Jaguars Notebook: Observations From Day 5 of Training Camp

The Jaguars held their final practice before pads come on during Monday's practice.

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. (7) eyes the ball during the third day of an NFL football training camp practice Friday, July 26, 2024 at EverBank Stadium’s Miller Electric Center in Jacksonville, Fla. / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA

The Jacksonville Jaguars held their final training camp practice before pads come on, with Monday serving as practice No. 5 at the Miller Electric Center.

The storyline of the first week of camp was the defense's dominance over the offense, specifically in the passing game. Did that end up carrying over to Monday or did the offense throw a counter-punch? We break it down below.

Brian Thomas Jr. makes a highlight play

The biggest moment of Monday's practice didn't even come in team drills. Instead, it came in one-on-one drills between the wide receivers and cornerbacks, with rookie wide receiver Brian Thomas drawing a tough matchup against Ronald Darby. Darby has been one of the top performers in camp through five days and has given receivers -- including Thomas -- fits at different points of camp.

This time, though, the No. 23 overall pick had his number. With Thomas finally being given a chance to track down a deep ball that wasn't on air, the LSU product showed off the traits that made him a first-round pick. Despite incredibly tight coverage from Darby, who was step-for-step with Thomas during the route, Thomas was able to get vertical and make a contested catch for the touchdown. It was not only Thomas' first true highlight play of camp, but it is the best play a pass-catcher has made through five practices.

It has been a bit of a slow start for Thomas, but he looked the best he has all camp on Monday. There are still areas of his game that have to be ironed out (Darby covered him well on a play that was designed for him later in team drills), but it is clear that when the Jaguars let Thomas do what he is best at, he can make plays.

Christian Braswell shows out

There was a lot of hype for cornerback Christian Barnwell inside the walls of the Miller Electric Center last year. He dealt with injuries in camp and during the season, but the 2023 sixth-round pick has always been a versatile cover man and one of the Jaguars' best athletes in the secondary. There was a lot of excitement for what Braswell may do in camp now that he is fully healthy, and he has certainly been one of the bright spots of the defensive depth chart.

Braswell's best day of practice came on Monday, though, with the second-year cornerback consistently drawing the tough test of covering Christian Kirk. Braswell didn't back down from the challenge, though, showing tight coverage and recording a pass breakup on Kirk during one-on-ones. His next time up, he once again drew Kirk. This time, Braswell drove for the ball after recognizing Kirk's route and ended up with an interception.

Offense has a bounce-back day

Monday was easily the best the offense has looked in training camp. It isn't time to start planning for the Super Bowl parade because, among other reasons, there simply is no way of us knowing what the offense and defense are trying to accomplish that day. It creates a grey area for expectations, but all we can do is focus on the results. And the results on Monday were significantly better than they have been at any other point in camp.

In simplest terms, things just looked better for the passing game. Routes were more in sync with the quarterbacks, the quarterbacks got rid of the ball quicker, and there were few poor decisions or errant throws. Lawrence was 6-of-9 in the first 7-on-7 period and his only three incompletions were on well-placed passes that were broken up by the defense after it hit the pass-catcher's hands.

In team drills, Lawrence went 6-of-8 and completed his final five passes, which included impressive throws over the middle for big gains to Gabe Davis, Christian Kirk and Elijah Cooks. Lawrence had struggled throwing over the middle of the field early in camp, but the Jaguars looked much more consistent and effective on Monday.

Devin Lloyd flashes

Devin Lloyd said earlier this week that he gained around 15 pounds this offseason, but it certainly doesn't seem like it has overly impacted his speed. Lloyd was steady in coverage on Monday, with the only notable completion given up being the aforementioned Lawrence bullet to Strange. Otherwise, Lloyd was one of the defense's top performers on Monday and seems to be building some serious momentum.

Lloyd first broke up a pass in 7-on-7 drills that was intended for Strange, punching it out at the last second and forcing the incompletion. His best play, though, came against Evan Engram. Matched up vs. one of the Jaguars' best pass-catchers, Lloyd had tight coverage on a route that broke to the right sideline. Lawrence threw an accurate ball to fit it into Engram's hands near the sideline, but Lloyd ripped the ball out of his hands and onto the ground before it could be completed.

Play of the day

The play of the day obviously has to go Thomas. Hopefully there is some team video of the play (media can't record during team drills), because it was a beautiful catch and one of the most exciting plays of camp.

Other notes

• Defensive lineman Roy Robertson-Harris participated in practice on a limited basis after dealing with a lower-body injury during the offseason. He should be back to 100% shortly.

• Cornerbacks Tyson Campbell and Jarrian Jones were both limited with ankle injuries, but each participated in team drills by the end of practice.

• Gabe Davis had an up-and-down day. He made a big gain on the aforementioned grab from Lawrence but also dropped a pass in one-on-ones and then had a pass knocked out of hands by Ronald Darby during team drills. He did also have a beautiful rep against Buster Brown in one on ones, getting easy separation.

• Mac Jones had some bounce-back moments in team drills, including a great deep ball to undrafted rookie receiver Joseph Scates and another nice pass to Parker Washington.

• Tank Bigsby keeps breaking off long runs in team drills. Take that for what you will.

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