Though there was a lot of discussion and debate on the boards about this topic, the Bengals posed a good test for the Jaguars, if only for the overall strength of their roster.  Despite their lack of playoff success, the Bengals have talent and quality at just about every area of the team.  It would be good to see the Jaguars up against a complete team.  My thoughts on how we fared...

 

1)  Perhaps the biggest point of interest was Beachum's debut coming off an ACL injury last year.  Though I was apprehensive about how he might perform, he seemed to hold up pretty well over on the left side.  Based upon what I saw, I don't recall him giving up any pressure.  If he can continue his level of play, he will be the upgrade we need at LT.

 

2)  The guy Beachum replaced at LT, Joeckel, slid inside to LG.  His first test there this preseason in game action was against Geno Atkins.  I don't think he fared very well.  I counted two hits Atkins got on Bortles, and I know at least one of them was on Joeckel.  Granted, Atkins is one of the best pass rushing DTs in the league, and he would be a stern test for any guard.  But I find it troubling that Joeckel seemed to struggle with quickness, even though a lot of the space is eliminated by moving him inside.  I'm still concerned about how Joeckel will hold up against a bigger, more powerful DT.

 

3)  Is anyone else growing concerned over Fowler and his judgment/maturity?  First he had the video where he observed the fight between his then current and former girlfriends.  Legally he did nothing wrong based solely upon what we saw on the tape, but being in that position was not good.  But no biggie.  He gets tossed out of the Tampa scrimmage for fighting.  Again, no biggie by itself.  Then, Todd Wash comes out and says Fowler needs to step up off field, be more of a student of the game.  He benches him for this preseason game.  Then Fowler got the unsportsmanlike conduct on the Pullard INT, when he should have been out of the game by that point.  All of this without producing a single sack and not much in the way of QB pressures thus far this preseason.  I think what concerns me is that intangibles were a big selling point for Fowler, yet it seems his intangibles have given him the overwhelming majority of his issues so far this preseason.

 

4) I know it's preseason, but there are other things that concern me.  The penalties are beyond minor annoyance to the point of expletive inducing.  There were 11 penalties tonight, after double digit penalties against Tampa.  We aren't 1970's-80's Raiders dominant to the point we can absorb and overcome senseless penalties like that.  I am also dismayed at the poor run defense showed tonight.  There were too many times we got gashed for big yardage.

 

5)  That said, there were some encouraging things on the defensive side of the ball.  I thought Gipson showed good range breaking up a pass at the goal line in the first quarter.  That sort of this is exactly what we hoped to get from him.  It was great to see competence from the defense in 3rd and long yardage.  Last year and the year before, it wouldn't matter if the opposing offenses committed penalties or we somehow threw them for losses on first and second down, because with alarming and demoralizing frequency, the defense would simply surrender the first down anyway.  There were at least two times in the first half we were able to get off the field in 3rd and long yardage against a good offense.

 

6) His fumble notwithstanding, I thought TJ Yeldon had a fine game.  His long run where he started left and cut back to the right was a thing of beauty.  Too bad he didn't have that extra gear to pull away from the defense.  In fact, I woul argue he had the best game of all the offensive skill players.

 

7) Rookie Watch:

                                   A.  Jalen Ramsey-Played all of the first half.  I don't recall anyone catching anything on him.  In fact, the QBs seemed to throw away from him and towards Amukumara.  Had a lot of snaps from the nickel.  If true that he hasn't given up any catches, that is the second week in a row that happened.

 

                                   B.  Myles Jack-Played in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and showed good sideline to sideline speed.  At one point, there was a pass to the TE that, in years past, would have gone for 7+ yards.  His speed enabled him to limit that to a 2 yard gain.  I spent the 3rd quarter wanting him out of the game, though I understood why he was in there.  He held up well and played pretty well.

 

                                   C.  Yannick Ngakoue-Got the start at LEO in Fowler's place, but to me he didn't make much impact.

 

                                   D.  Sheldon Day-DNP

 

                                   E.  Tyrone Holmes-Played extensively in the 3rd and 4th quarter.  Forced the QB to step up into a sack by Ryan Davis.

 

8)  Guys who helped themselves tonight include Hayes Pullard (Pick 6 was really nice), Neal Sterling (Nice catches downfield), Tony Washington (Sure has Henne's confidence), Ryan Davis (sack and downing the punt), Brean Bodde-Calhoun, Jarrod Wilson (knocking that punt back for Davis to down).

 

9) Guys who didn't help themselves tonight include a popular guy on this board, Demetrius McCray, who got beat deep down the right sideline in the second half.  I didn't see him in the game after that series.  I don't think Bjoern Woerner helped himself much, either.

 

10)  Is there some nuance to the new touchback rule that I missed?  It was my understanding that touchbacks go to the 25 yard line.  Is that just for kickoffs, or all touchbacks?  I ask because there was a Cincinnati punt where there was a penalty for illegal touching against the Cincinnati gunner who went out of bounds and was the first to touch the ball in the attempt to down the ball inside the 5.  However, his foot hit the end zone before he tapped the ball back out, resulting in a touchback.  After the penalty was assessed, the ball went out to the 25 yard line, and NOT the 30.  What gives?  Any clarification on this rule would be helpful and welcome.

 

11)  Bottom Line:  This was a game that, for a preseason game, was the unofficial coming out party for these Jaguars.  This was the first time we were to show a national TV audience how much we'd improved and that we were no longer a laughing stock.  Instead, with the penalties and general inability to get anything going on offense, and the inability to stop the run defensively, we appeared like the not ready for prime time players and were outclassed by the Bengals.  There were some bright spots, but the casual fan wouldn't take notice.  The penalties need to stop, we need to stop the run more consistently, and we still need to find a way to generate a competent pass rush if we are to have any hope of winning against Green Bay on 9/11.  The best news is we seem to have gotten through this game without any major injuries.  I just hope Bradley doesn't do anything stupid like play any of the key starters.  I think the only starters I would play are Beachum and Joeckel for a series or two.

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

I think one thing to keep in mind that was brought up by the commentators is that it appeared the Jags were trying some new things on offense that they haven't done before in game situations. (The Hayes Pullard play comes to mind). That could account for the lack of execution when compared to the first two preseason games.


The penalties, while still high, were less than weeks one and two. That's hopefully a good sign and will continue to trend downwards.


Joeckel struggled. I don't think this should be news to anyone. I've watched Reed/Bernadeau/Shatley and unfortunately none of those guys are the answer at the position either. LG will most likely be a weak spot for this team until next off season. We may have to keep an extra back in when he's going against premier DTs when the season starts.


The rookies all looked good IMO. While he didn't register a sack Yannick had some nice edge rushes. Ramsey wasn't challenged which I'll assume was a good thing. Jack was moving around well in space. All in all it was a good outing.


Fowler didn't register a sack but he was getting around the edges better than he was the first couple of weeks. I'm not too concerned about the penalty. He was celebrating with his teammates and I've seen worse. I also wouldn't say he was benched. At least I didn't get that impression from Wash or Gus.

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"Before you criticize a man, walk a mile in his shoes. That way, if he gets angry, he's a mile away and barefoot."

Penalties are alarming. Think our total is 35 over 3 games for 339 yards. Not good. Actually surprised to learn that the Jaguars have never been ranked worse than 16th for penalties against under Bradley.

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Ramsey isn't targeted at all. Prince had a bad penalty in the endzone and was generally the target. Poz is a physical and strong player but is lacking speed that gets us killed in the passing game. The back-ups winning us the game sugar coats a dismal performance by the first team units on both sides of the ball. We got mauled in the trenches handily and made up for it with bad tackling. The offense went into a shell after that fumble it was as if they were afraid and was causing all kinds of mistakes. You can only hope they will use it as a learning tool. Something has to change come opening day.

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No pain, no gain.

I really think the first two drives were extremely conservative because of the Beachum/Joeckel dynamic. Once Beachum got his feet wet a little we opened it up on the third drive and moved the ball a little. I'm not super worried yet. 

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Bulls your assessment on the Joke was very kind. He was abused almost every single play. 

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Bullseye. Nicely done breakdown and write up man. I greatly appreciate it. I haven't been able to watch any preseason games this year. Currently overseas on vacation. But this is PERFECT. The bit on Fowler Jr. is concerning. I hope he matures sooner rather than later.

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"What do I know of cultured ways, the gilt, the craft and the lie? I, who was born in a naked land and bred in the open sky. The subtle tongue, the sophist guile, they fail when the broadswords sing; Rush in and die, dogs - I was a man before I was a king."

Fowler seemed to be doing great until they asked him to slow down a few weeks back. Bit strange really.

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Just to clear something up after rewatching, this is Fowler after the Pullard pick 6:

 



 

He wasn't actually in the game. As far as I saw he just came on and congratulated Pullard so not really sure what he did wrong.

Are sideline players not allowed to come on the field and celebrate with a teammate or something?

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I agree on many poiints Bullseye but you are too good on Joeckel, he was terrible. 

 

And I disagree about the 3rd and long situations. On a 3rd and 15 there was a replica of last year: we sent just 3 rushing the passer, the rest dropped back 15 yards and Dalton just took it like a 2 plays game gaining 10 easy yards first and then going for it on 4th down knowing pressure from our front wouldn't have been there. Just like it happened so many times last year. 

QB's and offensive coordinators still don't show respect for our defense yet.

 

It's just preseason of course but it was really a disappointing first half last night, I hope it's a wake up call but it wasn't encouraging.

Bengals anyway are a very very talented team.

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Just to clear something up after rewatching, this is Fowler after the Pullard pick 6:




Are sideline players not allowed to come on the field and celebrate with a teammate or something?

Correct.

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Only a chump boos the home team!

Bulls your assessment on the Joke was very kind. He was abused almost every single play.

Bulls your assessment on the Joke was very kind. He was abused almost every single play.

That wasn't on purpose. I was going on what I saw from my seat. I did not focus on him, but I am sure if I had watched from tv, I would hammer him, too.

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

I really think the first two drives were extremely conservative because of the Beachum/Joeckel dynamic. Once Beachum got his feet wet a little we opened it up on the third drive and moved the ball a little. I'm not super worried yet.

Interesting perspective. I did not consider that possibility.

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

I enjoy your posts Bullseye. I'm running late for work, so I stopped at your point about Dante Fowler's maturity (I'll read the rest at work). It made me think of one of my main concerns that will likely hold this team back from being a serious playoff contender this year; maturity and the ability to "weather the storm." This team is extremely young with an extremely young coaching staff. They calmed down a bit in the 2nd quarter, but this team is going to have to learn how to react to momentum swinging plays like the fumble (incomplete pass, go jags) from TJ Yeldon. The defense is not there yet, although he pieces are there. They'll gel I think, but this team is going to have to score a lot of points and limit turnovers to win in the first half of the season. Adversity is something they have to learn now, and that only comes in live game situations. I hope Dante and all the youngens can learn quick. The o line...yikes.

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I agree on many poiints Bullseye but you are too good on Joeckel, he was terrible. 

 

And I disagree about the 3rd and long situations. On a 3rd and 15 there was a replica of last year: we sent just 3 rushing the passer, the rest dropped back 15 yards and Dalton just took it like a 2 plays game gaining 10 easy yards first and then going for it on 4th down knowing pressure from our front wouldn't have been there. Just like it happened so many times last year. 

QB's and offensive coordinators still don't show respect for our defense yet.

 

It's just preseason of course but it was really a disappointing first half last night, I hope it's a wake up call but it wasn't encouraging.

Bengals anyway are a very very talented team.

Taking two downs to convert a 3rd and long is less concerning than converting just on 3rd down. Besides I think coaches, being conservative, would be less likely to go for it on 4th down under the same circumstances in the regular season.

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

I enjoy your posts Bullseye. I'm running late for work, so I stopped at your point about Dante Fowler's maturity (I'll read the rest at work). It made me think of one of my main concerns that will likely hold this team back from being a serious playoff contender this year; maturity and the ability to "weather the storm." This team is extremely young with an extremely young coaching staff. They calmed down a bit in the 2nd quarter, but this team is going to have to learn how to react to momentum swinging plays like the fumble (incomplete pass, go jags) from TJ Yeldon. The defense is not there yet, although he pieces are there. They'll gel I think, but this team is going to have to score a lot of points and limit turnovers to win in the first half of the season. Adversity is something they have to learn now, and that only comes in live game situations. I hope Dante and all the youngens can learn quick. The o line...yikes.

 

We need a new coach next year that is a bit more of a tough guy and less of a that's ok you had good effort maybe next time guy. His scheme is horrible. Fowler was held it looked like on two plays and it wasn't called. On one 3rd and long play we rushed 3 and he got around the edge and was tackled by the OT. No call. I suspect our team underwhelms again this year but hopefully we can get a competent head coach and a LG next year.

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No pain, no gain.

Taking two downs to convert a 3rd and long is less concerning than converting just on 3rd down. Besides I think coaches, being conservative, would be less likely to go for it on 4th down under the same circumstances in the regular season.

While I agree wit you on this, I pointed that out because it was what happened other times last season. Remember the 4th and 7 that Rivers converted with his run with the game still on the line? 

It's the soft approach that we take at times that's disappointing but hey..we'll see once the season starts. 

 

I liked Tashaun Gipson interview last night by the way, went straight to the point, he was clearly very disappointed.

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Pass rush still an issue. Joeckel is terrible. Thought the linebackers specially Poz struggled big time. And coaching as usual was horrible. Why was Josh Evans in on that TD screen.

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Hayes Pullard looked good out there

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You Gotta Be Able To Run Da' Rock~

I stopped counting at around 4.... 4 being the number of times I saw Joeckle sitting on his butt... and I attribute the Yeldon fumble to Joeckle not getting out and putting a  block on the Bengal with fuzzy hair.

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I ain't no monkey... I'm an ape.