The Brian Thomas Jr. trade rumors are pretty much nonstop.
Despite that, the Jacksonville Jaguars continue to insist they won’t trade BTJ.
It’s not currently the best situation for Thomas, though. He has fallen out of his No. 1 role in the offense with both Parker Washington and Jakobi Meyers overtaking him.
He’s also coming off a decline from 2024-to-2025 that is now being exacerbated by a brutal start to this season.
None of the BTJ arrows are pointing up, which is going to help the trade chatter persist no matter how the Jaguars frame the situation.
And that’s why on Thursday, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell made a particularly compelling case in a new article that the Jags will still end up trading Thomas.
ESPN on Brian Thomas Jr. Trade Rumors
Barnwell acknowledges the fact that the Jaguars say they aren’t trading Thomas.
But then he runs down a list of the reasons it still seems like BTJ will end up being dealt.
“The Jaguars are committed to Parker Washington and Jakobi Meyers as their top two wideouts and want to play with Brenton Strange and Nate Boerkircher on the field, which leaves a limited role for Thomas,” Barnwell writes. “Trading Thomas would also open up more opportunities for Travis Hunter, who has played just 21 offensive snaps while starring on defense. The organization has repeatedly insisted that it has no interest in trading Thomas, but at some point, having a valuable young player wasting away on your bench can’t be the best thing for the player or the team.”
Beyond the players mentioned there, the Jags also have late-round rookie Josh Cameron making a surprising early impact at wide receiver and pushing for more playing time, too.
“So far, Thomas has nine catches for 105 yards through five games, including a doughnut in Sunday’s win over the Eagles,” Barnwell writes. “(He did nearly catch a touchdown, only to narrowly step out of bounds.) The coaching staff also doesn’t seem particularly desperate to get the 2024 first-round pick on the field, with Thomas playing just 48.2% of the offensive snaps. In recent weeks, the Jaguars have preferred rookie sixth-round pick Josh Cameron to Thomas for his blocking and big-play ability, particularly when they get into larger personnel groupings.”
Hope vs. Reality
The Jaguars and their fans may have entered this season hoping that Thomas would turn things around and look more like his rookie self from 2024.
The reality is that BTJ hasn’t come anywhere close to that.
“Though the Jaguars keep winning, Thomas’ role in the offense continues to shrink,” Barnwell writes. “After a disappointing 2025 season was chalked up to an ankle issue that made it painful for him to run, hopes were high that he would be able to get back to his rookie-year level of production in a second season under Liam Coen in 2026.”
At some point, the Jaguars need to accept this new reality. Whether it actually leads to a trade remains to be seen, but Thomas is no longer the future shining star that the Jaguars once viewed him as.
Jaguars’ Brian Thomas Jr. Trade Given New Outlook by ESPN