Big Cat Country
Jake Browning has played in 13 career NFL games. In two of them, he has beaten the ever-living shit out of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Jags (1-1) soiled themselves almost countless times Sunday, dropping a despicable game to the Cincinnati Bengals 31-27 in what was an Urban Meyer-level football game from hell.
Trevor Lawrence played poorly, Brian Thomas Jr. played worse and the team as a whole looked like they hadn’t practiced together one time this season. For as many good things as the Jags did — like three interceptions and the emergence of Bhayshul Tuten — there were twice as many puke-inducing moments that killed any sort of chance Jacksonville had to win.
This was in no way, shape or form a proof of concept game for anyone from Duval County. There have been plenty of rock bottom moments in recent memory but they normally happen a few weeks into the season. Seeing an implosion like this just two weeks in leaves more than a fair share of uneasiness heading into a rivalry game next weekend.
WINNERS
Bhayshul Tuten
Ok, so maybe the Jags had something cooking when they traded away Tank Bigsby. With Tuten entering Sunday as the team’s RB2, he did everything in his power to get the Jags a win.
The rookie rushed the ball eight times for an effective 42 yards and caught two passes for 32, including his first career touchdown.
The running back room has been great in back-to-back weeks. Travis Etienne played well again, Tuten was a star and even LeQuint Allen had some timely blocks and runs. These guys didn’t cost the Jags the game on Sunday.
Foye Oluokun
Akin to a guy like Cam Little, Foye Oluokun might get a reserved spot on the winners list for a while. Since coming to Jacksonville, Oluokun has done nothing but play well and he did so again against the Bengals.
Oluokun had seven total tackles, two TFLs and a sack. His sack was one of the team’s three on the day.
He and Devin Lloyd both played sound defense (Lloyd snagging what should have been the game-sealing pick) but Oluokun always found himself around the ball. He’s a captain for a reason and looked the part on defense. I don’t think anyone can convince me he hurt the team in Cincinnati.
Offensive Line Play
For a second straight week, the Jags offensive line looked competent. Through two weeks, the Jags have given up just one sack and have rushed the ball for over 100 yards in both games. That one sack came on the second-to-last play of regulation Sunday and was from one of the game’s best pass rushers in Trey Hendrickson. Hard to complain about that if you are a Jags fan.
Lawrence had clean pockets for most of the afternoon while the backs had lanes to run for five yards a pop almost all day. Neither Cincy nor Carolina has next-level defenses, but this defense was surely an upgrade from...
