The Jacksonville Jaguars struck the first impactful fantasy football move prior to the 2025 NFL Trade Deadline on Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET. The Jags acquired WR Jakobi Meyers from the Las Vegas Raiders for two draft picks — a fourth-rounder and sixth-rounder in 2026. Below we’ll go over the fantasy impact of the deal and what it means for Meyers and the Jaguars.
The Jaguars entered Tuesday with a projected 13 draft picks in 2026, so this may not be the last move the team makes before 4 p.m. ET. Jacksonville was in need of a wide receiver due to the mounting injuries in its ranks. Hunter is on IR due to a knee issue, Thomas has a sprained ankle and Dyami Brown may be dealing with a concussion. That would have left the team — potentially — with Parker Washington as the lead wideout for Week 10, and little else.
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So, depending on how things shake out on the injury front, Meyers could be thrust right into being the top target for QB Trevor Lawrence in the passing game. Meyers heads to Jacksonville after hauling in 33 of 49 targets for 352 yards and no touchdowns through seven games in Las Vegas. It’s difficult to take away anything from Meyers’ early-season stat line; the Raiders aren’t very good and he wanted out of this situation before the season even started. Perhaps the change of scenery will revitalize Meyers and make him fantasy-relevant again this season.
What it means for Travis Hunter, BTJ, more
Meyers’ relevance in fantasy could be directly tied to the status of Hunter, who is expected to miss the next few games while on IR. The Jaguars could proceed with caution with Hunter’s knee, knowing how important he is to the future of the franchise. If that’s the case, there’s a chance the Jags shut down the rookie for the rest of 2025. If that’s the case, Meyers could be the top target the rest of the season, considering what we’ve seen from Thomas so far. If Hunter gets back on the field, it would be more mouths to feed but not necessarily all that bad for Meyers.
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The addition of Meyers is not great for Thomas’ rest-of-season outlook. He was already struggling mightily and has sustained multiple injuries, most recently the ankle sprain. Entering Week 10, Thomas ranks WR39 in fantasy scoring and has seen his numbers regress across the board from his solid rookie campaign. If the sprain holds BTJ out, it’s a positive for Meyers’ stock. If Thomas is able to play, you’d think Meyers still gets significant snaps as long as he can get up to speed on the offense quickly.
This is a tough move if you were counting on Parker Washington off the waiver wire. He was one of the top pickups going into Week 10 after posting an 8-90-0 line on Sunday vs. the Raiders. Now, Washington will be, at least, competing with Meyers for targets and snaps. Chemistry could play a factor, though; Lawrence has targeted Washington double-digit times twice this season (Weeks 3 and 7). If Hunter and BTJ are sidelined in Week 10, Washington is still a viable flex in deeper PPR formats. But whenever Hunter and BTJ (plus Brown) are healthy, it may be tough to trust Washington outside of a dart throw.
2025 – 2026 season
It’s also worth mentioning TE Brenton Strange should be able to return from his quad injury in the next few weeks. If that’s the case, and all these receivers get healthy, this Jacksonville passing game could get very crowded very fast. We’d then need to see a few games to assess how snaps and targets will shake out.
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Final Thoughts
This should be a positive move for Meyers, so if he’s available and you’re in need of WR help, snag him. It’s at least a situation we can feel out and he has the type of talent and upside to be a viable WR2/3. For now, as long as Meyers can get up to speed and is active in Week 10, he’s a flex play. He could get downgraded for fantasy depending on the health of players like Hunter, BTJ, Brown and Strange.
