Is Week 3 A Must-Win For Jacksonville?

What hasn’t been seen since Week 10 of last year was Jacksonville squandering a double-digit lead in the second half. The Jaguars led 13-3 early in the third quarter before Denver scored 17 unanswered points.

Several issues contributed to Sunday’s loss, including the lack of explosive plays, a nonexistent pass rush and not keeping their foot on the gas. After Sunday’s loss, defensive lineman Travon Walker and cornerback Jourdan Lewis emphasized the need to play a full four quarters. 

“What frustrates me the most is this was a game we could have won,” Walker said. “We just have to finish for all four quarters.”

“We have to finish,” Lewis said. “A team isn’t going to roll over for us; we have to finish, teams. Me personally, I got relaxed and the details were not there in the second half.”

Jacksonville’s pass rush was nonexistent throughout the game, generating six total pressures and no sacks. Franchise sack leader Josh Hines-Allen was held to zero pressures on 24 pass rushes.

Hines-Allen said Thursday that the Jaguars must respond and bounce back from last week.

“It’s very important to get a win this week. It’s Week 2, and how we respond will be the biggest thing and we’re looking forward to this week,” Hines-Allen said.    

Apart from the defense, the offense wasn’t much better in the second half. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence completed 41.7% of his passes for 51 yards and an interception after completing 70.6% for 138 yards in the first half. 

Head coach Liam Coen said Monday that Jacksonville didn’t have its best practice and it showed in the offense’s lack of explosive plays.

“We didn’t really get any explosive plays from the first drive of the second half. We didn’t have another explosive play from that drive. Whether it was the run or the pass, we just didn’t create any explosives,” Coen said. 

Travis Hunter Usage

An emerging storyline from Week 2 was the usage of last year’s No. 2 overall pick, Travis Hunter. Drafted out of Colorado as a two-way player, Hunter has not been used to the delight of fans and himself. Hunter played only 60% of the defensive snaps, the fewest among Jacksonville defensive backs, while playing 10% of the offensive snaps. 

Considering what Jacksonville traded to acquire him, his limited usage is questionable. Jacksonville has implemented a rotation in the secondary, with Hunter, Montaric Brown and Jarrian Jones all rotating throughout the game. 

When asked about the rotation at cornerback, Coen said the team used this strategy last year and will continue to do so.

“We did it for most of last season before [Travis Hunter] got hurt, and it’s something we have to continue to do. We have good corners who we have confidence in, and all can make plays for us,” Coen said. 

For Hunter, when asked about the rotation at cornerback, he deferred to the coaching staff. 

“I’ll leave that up to the coaches to answer. That ain’t for me to answer,” Hunter said. 

Heading into Week 3, Hunter is expected to see an uptick in offensive snaps. Through two games, he has recorded one reception for eight yards. 

Do The Jaguars Respond?

In his second season as head coach for Jacksonville, Liam Coen has preached the need to respond to adversity, with the Jaguars playing their best football when they play with an edge. 

Last season, Jacksonville dropped a heartbreaker to the Cincinnati Bengals on the road in Week 2, falling to 1-1. The following week, Jacksonville hosted division-rival Houston Texans and squeezed out a close victory before winning their next three games to improve to 4-1.  

Later in the season, Jacksonville dropped two straight games to the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams, putting them at 4-3. The Jaguars traveled to face the Las Vegas Raiders and pulled out a close overtime victory. In Week 10, Jacksonville blew a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter against the Texans, bringing their record to 5-4. 

The Jaguars responded by winning their next eight regular-season games to close out the season.  

End Of My Jacksonville Rant

This will be a huge week for Jacksonville. Though they sit atop the AFC South, they cannot afford to start 1-2. If Jacksonville can respond to last week’s collapse and come away with a victory, the Jaguars will set themselves up for another AFC showdown with the Cincinnati Bengals on the road with momentum.