Jacksonville Jaguars' DE Josh Hines-Allen on changes made after 2024 season
Jacksonville Jaguars' DE Josh Hines-Allen on changes made after 2024 season Following Monday's OTA practice, Jaguars' DE Josh Hines-Allen discussed some of the changes made after the 2024 season.
Along with implementing a new defensive scheme, another change for Jacksonville Jaguars' defensive end Josh Hines-Allen this season is that he will be playing at a lighter weight.
Following Monday's practice, Hines-Allen didn't get into specifics about what his current weight is, but the 285 pounds he played at in 2024 was too big.
"I was 285," Hines-Allen said of his playing weight last season. "I was much bigger. My mindset was always to be as dominant but it was, obviously, holding a little bit more weight puts a little more wear and tear on the body.
"It was a lot. Too much. Again, learned to adapt, have know what works best for you, something I tried, and something I'm like, alright, probably don't want to do that again. So we're working on maintaining a good goal for me this year and put some good tape out there."
It's not only Hines-Allen who has dropped weight this offseason, but several other Jaguars' defenders have as well, after that side of the ball put on weight last season under former defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen.
'Just kind of getting some of those guys back to their natural playing weight. Just kind of where they've maybe been in years past of having success and kind of getting back to that is really what it came down to," Liam Coen said this week, via Jaguars on SI.
Last season, Hines-Allen was still among the NFL's more productive defensive ends. His 63 quarterback pressures were the 10th-most in football among his position group, and he ranked 16th in PFF's pass rush win rate as well.
But compared to his 2023 season, Hines-Allen's production took a big dip last season. By PFF's metrics, Hines-Allen totaled 90 pressures and 19 sacks in 2023, ranking in the top five in both categories.
Allen would play 821 snaps last season and make 16 starts. However, throughout the year, his body felt more "banged up," and while he doesn't know if that was directly attributed to his playing weight, it is something he took into consideration as he planned out this offseason.
"I was also getting banged up a lot more," Hines-Allen added. "My body was not cooperating as much as I wanted it to. But I take care of my body to the utmost, but it was a little bit different. I don't know if that had something to do with the weight, so that's something I took into consideration coming into this year."
Feeling good and now in a defensive scheme under Anthony Campanile, where as Maason Smith described, the defensive front can play "a lot more free," Hines-Allen is chasing big goals in 2025.
"To break the sack record," said Hines-Allen when asked what his goals were. "Be an All-Pro and win Defensive Player of the Year."
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