The Jacksonville Jaguars opened the 2026 preseason with a comeback win over the New Orleans Saints on the road Aug. 15, but they were bested 34-17 by a high-powered Carolina offense in their preseason home opener.
A combination of rookies and backups paved the way in a 24-20 road win over New Orleans, in which the Jaguars held the Saints scoreless in the second half, and Jacksonville’s depth pieces continued to shine against the Carolina Panthers.
Here are some takeaways from the Jaguars’ first two preseason contests.
Linebacker room proves promising
Despite playing limited snaps thus far, fourth-year linebacker Ventrell Miller made a strong case for a starting role. After logging a single tackle against New Orleans, Miller flashed with three hard tackles early in Friday’s loss. With a strong understanding of defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile’s scheme, Miller doesn’t need to shoulder a brunt of the preseason workload to solidify a spot in the starting rotation.
Yasir Abdullah also made his presence known with two solo tackles and a sack against the Saints and added three more and a QB hit on Friday.
Jacksonville’s acquisition of Hawaii product and longtime NFL veteran Jahlani Tavai has proved fruitful. Looking to add a veteran presence in the middle of the field, the Jaguars signed Tavai Aug. 6, and he immediately made an impact in preseason. He tied defensive back Jabbar Muhammad for a team-high six tackles against the Saints and tacked on four tackles and a pair of QB hits against Carolina.
Despite allowing the Saints to rush for just 56 yards, Carolina accumulated 92 yards on the ground in the first half alone and finished with 147. It is worth noting, however, that Carolina started its first stringers in Week 2 of the preseason.
Flashes of depth at secondary
Defensive backs Christian Braswell and Muhammad logged four and six tackles, respectively, against New Orleans. The pair received another opportunity in Week 2 of the preseason and didn’t disappoint. Muhammad logged six tackles against the Panthers, while Braswell added four.
In addition, Corey Ballentine logged five tackles in Week 1 of the preseason and followed up with a strong four-tackle performance against Carolina.
Safety Caleb Ransaw shined with five total tackles in the loss and could play a valuable role as a depth piece behind Antonio Johnson.
However, the young defenders allowed 256 passing yards to the Saints, including explosive plays of 37 and 28. Against the Panthers, Jacksonville allowed 238 yards and two touchdowns through the air, highlighting the holes still present in their secondary.
A multitude of offensive options in Jacksonville
With Parker Washington, Jakobi Meyers, Brian Thomas Jr. and Travis Hunter missing in action, the Jaguars turned to a variety of young receivers early in preseason.
Rookie receivers Trebor Pena and CJ Williams led the way against New Orleans, with the former catching three passes for 58 yards and adding eight yards on a rush attempt. He also exploded against Carolina, adding four receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown.
Williams was targeted five times in the 24-20 win over the Saints but only came away with two receptions for 28 yards. The Stanford product came out hot on Friday, catching all four of his targets for 22 yards
Rookie receiver Josh Cameron caught just one pass for 17 yards in the win over New Orleans, but he exploded early against the Panthers. The Baylor product caught both of his targets and notched 41 receiving yards in the first quarter of the loss.
With young receivers proving capable of handling the workload and complementing Jacksonville’s top receiving options, the Jaguars are poised to display comforting depth in the passing game.
In the backfield, rookie running back J’Mari Taylor handled the workload against New Orleans, tallying 78 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. In the preseason home opener against Carolina, veteran running back Ameer Abdullah took six carries for 45 yards in the first half with an explosive long of 23. He also got involved in the passing game, nabbing three passes for 37 yards.
Though second-year running back Bhayshul Tuten is slated to handle most of Jacksonville’s rushing opportunities along with Chris Rodriguez Jr., the added depth provided by Taylor and Abdullah will help round out the position.
Contact Curan Ahern at cahern@alligator.org. Follow him on X at @CuranAhern.
Curan is a senior sports journalism student in his fifth semester at The Alligator. He is currently the sports editor, and previously served as a reporter for men's tennis, sports enterprise and football. He is currently pursuing a public relations minor and is an avid Duval sports fan. (#DTWD)
