Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Philadelphia Eagles: Report Card Grades for Jaguars
It was a tale of two halves for the Jaguars, who fell to the Philadelphia Eagles 34-17 on Sunday.
The Jaguars started out strong and led 17-0 at halftime. Unfortunately, when the third quarter started, so did the demise of the Jaguars.
Let’s start in the first half where the Jaguars were looking like legitimate contenders in the league. Quarterback Chad Henne had led the team on two scoring drives along with Allen Hurns, who amassed four receptions for 110 yards and two touchdowns during the matchup.
On defense the Jaguars headed into the half with five sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and an interception.
After halftime, the whole feeling of the game changed. The Jaguars looked like a different team—they were protecting a lead instead of being aggressive toward securing a win.
On offense Henne looked like a quarterback who was afraid to make a play, and the running game was absolutely nonexistent, averaging 2.6 yards per carry.
The aggressive nature of the defense seemed to go away, and all of a sudden Nick Foles, LeSean McCoy and Darren Sproles took control of the game. Foles would go on to throw two touchdowns as the Eagles scored 34 unanswered points.
For the Jaguars, there were plenty of positives to take away from this matchup. As a rebuilding franchise it was good to see how much some players grew over the offseason.
Let’s take a look at how each position graded out in this Week 1 matchup.
Quarterback: C+
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It’s hard to evaluate Chad Henne because it was like he was two different players in this game. In the first half, he looked fantastic on his way to two touchdowns and a 17-0 lead. In the second half, he looked almost like a rookie—scared, unsure and unaware.
Henne was supposed to be the steady veteran presence on this offense, but when the game got tight, he faltered. One thing I noticed was that in the first half Henne was attacking the defense with deep passes, but in the second half he seemed hesitant.
The Jaguars need Henne to be their leader. He has to know how to help this team win. If he’s going to go into hiding when the going gets tough, the team needs to find another option.
Grade: C+
Running Back: D
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After a disappointing preseason, the Jaguars rushing attack did nothing to make me feel any more confident about its ability.
One of the Jaguars' big offseason acquisitions was Toby Gerhart, who was supposed to add toughness and consistency to the running game. Much to the team’s dismay he came out flat, rushing 18 times for 42 yards.
Overall, the Jaguars averaged 2.6 yards per carry, which is abysmal. With a running attack like this, it’s no wonder the passing game suffered in the second half.
Grade: D
Wide Receiver: B+
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Without Cecil Shorts, the Jaguars were left with three rookies and a second-year veteran at receiver.
The unit got an instant lift from undrafted rookie Allen Hurns, who was coming off a dynamic preseason. He accumulated more than 100 yards and two touchdowns in the first quarter.
After one game, I still think that Marqise Lee is a mystery. I question his consistency and effort. There were times when I thought Lee looked slow off the line and complacent.
In the end, he did put together a 62-yard effort to go along with Hurns’ big game.
Grade: B+
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Tight End: B+
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Marcedes Lewis was coming off a down year last year, and it was good to see him come out with a big performance to start 2014.
Lewis put together six catches for 35 yards. On top of his contributions to the passing game, he looked got in a few good blocks in the running game.
Moving forward, Lewis will be a big part of this offense because of his all-around skill set.
Grade: B+
Offensive Line: B-
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I’ve always felt that the offensive line was the toughest unit to make snap grades about because there are so many variables to the performance.
At quick glance I was really concerned with Jacques McClendon on a few plays, particularly while run blocking. He looked like he was unable to get any power behind his blocks and seemed to let his opponent go easily.
On the other side, I thought Brandon Linder looked good in his debut. Linder is a strong all-around blocker, and he’s smart enough to guide his defenders to a position where he can get help if he needs it.
From a statistical standpoint, the offense only allowed three sacks. Beyond those stats I felt that Henne was under a lot of pressure. The offensive line needs more time together, but it was a pretty decent start for the team.
Grade: B-
Defensive Line: A
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It won’t take a great football analyst to see that this unit is the key to this team’s success.
Time and time again the defensive line was getting pressure on Nick Foles. Led by Chris Clemons, the Jaguars defensive line totaled five sacks and forced two fumbles against the Eagles offense.
As long as the Jaguars continue to get pressure, their defense is going to have opportunities to make plays. Andre Branch and Chris Clemons were brutalizing offensive linemen, and that was really encouraging to see.
Grade: A
Linebacker: C
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While this linebackers group isn’t bad, it is the weakest unit on this defense.
The biggest issues that this unit has are maintaining gap discipline and proper tackling. Too often, the linebackers were in a bad position to make the tackle or were taking a bad angle and missing tackles. The unit’s inability to stick to assignments allowed the Eagles’ running backs to rush for 135 yards and gain 55 receiving yards.
There are definitely some great athletes on this team, but until the Jaguars stop the run consistently, they’re going to be constantly exposed.
Grades: C
Secondary: B-
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If I walked away from this game encouraged by anything, it was the play of Dwayne Gratz.
Gratz, a second-year player, held up well against Jeremy Maclin all game. While Maclin did score a 68-yard touchdown, it wasn’t as the expense of Gratz, who was playing in zone coverage at the time. Gratz is physical and instinctive and has great reactions. Most of all, I love his willingness to be active in run support.
The biggest hit for this unit came after the injury to Johnathan Cyprien (I haven’t found any news updates on this yet but will update you all when I do). With Cyprien out, the Jaguars suffered in the deep middle zone of the field, where Chris Prosinski allowed Maclin to get by uncovered for his long touchdown reception.
This unit for the Jaguars is going to have its ups and downs, but it's filled with potential. The defensive backs will struggle with consistency each week, but they were pretty solid on Sunday.
Grade: B-
Special Teams: B
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Week 1 was tough on Josh Scobee. He is usually automatic but went 1-of-3 on field-goal attempts on Sunday. After drilling a 49-yard attempt, Scobee missed a 50-yard attempt and had one kick blocked.
As for punter Bryan Anger, it was a solid day for the former third-round pick. Anger had eight punts with an average of 46.5 yards and landed two within the 20-yard line.
Overall, nothing to be too alarmed about—this is a reliable unit for the Jaguars.
Grade: B
Coaching: B
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This matchup was a battle of really good coaches. Chip Kelly is reinventing the high-tempo offense, and Gus Bradley is a fiery defensive coach.
Bradley had a good plan to start: He wanted to be aggressive and was. For the first 30 minutes of the game, Jacksonville looked to be superior.
Where Bradley faltered was in making adjustments to the Eagles in the second half. The Jaguars looked like they were playing too conservatively after getting a big lead, and it was impossible for them to transition back to attack mode after that.
It’s hard to blame Bradley, but you definitely want to see him grow from this experience.
Grade: B
Cumulative Grades
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| Quarterback | C+ |
| Running Back | D |
| Wide Receiver | B+ |
| Tight End | B+ |
| Offensive Line | B- |
| Defensive Line | A |
| Linebacker | C |
| Secondary | B- |
| Special Teams | B |
| Coaching | B |
Cumulative Grade: B-
It was a good effort for a young team that some people thought would just lie down against the Eagles. Sure, the Jaguars lost, but there were a lot of good things to take away from the loss.
Still, the team will have a lot to build on moving forward, but this game should create some optimism in Jaguars fans. This team can hang with the better teams in this league and should improve upon its 4-12 record from 2013.
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