Shipley's Dozen: What the Jaguars' Loss to Texans Means and Travis Hunter's Next Step

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- That was a tough one.

The Jaguars left London with a Week 6 loss to the Houston Texans, and we break it all down in this week's Shipley's Dozen column, with 12 takes on where the Jaguars must go next.

What's Next For Travis Hunter?

Travis Hunter is starting to prove himself. Had the Jaguars won on Sunday, the entire story from the game would have been all about Travis Hunter and his two-way impact. Hunter's fourth-quarter touchdown drive and his red-zone interception were two of the biggest moments of the game, and the fact that they came from the same player is mind-boggling. Now that the Jaguars have seen a taste of what Hunter can do in one game, the question is where do they go from here. Hunter, naturally, should see more and more snaps and chances on offense in the weeks ahead, but that also could mean changes for a defensive role that he is clearly key in.

The Jaguars Are in a Good Spot, Not a Great One

The Jaguars are certainly in a good spot entering the bye week. They are 4-2, hold a two-game lead in the AFC South, and have an easy second-half schedule. With that said, the Jaguars are still not in a great spot. They would have been with a win since they would have held a three-game lead over Houston, but the Texans have the ability to make up a two-game gap, and the Jaguars know that. The Jaguars' playoff chances are still very, very healthy. They are still a very good team. But a win would have gone a much longer way than the loss.

The Refs Have Been An Issue, But Not The Issue

Yes, the Jaguars have gotten jobbed out of several touchdowns by bad calls -- four over the last three games, somehow. But I still do not think one can pin this game on the refs. The Jaguars are still the team that gets in their own way too often, whether it be drops, red-zone turnovers, false starts, whatever you want to call it. Same on defense with missed tackles and penalties. The Jaguars have gotten a really bad hand with officials in recent weeks, but it isn't why the Jaguars lost Sunday. The Jaguars lost because of their own self-inflicted mistakes, which is why they have lost in Week 2, and to Buffalo last year, and so on and so forth.

3 Teams the Jaguars Should Call About Brian Thomas Jr.

After the Jaguars benched Brian Thomas Jr. against the Texans in the second-half, they more or less closed the door on him ever becoming a factor in the offense. It seems like the Jaguars' only real option is to shop him on the trade market over the next few weeks, but which teams would make sense as potential trade partners?

Las Vegas Raiders: Tre Tucker has turned it on and Brock Bowers is a beast, but those are the only NFL pass-catchers on that roster. The Raiders have a ton of picks and a young franchise quarterback they need to surround with talent. They seem like a team that would swing big on Thomas.

Atlanta Falcons: The Atlanta Falcons already have a few explosive play-makers, but their offense could use another pass-catcher opposite of Drake London. Thomas would bring a different element that could fit within their scheme and with their quarterback room, too.

Seattle Seahawks: The Seahawks' offense looks like a mess, and they can not just keep spamming the JSN button without giving him support. They do not have real wide receiver depth behind him, and they need to make a big move to ensure they can make the playoffs in a tight NFC.

3 Positions the Jaguars Need Help At

The trade deadline is still a month away, but the Jaguars should spend the bye week thinking about how they can add to the roster and improve it. The Jaguars have the draft picks and the ammo to make moves happen, but what are the needs they would have to hit? After the Texans game, I think a few are clear.

Cornerback: The Jaguars clearly need to play Travis Hunter both ways, so more cornerback depth is needed ... especially with Montaric Brown injured. I do not think the cornerbacks are as bad as some of the yardage numbers say, but they could use some reinforcements.

Defensive Tackle: The Jaguars might have the least amount of resources allocated to their backups on the defensive line in the entire NFL, and defensive tackle is a big part of that. Taking a swing for a starting-level player would make a big difference.

EDGE: The Jaguars are getting very, very little from their backup defensive ends such as Danny Striggow and Bryan Thomas Jr. Dennis Gardeck is a nice change of pace situational pass-rusher, but the Jaguars need to start winning by rushing four, and they can't rely on Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen every snap.

Lawrence vs. Stroud is One of NFL's Great QB Matchups

Sunday was a classic quarterback duel between Trevor Lawrence and C.J. Stroud. Stroud was throwing dots drive after drive against the Jaguars' defense, while Lawrence led the Jaguars to a 10-point comeback in the fourth-quarter after some terrific throws to all levels of the field. Lawrence and Stroud have had some great battles over the years, and I think this game rivaled the 2023 duel they had in Houston. This is the best quarterback rivalry in the AFC South, and one of the very best in the entire NFL. It isn't Mahomes/Allen, but there are not many better than it in the NFL today.

What Do the Drops Mean?

The Jaguars had just four drops on the season entering Week 6, but they collected five in Week 6: two from Brian Thomas Jr., two from Parker Washington, and one from Jakobi Meyers. The Jaguars had not had many, if any, drops during the first few weeks of the season but they have seven over the last three games. The Jaguars have gotten into their own way far too many times during the 2026 season, and this was one of the biggest reasons they lost on Sunday. If the drops linger on post-bye week, then the Jaguars should consider it a serious issue.

What Shocked Me

How well the Texans ran the ball. The Jaguars allowed their longest rush of the season, their most rushing yards allowed all season, their highest average yards allowed per carry, and their highest yards after contact allowed per rush. The Texans running game has genuinely stunk against every other defense in the NFL the last two seasons but the Jaguars'. This is the second meeting in a row in which they have ripped off big plays on the ground against the Jaguars, so it seems like a real-deal concern for the next matchup.

What Didn't Shock Me

C.J. Stroud's success. I figured this would be a shootout, but I didn't factor in the turf making it a 7-on-7 game. Still, Stroud has been a top-10 quarterback this season who has been able to hunt explosives while still being efficient as a quick-passer, which was always bound to be a bad matchup for the Jaguars' defense. This wasn't a great matchup on paper to begin with, and Stroud proved why this was the case.

Jaguar of the Week

This one is obvious, no? Hunter became the third player since at least the 1970 merger to have an interception and a receiving touchdown in a regular season game, joining HOF S Brian Dawkins (Week 4 of 2002) and Cardinals WR Roy Green (Week 3 of 1981). He also became the first player since 2014 to record 50-plus receiving yards, two tackles and a touchdown in a game. He is truly a unicorn.

AFC South Check In

The Jaguars now hold a two-game lead in the AFC South leaving Week 6, which saw two different AFC South divisional battles take place. The Texans improved to 2-4, while the Indianapolis Colts had a woeful performance at home in a loss to the winless Tennessee Titans to also fall to 2-4. The Colts seem like they are teetering on implosion, while the Titans won a sloppy game that saw their quarterback fail to hit 110 passing yards.

As usual, that leaves the Jaguars and the Texans. The Jaguars' post-bye schedule has them playing the Colts, New York Giants, and Tennessee Titans twice in their first five games. The Texans' next four games are winnable as well, though, with four expected wins against the Giants, Los Angeles Chargers, Cleveland Browns, and then the Colts.

With both teams facing soft schedules over the next few months, the race is officially on in the AFC South. Neither team can allow the other the keep pace, and the margin for error for each squad is nearly nothing. If this feels a lot like last year's race, well, it is.

Early Week 7 Thoughts

The Jaguars have a bye week in Week 7, so their focus will clearly be on mending their wounds from the last few weeks and putting together a post-bye plan to improve their weak points. The Jaguars went 9-1 in their final 10 regular-season games after the bye last season, with the Jaguars' offense taking a notable step forward as a result of bye week tweaks, adjustments, and additions. Trevor Lawrence took the biggest step, and he has continued to progress since.

So, what are the bye week adjustments the Jaguars can make this year? I think increasing the amount of Josh Cameron and Travis Hunter in the passing game is one aspect. The Jaguars have gotten very little production from Brian Thomas Jr., who did not play a snap in the second-half of Sunday's game after two first-half drops. Thomas ranks No. 79/89 among receivers in yards per route, and Hunter and Cameron have produced more per snap.