Setting the Scene at Home, Getting Past Obstacles, and Guarding the Ball | Brief Thoughts on San Francisco vs. Jacksonville
Jackson, Virginia Senior writer John Oehser, senior correspondent Brian Sexton, and team reporter Kainani Stevens provide brief analysis of the Jaguars ahead of their Sunday 1 p.m. game at EverBank Stadium against the San Francisco 49ers.
Senior Writer for the Jaguars, John Oehser
Calm down, he’s fine. One of the stranger bye-week occurrences in the Jaguars’ surroundings was the belief held by certain observers that quarterback Trevor Lawrence wasn’t playing well. The idea appears to be the result of a dearth of striking stats, though his nine passing touchdowns through eight games have raised some eyebrows. If Lawrence wasn’t making big plays at crucial moments or if the Jaguars were losing, this questioning might make sense. It is neither of the two. With Lawrence at the quarterback, the team has won 11 of the last 13 regular
12 of the 15 games in the season. A team that leads its division by two games is led by its quarterback. In the Week 7 victory over the New Orleans Saints, he bravely persevered despite being injured. The two Jaguars victories prior to last week’s bye were in New Orleans and Pittsburgh, where his touchdown passes to wide receiver Christian Kirk and running back Travis Etienne Jr. in the fourth quarter were the team’s two biggest plays. Lawrence hasn’t performed flawlessly. As a young quarterback, he is still developing his details. However, he plays a big part in the Jaguars’ 6-2 record that leads the AFC South. Nor is he performing in any way poorly.
an actual difficulty. Red-zone offense and third-down offense are two of the Jaguars’ greatest challenges going into the second half of the season, according to head coach Doug Pederson’s early week remarks. And those are the main causes of the Jaguars’ offensive inconsistency. The absence of wide receiver Zay Jones, who has missed five of the last eight games due to a knee injury, is a major factor in those struggles. In red-zone and third-down scenarios, Jones’s ability to make contested catches and his timing with Lawrence make him crucial, and his absence has also made defenses more capable of stopping the opposition.
Kirk, tight end Evan Engram, and wide receiver Calvin Ridley are the other Jaguars front-line receivers. In red-zone scenarios, Lawrence said that having Jones would “help.” “He’s a terrific player and undoubtedly one of our better players. He’s been in this system for almost two years and is a really smart guy. We’ve only been together for two seasons, but already we have a ton of chemistry. He would assist, but for now, that’s where we are, so we’re letting Zay recover and take his time. We need to close that gap and make the necessary adjustments. Men are performing admirably in that regard, but we’v must continue improving each week, enlisting men, and doing all of those things.” Jones was described by Pederson earlier this week as “day-to-day” and only practiced on Wednesday. Coaches will need to find a way to compensate for his dependability in critical situations until he returns.
Senior Jaguars Correspondent Brian Sexton
Even though the Jaguars are winning, a few things still need to be adjusted. First and foremost, offensive turnovers. Despite winning five straight games, they haven’t played at a higher level due to eight turnovers. They defeated the Indianapolis Colts, Saints, and Steelers without suffering any fatalities. But they need to get a handle on the ball because they have big games coming up against San Francisco, Cincinnati, and Baltimore. To put things in perspective, the 49ers haven’t performed poorly in their last three defeats, but seven turnovers have
