JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The NFL Trade Deadline is nearly 72 hours away, and there isn't much more time to see what happens with Brian Thomas Jr.

The Jacksonville Jaguars' third-year receiver has been perhaps the most central name in all trade deadline discussions amongst NFL receivers. The Jaguars have held firm on keeping Thomas dating back to last season, even with his production taking a massive dip in the first eight games of the 2026 season.

The Jaguars have not benched Thomas coming out of the bye week, but they haven't exactly made him a central piece of the offense either. They have played in two blowouts, and he caught a touchdown in one of them, but Week 9's battle with the Baltimore Ravens was the first game in his career in which he didn't register a target.

So, what do the latest rumors and reports say about Thomas entering the trade deadline weekend? And what seems like it is the cloest to being the true story? We break it all down below.

Teams Searching For WRs

According to The Ringer's Tom Pelissero, there are a few teams at the top of the list looking for potential wide receiver help at the trade deadline: the Kansas City Chiefs, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the San Francisco 49ers. This is not the first time the Chiefs and Steelers have been connected to a potential Thomas market, and it feels more and more like if there was a team in the running for Thomas just in terms of interest for Thomas, it would be Kansas City.

ESPN's Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport noted the Jaguars, "also could wind up dealing wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr., whom they have received multiple inquiries on in recent years while resisting all overtures. Thomas played only 19 snaps during Thursday night's victory in Baltimore and did not catch a pass. The Kansas City Chiefs have continued to be intrigued by Thomas."

This seems to all point to the Chiefs as a team badly wanting Thomas. Whether the Chiefs actually make sense is another question. The Chiefs have been a contending team in the AFC all season long and they look like they will be competing with the Jaguars for seeding at the top of the AFC's playoff picture later on in the season.

Would any NFC teams make sense? The 49ers have been noted as a top team in the receiver trade market, though trading a top talent to the 49ers would be just a bit removed from trading him to the Chiefs. The 49ers look like one of the top Super Bowl favorites in the NFC alongside the Chicago Bears, and what if the Jaguars were to make the Super Bowl and face Thomas in Kyle Shanahan's offense?

Will Jaguars Budge?

Outside of which teams might be interested in Thomas, there is also the question of whether the Jaguars would actually want to deal him, and what kind of price would make them feel comfortable doing so. The Jaguars pushed against all overtures for Thomas in the past, with general manager James Gladstone taking a vocal stance against reports that Thomas was involved in trade talks over the course of the offseason.

“No, we haven't, and there hasn't been a ton of dialogue around that front as teams check in simply because it seems like—I know the word reputable came up earlier—I don't think there's been any reputable statement. We don’t have any real action on any of those fronts," Gladstone said back in March.

Things have changed since then, of course. That quote was a month-plus before the Jaguars drafted players like left guard Emmanuel Pregnon, wide receiver Josh Cameron, and tight ends Nate Boerkircher and Tanner Koziol to improve their running game and increase their rate of 12 and 13 personnel. Cameron has also established himself as an exciting developmental piece in the receiver room behind Thomas, which the Jaguars did not have in 2025 or in March of 2026.

The Athletic's Jonathan Jones reports that teams believe the Jaguars will ultimately move Thomas, who has seen his role decrease. Then there are reports like from NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe, who notes that the Jaguars are keeping a close eye on locker room chemistry when it comes to weighing moves. Wolfe went on to mention the Tyson Campbell trade a year ago, which saw a highly popular locker room veteran traded despite the Jaguars having a winning record at 4-1 at the time of the trade.

Seperating Reality From Fiction

So, what is real and what isn't when it comes to the Thomas situation? Reports have been pretty consistent: teams like the Chiefs are interested. Teams believe due to his decreasing role he will be dealt. Teams also have had to deal with a Jaguars team that has not appeared to be in a rush to trade the former 1,000-yard receiver.

Those all appear to be the facts of the situation. When you consider the Jaguars' stance, it makes sense. They are pushing for an AFC South title and a potential No. 1 seed in the AFC. Why would they lessen their depth and overall talent level for a pick that would not help them today? If the pick was high enough, or if it helped them add a defensive boost, perhaps then it would make sense. But only then.

If the Jaguars were going to trade Thomas, it feels like they would have done it by now. The fact that he is still on the roster after his Week 6 benching and is still well ahead of Cameron on the depth chart suggests they are more than comfortable moving forward with him on the roster. They should be, too, considering how wildly productive their current offensive set-up has been.

Would the Jaguars trade Thomas for the right price? That remains to be seen, but the fact that no trade has occured over the last year suggests nobody has been willing to meet a price the Jaguars would agree to. With the profile of Thomas and need for big-play receivers, it stands to reason that this can only be because the Jaguars' asking price is so high.

Most checks out on Thomas, but it feels like there is a better chance he is a Jaguar on Wednesday morning than otherwise.