Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: Full Report Card Grades for Jags
The Jacksonville Jaguars were handed yet another defeat, this time at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers to the tune of 17-9.
This was a closer matchup than anticipated, yet it seemed to hurt more than any of the previous four blowout losses.
The Jaguars were doomed by a pair of interceptions by Blake Bortles, one of which resulted in a touchdown. While Bortles looked strong at times in this matchup, he’s showing all the signs of a rookie who is trying to do too much.
As a whole, the offense had abysmal day in terms of production, generating only 243 yards. The running game continued its anemic pace, amassing just 56 yards 15 attempts.
Beyond allowing 372 total yards, the effort by the defense was quite good. Paul Posluszny and Johnathan Cyprien led the way with 23 combined tackles, and as a whole the defense created four sacks and a turnover.
Overall, this was another mediocre effort by a young team. The Jaguars look to be bottom-feeders in the league until their young core players start to develop.
Let’s take a look at how each unit did as a whole and how each can improve going forward.
Quarterback
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Let’s just be honest: Blake Bortles was bad today. As a young player these performances are going to happen. The big thing to watch is how Bortles responds next week.
Bortles finished the day 22-of-36 for 191 yards and two interceptions. Bortles’ interceptions were a big reason why this team lost Sunday. Despite displaying poise in some big situations, it’s hard to recover from a two-turnover performance, especially when one results in a touchdown.
Bortles needs to work on seeing the field better and forcing passes less. I get that he wants to make big plays, but his gunslinger mentality is resulting in too many mistakes. He’s an elite athlete who’s going to be a solid NFL quarterback; he’ll just need time to figure it out.
Grade: D-
Running Back
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This is starting to sound like a broken record, but the Jaguars running backs are terrible.
The one player who looked really strong was rookie Storm Johnson. Johnson only received four carries despite averaging 6.8 yards in that time. He’s a young player who has great chemistry with Bortles, but he needs to be a bigger part of the offense.
More and more Toby Gerhart is starting to look like a bust. Gerhart rushed four times for nine yards and seems to prefer running into contact instead of open gaps.
This unit is really struggling, and I’m not sure it's going to improve much before next year’s draft.
Grade: D-
Wide Receiver
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It’s hard to accurately grade such a young group. On one hand, you want to grade it like a veteran group, but on the other you want to take into account the players' inexperience.
On a positive note, Allen Robinson is really evolving into a threat on the outside. He’s got excellent length, great hands and can win jump balls. He’s easily the best receiver on this team.
On the negative side, I think Allen Hurns may have peaked. Hurns has good size, speed and strength, but his hands are suspect. Hurns finished the day with three drops.
This unit has a ton of room to grow and will only get better. The optimist in me wants to believe that Hurns and Robinson are going to evolve into a formidable duo. We’ll see how the team treats their development going forward and hope for the best.
Grade: C+
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Tight End
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It was a pretty quiet day from the tight end position. Clay Harbor was the guy all afternoon and finished with three catches and 22 yards on the day.
Harbor is a strong option in the passing game, but he’s suspect as a run-blocker. I’d like to see the Jaguars use Harbor in more a split role to spread out the defense and create mismatches.
Grade: C
Offensive Line
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The offensive line played markedly better today, allowing only one sack on Blake Bortles.
Finally the offensive line is starting to look like it's meshing a bit. It still struggles opening running lanes, but the young unit is really improving.
One player to keep watching is Luke Joeckel. Joeckel didn’t get much time last season due to an injury and is just now starting to get his legs under him. He’s a strong player who could evolve into something special over the season.
Grade: B-
Defensive Line
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This wasn’t the best effort by the defensive line, but when it needed to make plays it showed up.
As a unit, the defensive line amassed three sacks and three quarterback hits. While there were moments when Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger seemingly had all day, the unit was able to pressure him in key situations.
The Jaguars have a lot of talent in this unit, and I’d like to see them have a deeper rotation to keep the unit fresh. They have strong edge-rushers up and down the roster who could all make an impact.
Grade: C+
Linebacker
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This unit just is not very good period. Yes, Paul Posluszny compiled 12 total tackles and a sack, but he was consistently exploited in pass coverage.
The biggest issue with this unit is its vulnerability against cutback runs. It seems like every week this team gets gashed by backs who have open cutback lanes due to overpursuit. The coaching staff has to continue to emphasis gap discipline here.
Another issue is that the linebackers are struggling when asked to cover tight ends. Heath Miller went for 46 yards and was wide open on most of his catches. This has been an issue all year and is really costing the team, especially on third down.
Grade: D+
Secondary
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The Jaguars secondary defines inconsistency. Time after time it seems to be unaware of its coverage responsibility and lacks aggressiveness.
From a scheme perspective, the cornerbacks play 10 yards off the receiver as part of their Cover 3 defense. This scheme works if the corners are willing to be aggressive and close quickly on receivers.
Unfortunately, the Jaguars’ corners are timid and thus allow quick passes to net big gains. When all was said and done the Jaguars allowed Ben Roethlisberger to compile 261 passing yards and a 103.1 passer rating.
On a positive note, I thought Demetrius McCray looked very good in place of the injured Dwayne Gratz. McCray finished with four tackles and a pass breakup. What I like about McCray is that he’s physical and willing to throw his body all over the place in run support. He’s a good fit for this scheme.
Grade: D+
Special Teams
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The Jaguars' special teams are the easiest unit to grade, because they’re the most consistent.
Kicker Josh Scobee finished the day 3-of-3 on field-goal attempts and accounted for all the Jaguars' points. Punter Bryan Anger continues a solid season, averaging 45 yards on five punts.
Grade: B+
Coaching
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For the first time in a few weeks I really felt like the coaching staff had the right strategy coming into this game.
Head coach Gus Bradley led his team to a competitive effort through a balanced offense and a swarming defense. Throughout the season the Jaguars coaches have gone conservative in the second half, but this game they kept attacking. You can’t protect these young guys their whole career; the experience of competing is big for them.
One thing that has had me scratching my head all season is the predictability of the coaches' offensive play-calling. It seems the Jaguars consistently deploy a run, run, pass or pass, run, pass strategy, which is allowing the defense to limit the offense's effectiveness. I’d like the see the team adjust and mix it up a little bit to exploit the weaknesses of the defense.
Grade: B
Cumulative Grades
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| Quarterback | D- |
| Running Back | D- |
| Wide Receiver | C+ |
| Tight End | C |
| Offensive Line | B- |
| Defensive Line | C+ |
| Linebacker | D+ |
| Secondary | D+ |
| Special Teams | C+ |
| Coaching | B |
It was a decent effort for the Jaguars, but in the end it was another loss. This group is lacking that killer instinct and has left points on the board because of it.
Until the Jaguars can recognize and attack the opposition’s weaknesses consistently, they’ll continue to struggle to compete. I still think this team is a long way from being a contender.
Cumulative Grade: C-
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