Jacksonville Jaguars’ wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. put together a strong showing during offseason programs. He has now seemed to carry that momentum over into the first few training camp practices.
“I’ve been pleased with how strong his hands have been at some of the points of contact,” Liam Coen said on Friday. “Those contested catches that obviously the quarterback’s going to continue to trust him in those positions. We all trust him to make those plays. I think we’re just continuing to see from the spring to now just taking those steps that we all wanted to see and that we’re all excited to see.”
Thomas Jr.’s rapport with Lawrence has grown, and in giving him more opportunities to make plays downfield will not only result in more big plays for the Jacksonville offense, but it can open up opportunities for other pass catchers with the attention he draws.
However, while Thomas Jr. possesses impressive speed, that isn’t the only thing that defensive backs have to worry about when defending him. His size and route running abilities allow him to attack other levels of the field and do so in a variety of ways.
“If he can add that element,” Coen added, “not just being on the outside and being vertical but when you’re fast as he is, those run aways and crossers, man, those can be a tough cover with a big dude like that. I was very pleased. Some of the routes BT ran yesterday, they were high, high level. Like when he can get open and run and open up his stride and now it’s like, is he running by you? Is he going to run the deep out? Is he going to run the deep curl? Is he going to run the deep dagger? That puts a corner in a bind, especially when you can open up your stride like he can.”
As the Jaguars look to level up on offense in Year 2 under Coen, a resurgent season from Thomas Jr. will go a long way in accomplishing that.
This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: Jaguars’ Liam Coen evaluates Brian Thomas’ play early in training camp
Reporting by Paul Bretl, Jaguars Wire / Jaguars Wire
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By Paul Bretl, Jaguars Wire | USA TODAY Network
