Big Cat Country
It wasn’t always pretty, but the Jaguars escaped with a win in Week 3. Liam Coen has led Jacksonville to a 2-1 start for just the fourth time since 2007. Things are looking up!
As Week 4 approaches, we rounded up the latest NFL power rankings to get a sense of how the Jaguars are viewed nationally.
From Josh Kendall and Chad Graff:
This is Trevor Lawrence’s fifth NFL season, and we keep waiting for a breakout that once felt inevitable. But the switch to Liam Coen as head coach hasn’t come with the positive shift in Lawrence many expected. It’s still early, but this season, Lawrence has completed just 58.8 percent of his passes (30th in the NFL) for 5.9 yards per attempt (25th) and has thrown as many touchdowns (four) as interceptions.
It wasn’t the most impressive performance, but the Jaguars pulled out a win against an offensively inept Texans team. Trevor Lawrence doesn’t look much better, Travis Hunter’s usage is strange, Brian Thomas Jr. is a shell of his rookie self, and despite all that the Jaguars are doing OK at 2-1.
The defense saved the day against the Texans, but the offense still isn’t clicking. They have way too many penalties and drops.
DE Josh Hines-Allen needs two sacks to become this franchise’s all-time leader. Tony Brackens, with 55, is currently the standard bearer … and a reminder that the Jags’ best days occurred a quarter-century ago.
The Panthers, Bengals and Texans might not represent the most fearsome trio of opponents, but the Jaguars’ defense held up well against all three, for the most part, which is a big reason for the team’s 2-1 start. They’ll rue letting that Cincinnati game get away, but Sunday was a turn in the right direction . A young team has to make big plays in crunch time to learn how to win, and the Jaguars did just that with three fourth-quarter turnovers against Houston — their third straight three-TO game to open the season. Liam Coen’s offense still has plenty of room for growth, and Brian Thomas Jr. ’s struggles have been borderline alarming. He had three drops by my count and seemed mostly miserable for the game’s first 58 minutes, but Thomas came up with a massive catch late to help the Jaguars pull out the thriller and earn a big divisional win.
We’re nitpicking here because the defense has been the backbone of Jacksonville’s two wins. The Jaguars rank fifth in points allowed per game (17, tied with the Texans and Cardinals) and rushing yards allowed per game (82.7). But they’re not converting a significant amount of pressure into sacks. They rank ninth with 44 QB...
