JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Dyami Brown needed an opportunity to do extra.
After a powerful end to the 2024 season with the Washington Commanders — which included the second-most receiving yards within the playoffs — Brown selected to signal a one-year take care of the Jacksonville Jaguars as a result of he believed that might permit him to take action.
If what he did throughout OTAs and minicamp is any indication, he was appropriate.
Brown performed a featured function in new head coach Liam Coen’s offense, which was vital for the reason that Jaguars drafted receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter second. Professional Bowl receiver Brian Thomas Jr., who completed third within the NFL in receiving yards as a rookie in 2024, additionally returns. That ought to put Brown in place to set profession bests in catches, yards and touchdowns in 2025.
“That is simply staying targeted and locked in,” Brown stated. “On the finish of the day, all I can do is go research the place I want to check and preserve performing, keep on high of the little particulars, the elemental issues. Cannot get bored with these issues, and on the finish of the day, I simply wish to be the participant that I could be.”
For the primary 4 years of his profession, Brown was an underachiever. The Commanders drafted him within the third spherical in 2021 after he caught 106 passes for two,133 yards and 20 touchdowns in his closing two seasons at North Carolina with quarterback Sam Howell. But, Brown caught solely 29 passes in 47 video games in his first three seasons with the Commanders and by no means emerged because the complement to Terry McLaurin, who posted 1,000 yards receiving every season.
It wasn’t till the ultimate six weeks of 2024 that Brown began to return on, catching 16 passes for 159 yards to complete with profession highs in catches (30) and receiving yards (308). He had the identical variety of catches as McLaurin (14) and outgained him by two yards (229 to 227) in Washington’s three playoff video games, which included 5 catches for 89 yards and a landing within the Commanders’ 23-20 upset of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Coen was on the Bucs’ sideline as their offensive coordinator and he thought Brown could be a very good match for what he needed to do in Jacksonville, particularly after the staff traded Christian Kirk to the Houston Texans and launched tight finish Evan Engram. He envisions a much bigger function for Brown than what he had with the Commanders.
“You have a look at any person that is in a position to assault the sphere in any respect three ranges,” Coen stated. “He can go down the sphere on the publish, within the go, within the pylons and be the highest shelf, but in addition you may throw him a display and he can go and do one thing with it. I can not coach that. I can not coach you to go and make three folks miss after you have caught the ball. … That is what he can do.
“Hopefully, he’ll have the ability to assist us in any respect three ranges. He is hungry. He is coming off a profitable finish of the yr. He desires to proceed to do this.”
Quarterback Trevor Lawrence was impressed with Brown through the spring and stated the 2 appeared to click on fairly rapidly.
“His pace clearly is a menace down the sphere, which is necessary as a receiver [to] stretch the sphere, but in addition he is a very, actually sensible soccer participant,” Lawrence stated. “He is picked up the system actually rapidly. … I do not know in the event you guys watch loads of practices, he is gotten the ball rather a lot as a result of it looks as if he is at all times in the suitable spot. He at all times has a really feel for the zone, like the place to sit down, the place [to exploit] these voids.”
Coen preferred seeing that this spring as a result of it validated the Jaguars perception that Brown might deal with a much bigger function, in addition to their choice to signal him to a one-year contract that assured him $9.5 million.
“You did not actually see him work the intermediate that a lot [in Washington], and I feel over the course of this spring, Trevor and him have gained a little bit little bit of a chemistry on a few of these intermediate in-breakers, curls, possibly outcuts,” Coen stated.
“… A part of the promoting level to have him come right here was, ‘Man, we actually wish to proceed to diversify your route tree and have you ever do extra. You are not only a display, jet sweep, vertical menace.'”
Brown is worked up concerning the expanded function, however he stated he is extra enthusiastic about how explosive the offense could be with three speedy receivers who can play a number of spots.
“On the finish of the day, we wish to are available in and discover our id of who we’re and who we will be,” Brown stated. “And I feel with the offense that we have now and the gamers that we have now, we are able to make quite a lot of issues occur.
“… No one’s simply operating one route. We all know all of us do the very same factor and it is type of onerous to protect three folks that may essentially do the identical factor after which be explosive on the identical time. I feel even with the operating backs that we have now, they’re explosive as properly. … I feel this offense proper right here simply units us up for achievement.”
