JACKSONVILLE – The Jaguars’ 2024 training camp continued on Wednesday.

It was the 16th day of head coach Doug Pederson’s third training camp, which included contact training with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Miller Electric Center. Each day of camp, members of Jaguars Media – Editor-in-Chief John Oehser, Chief Correspondent Brian Sexton, Chief Reporter/Editor JP Shadrick and Team Reporter Kai Stevens – will share an observation.

That was a hot, intense practice — as you’d expect from the Jaguars’ first double practice of 2024 training camp. While Tampa Bay’s stout defensive front — and an incredibly strong Vita Vea — had a strong day against the Jaguars’ offensive line inside, Jaguars rookie wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. had another strong day. Thomas’ 50-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Trevor Lawrence was probably the Jaguars’ highlight on Wednesday, but it’s not so much what Thomas did during that one practice that’s encouraging. As the No. 23 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Thomas has looked increasingly confident in recent practices — and that confidence has translated to fewer drops, less uncertainty and more impressive moments. He seems to be finding his feet quickly, which bodes well for an already impressive receiver group.

There’s almost too much to analyze when two teams practice, so I focused on the Jaguars’ deepest unit. The Jags’ defensive line did not play well against the Buccaneers in Tampa in December. Quarterback Baker Mayfield was barely pressured as the Buccaneers built a 30-0 third quarter lead, and it was tough to watch a talented Jaguars defensive line struggle. On Wednesday, the group had no problems. The edge rushers were as good as advertised, and it was great to see some depth behind Jaguars tackles DaVon Hamilton and Roy Robertson-Harris when rookie Maason Smith made his presence felt. The main takeaway from the 15 minutes I spent watching was that this unit is really good, and defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen has a lot of players at his disposal. And that’s without seeing defensive lineman Arik Armstead on the field.

The Buccaneers and Jaguars brought a different energy to the practice field on Wednesday on the first day of back-to-back practices together. Both fields were in action on both ends at one time, with 7-on-7 work on one end and 1-on-1 pass rush drills on the other, with both teams interacting. The focus was on the work, and it was clear the coaching staffs worked well together to make practice flow. The Buccaneers’ defense is truly talented with All-Pro and Pro Bowl players at every level (see Vea, linebacker Lavonte David and safety Antoine Winfield Jr.) — and often in 11-on-11 work, Lawrence had traffic around him in the pocket for sacks or near-sacks. Other times, Lawrence got some passes to tight end Evan Engram or Thomas. On the defensive side, the Jaguars faced a talented wide receiver corps with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Trey Palmer – excellent work for a defensive back group that the Jaguars have invested significant resources in this offseason.

The first joint practice with the Buccaneers gave camp the momentum it needed. I saw signs of the Jags’ offense in the team drills. Lawrence lacked consistency as he missed some throws but also threw some beautiful balls to Thomas. The offensive line looked shaky on Wednesday. I know they are slowly getting guard Ezra Cleveland and right tackle Anton Harrison back into the team, but Vea and his team had an easy time getting to the quarterbacks.