Jarrian Jones Offers a Scouting Report For Jaguars' Brian Thomas Jr.

What does the Jacksonville Jaguars rookie cornerback have to say about Brian Thomas Jr.?

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. (7) hauls in a reception against Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Joshua Williams (2) during the first quarter of a preseason NFL football game Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. made one of the top plays of any rookie in the first week of the preseason, a dazzling one-handed 41-yard catch in the first half of the team's 26-13 win over the Kansas City Chiefs.

Thomas and his big performance were little surprise to the No. 23 pick's teammates, however, with fellow rookie Jarrian Jones heaping Thomas with praise on Monday.

“BT, he has a skill set you can't really teach. For real, you can't teach someone to be long, fast, smooth, get in and out of his breaks, and he’s got crazy ball skills," Jones said. "I had that battle, that match up with him in college. So just being able to go against him every day, we put in work together, we came in together, we learn from each other. I tell him what I saw, he'll tell me what he saw.

"So, just the growth that he's having through camp. At first, when we came into camp, he was kind of quiet. He's definitely breaking that shell now because he'll look at you and say something, and you'll be like, ‘Oh, okay,’ like, he really does talk. It’s just been a bond for real.”

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson also had some praise for Thomas on Monday when asked about his rookie wideout. Pederson noted on Saturday that Thomas is set to play a big role in the Jaguars' offense in 2024, and the tape confirmed his feelings.

“We had some opportunities to get him the football. I thought he did a nice job in the run game. Something we ask our receivers to do is to block and obviously made that really good, tough third down, third-and-1 catch down the field," Pederson said. "It was a good start for him to really kind of sink in. I think he'll just continue to improve and learn from these games.”

 

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