On Jeremy Fowler’s annual top linebacker rankings, the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Foye Oluokun was briefly mentioned.
What makes Fowler’s rankings unique is that they are constructed with the input of 70 NFL execs, coaches, and scouts as the voters. Other elements, such as research, interviews, and film analysis by Matt Bowen, factor in as well.
With all that taken into account, Fowler then compiles the top 10, highlights a few honorable mentions, and notes which players received votes.
Oluokun appeared in the ‘receiving votes’ category. So of the 70 voters who put their top 10 lists together, at least one had Oluokun in the top 10.
Foye Oluokun continues to fly under the radar
Since arriving in Jacksonville, Oluokun has provided a stable presence at linebacker. He’s been extremely durable, playing over 1,100 snaps in three of the last four seasons, and a very reliable tackler throughout his career. He’s also shown the ability to get after the quarterback as a blitzer.
But in Year 1 of Anthony Campanile’s defense, we saw Oluokun take a big step forward as a coverage defender as well. He finished the 2025 season with a career-high 11 pass deflections. His previous best was seven. Oluokun was also positioned well overall, holding pass-catchers to a modest 8.4 yards per catch.
Liam Coen believes that Oluokun can still continue to grow within this defense.
“I also think vision zone coverage helped him,” Coen said. “Not being in man-match all the time and having your eyes on the receiver, having your eyes on the quarterback and being able to read his eyes, see the route start to distribute and then his studying and training and habits can just go allow him to play fast. Having vision on the quarterback, I thought he was a very underrated pass defender last year and I think he’s getting better and better.”
Jaguars’ linebackers coach Tem Lukabu believes that Oluokun is taken for granted as a player by those outside of Jacksonville.
“My experience with him,” said Lukabu, “having studied him and seen him from before I got in the building, as soon as I got in the building, I’m like, yeah, this guy is taken for granted because he’s one of the most consistent people, consistent players, most intentional people that you’ll ever see.”
As good and as steady as Oluokun has been, the continuity of being in Campanile’s defense for a second year could provide a jumping-off point for him.
This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: Jaguars Foye Oluokun earns vote(s) in 2026 top linebacker rankings
Reporting by Paul Bretl, Jaguars Wire / Jaguars Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Paul Bretl, Jaguars Wire | USA TODAY Network
