Victory?
The Jaguars faced off against the Chargers on Nov. 12th and closed out the game 36-33 with a 3 yard scramble from Chris Ivory in the final 30 seconds of the 4th quarter. However, while the game was recorded as a win in the history books and raised the teams record to 2-7, many wonder if we saw more weaknesses than strong points. The box score shows a one-sided affair in the Chargers favor as they led every offensive category. The Jaguars defense carried them to their victory with 2 interceptions returned for touchdowns and a blocked XP returned for two.
It was a unique game today in Jacksonville in which both the Jags and Chargers defenses showed up to play. Cummulative stats for the game included 13 interceptions spread amongst 11 players, 7 sacks, 1FF, and 3 defensive touchdowns. The love was spread between both teams as Bortles yet again threw for 7 interceptions and was sacked 3 times. The performance by Bortles is concerning. If his games on injury are removed he's on pace to throw 48INT (3/game) which would far surpase Blanda for a spot in the record books. Bortles hasn't been handled any favors thanks to the injuries up front and in the backfield. Bortles has played just 1 game with a fully healthy line and only competed in 3 games at the same time was Leonard Fournette. While injuries are hardly the cause of all the strife they certainly cannot be removed from the equation.
Bortles 7th interception came close to giving the game to the Chargers. Backed up against their own goalline he threw an interception on a short our route resulting in six points for the Chargers. On this interception the Chargers took the lead 30-33 with just 1:50 left to play. Bortles and the Jaguars offense were able to drive down the field but were stopped by the Chargers redzone defense from converting on 3rd down with just 30 seconds remaining to play. Jason Myers lined up for the game tieing FG but missed wide left. However, the Chargers, in an attempt to seal the game and block the FG, made a grave error in hitting the kicker resulting in 1st and goal from the 3yrd line. On the ensuing play Chris Ivory took the ball in to score evading one defender and carrying two into the end zone for six. Myers season challenges continued as he again missed an XP wide right. With the score at 36-33 and only 24 seconds remaing the Chargers were unable to get into FG range for an attempt at OT.
Despite the victory, in post game interviews head coach Doug Maronne indicated three areas of the team he continues to not be happy with. He said the starting QB job in Jacksonville may be up for grabs, the run game needs to learn how to pull it's weight, and the kicking game needs to improve. Doug favored the young Brandon Allen when Bortles was injured despite the aging vetern Chad Henne being present on the team. Allen is averaging just 1 INT/game We may soon see Allen again on the field. As for the running game, Jaguars HBs have accounted for just 60% of all rushing yards this season and are averaging 2.64ypc. In addition to the passing and running games, the kicking has been dismal this season. Jason Myers has converted on just 66% of attempted FGs and only 70% of attempted XPs (1 blocked FG and XP).
Changes are sure to come for the Jaguars. It sure is good to realize what it means to win again and hopefully the Jags can continue on. Fans should enjoy this victory as next week sees the team traveling to Cleveland. The Browns have had an up and down season but will be coming off two road loses to the NFC North. Hopefully the Jags are able to leverage this win to another victory next week up north.
Key Offensive Performances:
Key Deffensive Performances:
Colts Win it in the 2nd Quarter
Despite the 15-49 stat line there were some positives to take away from todays game. There were a few minor injury scares during the game seeing both rookie standout Dede Westbrook and Marqise Lee but fortunately both were able to finish the game. Week 7 marks the first week since week 3 that a major injury has not occured. After losing LT Cam Robinson, QB Blake Bortles, and HB Leonard Fournette in consecutive weeks it was nice to see a complete game without injury. The same cannot be said for the colts as Frank Gore was sidelined for the entirety of the game after just the third play. Preliminary test results indicate that Gore suffered a partial PCL tear sidelining him for 11 weeks and bringing the 400yrd 11TD season to an end. Many wonder if this may have been the last straw for the again Gore but certainly an impressive stat line to go out on if it is.
The Positivies
In addition to the injury note Jaguar fans can take pride in not throwing one interception all game. Relief QB Brandon Allen showed promise and justification for why head coach Doug Maronne chose to start him over Chad Henne despite his poor performance last week against the Los Angelos Rams. Passing for 305 yards on 46 attempts over the divison rival Colts was surely a day that will stick with Allen for years to come. His favorite target in todays game was Dede Westrbook. Westbrook struck with a 53yrd slant early in the first quarter and again later with a similar 35 yard reception. Drops were key in todays game and aside from a few untimely drops the wide receiving core kept their hands on the balls. Jaguar fans can also take pride in the red zone defense and Dline pressure achieved in passing situations. On the season the Jaguars are 10th in the league for red zone defensive percentage allowing just 11 scores on 27 attempts. Couple that with the 5 sacks recorded in todays game and the Jaguars have plenty to be excited about for their young defense.
The Negatives
Unfortunately the positives of today's game end there. The offensive line was abysmall yet again allowing 8 sacks and blocking for a 1 ypc avg for relief HB Chris Ivory. Don't let the stats fool you; the actual rushing situation was much worse. On 12 attempts Ivory rushed for just 12 yards with a longest rush of 8 yards. Meaning his true average adjusted for the one play was a measily 0.37 YPC. The running problem has been made worse by the injury to Cam Robinson (remember Fournette's 100yrd game earlier this year?). Hopefully with a return of Cam after the bye more success can be had.
Another weak point in today's game was the run defense. In previous weeks the rushing attack has been limited to late third and fourth quarter action resulting in impressive stats as teams tried to salt the game away. This week, however, the Colts came out attacking the run defense head on. After Gore's injury relief HB Robert Turbin gave Colts fans hope with 5 rushes for over 160 yards and 2 scores. The Jaguars eventually were able to wrangle in the speedy back allowing an additional 90 yards on 18 carries: a respectable games worth.
Takeaways
Heading into the bye week the Jaguars will take the time to heal up and catch their breath. The season started off fast with a blowout victory over division rival Texans but quickly went downhill losing the next 6 games in a row. The Jaguars have shown flashes of competance on offense at various times throughout the season and need to figure out how to piece it all together. On defense the Jaguars should look to limit the highlight reel plays and maintain their impressive red zone defense.
After 6 seasons there's one thing every true Jaguar fan knows to expect: defeat. Sometimes defeat comes easy such as the 3-51 blowout by the STEALers in week 5; but other times the agony becomes all too real. Die hard fans will add today's loss to the most memorable column. Fortunately for local fans the NFL blackout rules have been suspended for yet another season because this stadium was far from sold out. Today's 9-37 game was a heart breaker in Jacksonville.
Today's game started off with a most impressive drive from the Los Angelos Rams. Coming off a loss in week five many thought the team might be down in the dumps but they were effective at moving the ball down the field. Just when all hope was lost for local fans the impossible happened: a pick 6. The lord and savior Jalen Ramsey showed his worth intercepting the ball in the end zone and returning it 104yrds for six. Despite the poor attendance the stadium was as loud as can be remembered in that moment. Unfortunately and foreshadowing of the days events, Myers was unable to convert the XP. Myers has yet to convert consistently and fans are starting to wonder if he should be retained at the end of his contract.
The following drive was very similar to the first. The Rams moved the ball effectively and got down tot he end zone but the Jaguars 4-6 defense was too stout resulting in a FF from star LE Yannick Ngakoue. Fans are starting to really understanding the trading of Dante Fowler with depth like Ngakoue behind him. The FF was picked up for by Telvin. The resulting drive from the offense had many fans hopeful of a dominant performance today. The Jags drove the ball and were stopped in the red zone after a valiant effort. Jason Myers missed the FG keeping the score at 6-0. The next drive saw the Rams score on a deep pass to Tavon Austin. The teams battled together until halftime where the score remained 6-7.
Coming into the second half fans were hopeful but a quick two errant throws by relief quarterback Brandon Alen resulting in 14 points crushed the will of the Jaguars. A troubling aspect of this years offense is a lack of running offense. The addition of Leonard Fournette in the 2017 draft was supposed to provide a consistent run game but the offensive line has been unable to open up holes for the young star to run through. Two weeks ago the line saw the loss of 2nd round pick Cam Robinson for 6 weeks to injury. Last week Blake Bortles was lost for 5 weeks to injury, and despite a valiant effort Leonard Fournette's season appears to be all but over in Jacksonville after suffering a broken collarbone at the hands of Aaron Donald. Fournette will be out for 8 weeks and heading to the division opponent Colts next week he will be sorely missed.
Many Jaguars fans left the Texans game in week one energized for a high intensity and strong performance throughout the year but were sorely disappointed by the showing in Jacksonville today. The performance started off terrible with Bortles throwing 2 picks and a rough performance by Fournette. Bandwagon fans and fair weather Sunday cruisers were probably wondering where the passing game went after last week’s 3 TD, 300yrd performance. They must have missed the shocking trade of franchise WR Allen Robinson early this week. Thankfully the Jaguars acquired a first round pick because it looks like they’ll need it based of this week’s performance.
To add salt to the wound the terrible loss this week occurred vs the fierce division rival Titans. The Titans chewed the clock the entire fourth quarter which was fortunate for Jaguar fans because it kept the game at a modest 51-3. We can only hope that the Jaguars are able to repay the Titans with a similar performance later this year. The question on the minds of Jaguars fans right now is will Bortles lead them to that retribution. Bortles jumped out to 4 passes on 17 attempts while throwing 3 interceptions. Barely into the second quarter the 4th year quarter back out of the University of Central Florida was benched in favorite of Michigan graduate Chad Henne.
Don’t rejoice. Chad Henne’s performance left much to be desired. On repeated passing attempts he overthrew wide open receivers for easy interceptions. Whether flat footed, on the run, or shortly after snapping Henne repeatedly made poor decisions resulting in interceptions and missing open opportunities.
Not everything was terrible though. Recently acquired corner back A.J. Bouye continued to shine with another interception this week. That puts him at three on the year in just two games and leaves fans hopeful that the streak will continue. Fans, however, are still waiting to hear from players like Myles Jack, Telvin Smith, and Dante Fowler. Word on the street is that the front office is shopping around for offers on young star Dante Fowler and after his recent issues with the law there’s no question why. Be sure to check out the highlight real from this weeks game featuring the only two highlights available.