AFC South teams in front of them; the one team behind them has already given up.

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