Big Cat Country
As Week 10 approaches, we rounded up the latest NFL power rankings to get a sense of how the Jaguars are viewed nationally.
They find ways to win even when it seems like they’re trying to lose.
They have five more road games this season, three in domes and one in Denver. We want to see K Cam Little get a field-goal shot beyond 70 yards. Though maybe given Tuesday’s acquisition of WR Jakobi Meyers, the Jags can get Little a little closer …
Injuries are starting to be a big problem for this team, especially on offense. Somehow, if the playoffs started today, they would be in the party.
The Jags needed a record-breaking 68-yard field goal to get their first points of the game 30 minutes in, needed another long field goal near the end of regulation and relied on a failed two-point try in overtime by the Raiders to survive in Vegas. In the absence of Travis Hunter and Brenton Strange , the passing game had plenty of clunky moments, including a bad end-zone interception by Trevor Lawrence . He ran for two scores, including the eventual winner in overtime, and Travis Etienne was a steady force, especially late, but this was not a performance to rally the troops behind. Ending a two-game losing streak was most important; still, the Jaguars looked a bit hiccup-y after their Week 8 bye.
From Josh Kendall and Chad Graff:
Midseason grade: B-
The Jags don’t rank in the top half of the NFL in either offensive or defensive EPA per play. They needed a failed two-point attempt in overtime to beat a bad Raiders team. But the vibes do feel better in Jacksonville with Liam Coen in charge.
Most important game remaining: Week 10 at the Texans
The Jaguars could bury the Texans in the division with a victory in Houston. That would give Jacksonville a four-game lead — including the tiebreaker — over the Texans and essentially make the AFC South a two-team race with Indianapolis. The Jaguars still have two games remaining against the Colts (7-2) and the Titans (1-8).
In Week 9, Trevor Lawrence played with an illness, didn’t have one of his top receivers in Travis Hunter, and lost a couple of his wideouts to injuries during the game. Yet he still made an impact with two rushing scores, the second coming in overtime to give Jacksonville a 30-23 lead.
Since their 31-27 Week 2 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, the Jaguars have found ways to grind out victories in close games. They’ve beaten the San Francisco 49ers, Kansas...
