Jacksonville Jaguars Offense Still Suffering from Stagnation, Lack of Composure

The Jacksonville Jaguars went into Sunday's game with understandable optimism about their chances of winning. A promising preseason and visible improvement should have meant a composed, respectable performance on both sides of the ball.

That was the case for the defense in the 20-9 loss. They made big plays, contained Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton relatively well and did all they could to keep the Jaguars in the game until the end.

However, the offense struggled mightily in a situation where they should have excelled. The Panthers were in striking distance all game, and there were multiple times when the Jaguars could have turned the game on its head.

Instead, the offense suffered a breakdown of composure at the hands of QB Blake Bortles. It's not completely his fault (just look at the numerous drops), but his pick-six to put the Panthers ahead 17-9 was the moment the offense hit rock bottom.

As seen in the table below, it was a tale of two halves for Bortles. Ending the first half with a stellar two-minute offensive drive seemed like it could create momentum, but that was canceled out by his gift to Panthers corner Josh Norman for the score on the first drive of the second half.

	Completions/Attempts	Yards	Touchdowns	Interceptions	Rating
First Half	15/24	125	1	0	89.8
Second Half	7/16	58	0	2	14.1
Total	22/40	183	1	2	54.5

While the general performance from the offense wasn't perfect, the running game did fine. Ninety-six yards total is low, but on 21 attempts, it averages to a respectable 4.6 yards a carry. 

Rookie back T.J. Yeldon had a solid opening game to start his NFL career, and his 51 yards on 12 carries and three receptions for 16 yards will be a good building block. 

The only issue with the run game is why the Jaguars didn't run more. They were able to get chunks of yards against the Panthers throughout the game, but they strayed away from it after the pick-six.

This is just another testament to how the offense's composure was shot. They lost the confidence and rhythm gained in the second quarter, and that resulted in a slow, unimpressive performance in the second half.

The most notable problem with Bortles after the first interception, seen below, was his timidness. Instead of the confident and composed QB we saw in the preseason, an unsure one came out the other side.

He certainly put in his best effort, but he seemed to hesitate, which resulted in sacks and his second interception. He was a bit late with every decision going forward, and the Jaguars turned to him to make plays after going down 17-9.

Deviating from the run game and expecting Bortles to make plays when the Jaguars are down isn't a coaching sin by any means, but it's surprising that head coach Gus Bradley and offensive coordinator Greg Olson didn't try to run the ball once Bortles looked unlikely to save the day.

They gave him a chance, but once that didn't work, it was time to take the pressure away. Instead they turned it on and depended on him to propel the Jaguars. We'll never know if the run would have worked better, but they didn't give Yeldon or RB Denard Robinson many opportunities to make plays after that.

The offense was simply unacceptable, to summarize. Holding the Panthers to 13 offensive points and not being able to grab a victory is almost unbelievable. 

Bortles and the offense should realize that there were positive moments, but it might be hard considering the overall game. The two-minute offense did spectacularly, and it might be worth bringing that out more often.

The only time the Jaguars looked aggressive and confident on offense was that two-minute drive. Speeding up the play and using a balanced attack of running and passing got the Jaguars their only touchdown of the day, and that says something.

No one needs to sound the panic alarm or put the coaching staff on the hot seat, but it was still an inexcusable performance. The Jaguars need to come out strong against the Miami Dolphins next week and rediscover what the offense was building in the second quarter.

What do you think? What do the Jaguars have to do to get past the offensive struggles? Answer the poll and comment below!

All stats were provided by ESPN.com unless otherwise stated.

Evan Reier is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report covering the Jacksonville Jaguars. Follow Evan on Twitter @evanreier.