With a majority of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ defensive starters returning, many are projecting their defense to be one of the best in the league. NFL.com’s Adam Schein is now clearly amongst that group as he ranked the unit No. 4 on his top defenses list.

The Jaguars’ defensive line is unreal. Calais Campbell has 25 sacks since joining the team before the 2017 season, tied for fourth-most in that span. Yannick Ngakoue has terrorized quarterbacks, racking up 56 QB hits since ’17 (only Aaron Donald has more in that stretch). Marcell Dareus is still a load on the interior, too. And I still cannot believe Jacksonville stole Josh Allen in the draft. He fell into the Jags’ lap with the seventh overall pick, and I expect him to develop into a monster off the edge. Now, the linebacker corps took a hit with Telvin Smith’s decision to step away from the team, but the cupboard is not bare at the position, with Myles Jack, entering his contract year, manning the middle.

The Jaguars’ defense is indeed unreal as they have three players who have been named to the Pro Bowl on their starting defensive line in Calais Campbell, Yannick Ngakoue and Marcell Dareus. Add in a player like Josh Allen through the draft, and it wouldn’t be a shocker if the Jags led the league in sacks this season.

The only concerns Jags fans really have going into the season are the status of the weak-side linebacker position and the lack of experience at the safety position. As most are aware, Quincy Williams was set to take Telvin Smith’s spot, however, he sustained a meniscus tear which will sideline him until Week 1 of the regular season. That said, it could be on DJ Alexander or Najee Goode to show up in the preseason and prove that one of the two can hold it down if Williams has a setback.

As for the safety position, fans likely won’t get to see Jarrod Wilson and Ronnie Harrison take the field together until next week’s preseason game against the Miami Dolphins. However, a change likely won’t be made at the position past that point, so it appears the staff is fully confident in Wilson in particular as he doesn’t have a regular season start on his resume.