Defensive players like A.J. Bouye continue to put on strong performances for the Jaguars. Photo courtesy: James Crichlow/Jacksonville Business Journal. See the whole gallery here: https://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/gallery/441665.
By Dustin Fletcher | gargoyle@flagler.edu
The Jags offense was flying again as Blake Bortles had a career game and the defense had a field day against rookie quarterback Sam Darnold and company. However, there are a few sources of concern, especially Leonard Fournette’s hamstring.
Fournette leaves another game with hamstring injury
Leonard Fournette is an instrumental part of this Jaguars offense. Anyone who watches this team every week knows that. It’s why Andrew Norwell was given a massive contract and Fournette was picked fourth overall in the draft. However, injuries have been a major concern for him in his time in the league. He has missed essentially three and a quarter games and in the two games he’s played this season, he hasn’t even made it to halftime.
In week one against the Giants, he looked great – averaging well over 4 yards per carry. However, against the Jets, he looked rusty and could not even muster 3 yards per carry with 30 yards on 11 attempts. One possibility is placing him on the injury reserve, which essentially gives him six weeks of rest from practice, and an additional two before playing in a game. This would have him coming back from injury in Week 13 against the Colts, and hopefully fresh and healthy for the playoffs.
Prolific Bortles and company return in week four for career day
Last week, it pained me to talk about how Blake Bortles played. Fans were upset with how he and the offense ran in Tennessee. Fast forward to the game against the Jets, and he looked great, as did T.J. Yeldon and Dede Westbrook. Bortles and the offense had a field day with the Jets defense, scoring every drive in the first half. Bortles threw a career-high 388 yards and only threw one interception after the ball was batted straight into the air. With the slow, long release Bortles winds up with, plays like this will happen from time to time, which is not a huge cause for concern.
Receiver Dede Westbrook also had a career day with nine receptions for 130 yards. T.J. Yeldon continued to fill in nicely for Leonard Fournette with 18 carries for 52 yards with two touchdowns – one through the air and one on the ground. If the offense continues to play like this, the Jags should continue to be in the discussion for the best team in the NFL.
Defense dominates for fourth straight week
Even with the week three loss and fewer sacks than last year, the defense has looked dominant all season. This was to be expected against a young Jets team with no standout star players. The defense has only allowed four touchdowns in four weeks – one of those being against New England – and is the best in the league. Defensive linemen Calais Campbell and Yannick Ngakoue have started slowly, but figure to heat up as the season goes on and they settle into a rhythm getting to the cornerback. Cornerbacks Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Bouye have continued to shut people down. The window for a Super Bowl is closing quickly as the players on the defense need to be paid soon, so this unit must take advantage of the talent and propel the team towards the Super Bowl while they still can.
Last week’s prediction: Jags 31 – Jets 10 | Actual score: Jags 31 – Jets 12
Prediction was very close this week. These Jags continue to dominate at home and should have a great season.
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