Every trade deadline rumor seems convinced the Jaguars are trading Brian Thomas Jr. in the coming days, and ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler is on the exact same page.
Just last week, Fowler dropped a massive inside scoop saying several league execs believe the Jaguars will make a Brian Thomas Jr. move before the Nov. 10 deadline.
“Several execs I’ve spoken to believe Thomas’ days in Jacksonville are numbered due to his diminished role in Year 3. He has trade value, and the Jaguars would be smart to explore that option,” Fowler writes in his latest Week 8 report.
Jaguars Most Likely To Make Brian Thomas Jr. Move Before Trade Deadline
The rumors were loud enough that they couldn’t be kept out of the room when Coen stepped behind the podium on Monday. He tried to pour cold water on the noise, insisting the team expects Thomas Jr. to “help us make plays this week”, but that PR damage control did zero to slow down the deadline chatter.
“I bet it. I know it. We’re going to continue to support him and put our arm around him and continue to do what we got to do to make plays on Sundays, and we got to continue to put him in the best position to do so,” Coen added.
When a former top pick goes back-to-back games without catching a single pass and gets yanked mid-game in London, a coach saying “he’s part of the plan” isn’t going to quiet front offices that smell blood in the water.
The league knows his snap count is collapsing, and Coen’s vote of confidence reads more like a team trying to protect its leverage than a staff planning to feed him 10 targets on Sunday.
Marvin Harrison Jr. Trade Puts That Much Pressure on Jaguars to Trade BTJ
That’s why a Brian Thomas Jr. deal feels like a matter of when, not if, especially after the Arizona Cardinals set the precedent with Marvin Harrison Jr.
The Cardinals didn’t overthink it when Harrison stopped fitting their scheme. They cut their losses and let the Texans hit the reset button for him. BTJ needs that exact same exit ramp.
“None of the top trade options around the league is a slam dunk to happen, but place Thomas in the Marvin Harrison Jr. category of a receiver badly needing a fresh start,” Fowler added.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano agrees. The Harrison Jr. trade did make a Thomas Jr. trade sound downright inevitable.
“He clearly hasn’t been a big part of Jacksonville’s offense since coach Liam Coen arrived last season. Thomas would surely prefer to either be a bigger part of the Jaguars’ offense or go to a team where he can have a sizable role. And there are plenty of teams around the league that still view him as a high-end talent at a premium position and would give up something of value to get him.”
The parallels are almost uncanny.
When Arizona cut their losses on a struggling former first-rounder and shipped Harrison to Houston for a clean slate, it blew the doors open for how front offices handle failing top picks. Graziano explicitly pointed out that even if Jacksonville claims they aren’t shopping Thomas, the Cardinals were saying the exact same thing about Harrison right up until the deal went down.
At this point, sticking around in Jacksonville is just burning daylight for both sides.
ESPN Insider has Strong Feelings About Jaguars Making Brian Thomas Jr. Move Before Deadline