08-13-2022, 02:25 AM
It's just preseason, and it's not as if I have a good memory of past preseason games, but this is the first time in a long long time I can recall smiling so broadly after a preseason 1st quarter. My thoughts:
1. Trevor Lawrence, while certainly not perfect, had a good game in my estimation. The first play was great to watch on several levels. It worked and it was a great throw. There were at least two guys open on the play. Underneath, maybe 12 yards down field, there was a receiver open down the middle. It made me wonder about that coaching session Taylor and company had with Trevor about taking the underneath route even if the deep pass is open. I wonder if that was one of those scenarios, and what the coaches will say to him. He also got pretty good protection on the play. A play or two later, he overthrrew Zay Jones who was wide open over the middle. But I can take a little solace in that Trevor Lawrence spotted him. I think he missed Engram on a corner route down in the end zone. To me, it seemed like if he could have waited a split second more, he would have seen Engram open in the back left corner of the end zone. But in fairness to TL, I didn't see the pressure, if any, nor do I know how he was coached on that play. The play I hated was him getting hit and thrown to the ground and easily could have fumbled The throw to Zay Jones in that same corner seemed forced. Otherwise I liked his play. He had some strong play fakes that had me fooled. His YD pass to Engram was really nice to see, and he seems to have a connection with Jones. I look forward to his continued development.
2. While I'm on the subject of the offense, I was encouraged by the fact there were so many WRs open. The slant-corner route combo where he didn't see Engram opening up, and a play later on where Engram went on a deep seam route taking away underneath coverage for a WR to come in under makes the offensive approach is in good hands. I also liked the isolation of Etienne on a LB on a 3rd down. The offense seems well conceived, not desperation grab bag like it has been the past couple of years.
3. As distasteful as I found last week's performance by the defense, this week, the starting defense exceeded my expectations. Granted, there were some factors that went into that. I think we had the advantage of already playing a game, even though most of the starters did not play last week. It seems Watson was very rusty having been out for the last year. That said, there was a lot to like about that first quarter. The run defense was a lot better than it was last week. There were some pass rushes I liked-a little more on that later. They forced a turnover, too. To accomplish this against a strong oL and running game-even without game planning-was encouraging.
4. I have been very skeptical about Zay Jones when we signed him. But I have to give credit where due. He gave me a lot more confidence, especially seeing how much TL seems to trust him.
5. Another concern of mine coming into this game were penalties. Over the past few years we seemed to have a knack for those momentum and morale killing penalties. When the starters were in the game, it was largely clean. I hope it's a sign of things to come for this team.
6. Special teams-Another area of concern of mine coming into this game was the special teams performance. I was mostly happy with what I saw. Kick coverage was outstanding, especially on that opening kickoff. There were no protection flaws that allowed any punts or FGs to be blocked. The kickers made their kicks and gave me a little more confidence. The one "complaint" was that Cooke did not have a "great" game like he usually does, just a pretty good one.
7. Rookie Watch:
A. Travon Walker-while he did not register any sacks in this game, there is an argument to be made he was actually more impressive this week than last. His poweer was on display has he drew two (2) holding penalties. The first was to be expected, as a WR in the slot was isolated on him. However, the second one made me smile...a LOT. He wnt up against an experienced LT last week, but he was far from elite. This week, he went up against Jedrick Wills, a much higher level LT. He attacked his inside shoulder, prompting him to give him a big bear hug. By most accounts, Walker is still quite raw as a pass rusher. But if you consider his still unrefined, the traits he offer are promising.
B. Travis Etienne-While Etienne was drafted last year, he didn't play outside of a small amount of the preseason, so if memory serves correctly he is technically still a rookie. Besides, he was fresh in my head and I needed an excuse to talk about him. I am largely pleased with what i saw. He had a couple of nice runs, though like Pederson, I wondered why he was doing so much dancing. But I know he wasn't a big between the tackles guy, and wasn't exactly counting heavily on him to get a lot of tough short yardage plays. However, him being isolated on that LB for that 3rd down catch to the left side made me feel good, especially when he got up from those tackles. As I suspected when we drafted him, he willbe a valuably addition to the offense, especially since we have coaches who seem to know hoe to utilize him.
C. Devon Lloyd-Did not play.
D. Luke Fortner-Did not stick out in a positive or negative way.
E. Chad Muma-impressed on getting out to the sideline to make a solid tackle. But still have not seen too many euns right at him. Maybe watching a replay of the game will be more enlightening.
F. Snoop Connor-Did not impress. He has size enough to run inside, but has no wiggle. Based on what little I've seen, Ryquell Armstead is a more effective runner than Conner. Conner has an advantage in that he has been utilized on kick returns. But with one caveat, I've been more impressed with Armstead and Sargeant. That caveat: Pass blocking. There was play in the second half where Luton dropped back to pass and tried to hit TE Dan Arnold down the left seasm. I'm unsure who the RB was on that play, but he threw a GREAT block that put the blitzer off his feet.
G. Gregory Junior-Did not notice him much
H. Buster Brown-had a good stop on a 4th and short.
8. In years past, Tyler Shatley earned a lot of respect from Jaguars fans because when he'd get playing time, the level of play did not seem to frop appreciably when he was pressed into duty. I'm not sure if the new coaching is having an adverse impact on him, but tonight he seemed like a clear libility inside. Hopefully, he can lift his level of play before the start of the regular season.
9. Though I hope he is okay, I sibcereky hope Richardson can somehow make a huge jump in his pass protection. He was lauded in the past for his versatility, but based on what I have seen in various camp clip-s and two preseason games, he is not a suitable backup at LT.
10. Bottom line: the starters played very well, irrespective of the contributing factors why. But this year's team will need a minimal amount of injures to thrive this year. The fall off from the first team to the second teamers is too much to be tolerable.
1. Trevor Lawrence, while certainly not perfect, had a good game in my estimation. The first play was great to watch on several levels. It worked and it was a great throw. There were at least two guys open on the play. Underneath, maybe 12 yards down field, there was a receiver open down the middle. It made me wonder about that coaching session Taylor and company had with Trevor about taking the underneath route even if the deep pass is open. I wonder if that was one of those scenarios, and what the coaches will say to him. He also got pretty good protection on the play. A play or two later, he overthrrew Zay Jones who was wide open over the middle. But I can take a little solace in that Trevor Lawrence spotted him. I think he missed Engram on a corner route down in the end zone. To me, it seemed like if he could have waited a split second more, he would have seen Engram open in the back left corner of the end zone. But in fairness to TL, I didn't see the pressure, if any, nor do I know how he was coached on that play. The play I hated was him getting hit and thrown to the ground and easily could have fumbled The throw to Zay Jones in that same corner seemed forced. Otherwise I liked his play. He had some strong play fakes that had me fooled. His YD pass to Engram was really nice to see, and he seems to have a connection with Jones. I look forward to his continued development.
2. While I'm on the subject of the offense, I was encouraged by the fact there were so many WRs open. The slant-corner route combo where he didn't see Engram opening up, and a play later on where Engram went on a deep seam route taking away underneath coverage for a WR to come in under makes the offensive approach is in good hands. I also liked the isolation of Etienne on a LB on a 3rd down. The offense seems well conceived, not desperation grab bag like it has been the past couple of years.
3. As distasteful as I found last week's performance by the defense, this week, the starting defense exceeded my expectations. Granted, there were some factors that went into that. I think we had the advantage of already playing a game, even though most of the starters did not play last week. It seems Watson was very rusty having been out for the last year. That said, there was a lot to like about that first quarter. The run defense was a lot better than it was last week. There were some pass rushes I liked-a little more on that later. They forced a turnover, too. To accomplish this against a strong oL and running game-even without game planning-was encouraging.
4. I have been very skeptical about Zay Jones when we signed him. But I have to give credit where due. He gave me a lot more confidence, especially seeing how much TL seems to trust him.
5. Another concern of mine coming into this game were penalties. Over the past few years we seemed to have a knack for those momentum and morale killing penalties. When the starters were in the game, it was largely clean. I hope it's a sign of things to come for this team.
6. Special teams-Another area of concern of mine coming into this game was the special teams performance. I was mostly happy with what I saw. Kick coverage was outstanding, especially on that opening kickoff. There were no protection flaws that allowed any punts or FGs to be blocked. The kickers made their kicks and gave me a little more confidence. The one "complaint" was that Cooke did not have a "great" game like he usually does, just a pretty good one.
7. Rookie Watch:
A. Travon Walker-while he did not register any sacks in this game, there is an argument to be made he was actually more impressive this week than last. His poweer was on display has he drew two (2) holding penalties. The first was to be expected, as a WR in the slot was isolated on him. However, the second one made me smile...a LOT. He wnt up against an experienced LT last week, but he was far from elite. This week, he went up against Jedrick Wills, a much higher level LT. He attacked his inside shoulder, prompting him to give him a big bear hug. By most accounts, Walker is still quite raw as a pass rusher. But if you consider his still unrefined, the traits he offer are promising.
B. Travis Etienne-While Etienne was drafted last year, he didn't play outside of a small amount of the preseason, so if memory serves correctly he is technically still a rookie. Besides, he was fresh in my head and I needed an excuse to talk about him. I am largely pleased with what i saw. He had a couple of nice runs, though like Pederson, I wondered why he was doing so much dancing. But I know he wasn't a big between the tackles guy, and wasn't exactly counting heavily on him to get a lot of tough short yardage plays. However, him being isolated on that LB for that 3rd down catch to the left side made me feel good, especially when he got up from those tackles. As I suspected when we drafted him, he willbe a valuably addition to the offense, especially since we have coaches who seem to know hoe to utilize him.
C. Devon Lloyd-Did not play.
D. Luke Fortner-Did not stick out in a positive or negative way.
E. Chad Muma-impressed on getting out to the sideline to make a solid tackle. But still have not seen too many euns right at him. Maybe watching a replay of the game will be more enlightening.
F. Snoop Connor-Did not impress. He has size enough to run inside, but has no wiggle. Based on what little I've seen, Ryquell Armstead is a more effective runner than Conner. Conner has an advantage in that he has been utilized on kick returns. But with one caveat, I've been more impressed with Armstead and Sargeant. That caveat: Pass blocking. There was play in the second half where Luton dropped back to pass and tried to hit TE Dan Arnold down the left seasm. I'm unsure who the RB was on that play, but he threw a GREAT block that put the blitzer off his feet.
G. Gregory Junior-Did not notice him much
H. Buster Brown-had a good stop on a 4th and short.
8. In years past, Tyler Shatley earned a lot of respect from Jaguars fans because when he'd get playing time, the level of play did not seem to frop appreciably when he was pressed into duty. I'm not sure if the new coaching is having an adverse impact on him, but tonight he seemed like a clear libility inside. Hopefully, he can lift his level of play before the start of the regular season.
9. Though I hope he is okay, I sibcereky hope Richardson can somehow make a huge jump in his pass protection. He was lauded in the past for his versatility, but based on what I have seen in various camp clip-s and two preseason games, he is not a suitable backup at LT.
10. Bottom line: the starters played very well, irrespective of the contributing factors why. But this year's team will need a minimal amount of injures to thrive this year. The fall off from the first team to the second teamers is too much to be tolerable.