What We Saw: Week 5

Alvin Kamara looked like the Alvin Kamara we all know and love

Ben Brown
What We Saw 3 Years Ago
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Rams @ Seahawks
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Titans @ Jaguars

Final Score: Titans 39, Jaguars 19

Writer: Dan Adams (@dadams0323 on Twitter)

 

After showing some life last week the Jaguars came into this game hoping to get their first win against a Titans team that had just done the same favor for the Jets. Unfortunately for the Jaguars, their first drive ended with a fumble that Tennessee returned for a touchdown. Undeterred, the Jaguars came right back down the field to score a touchdown of their own, powered largely by a 58-yard run by James Robinson. After the teams traded punts they alternated touchdown drives, with Tennessee eventually taking a 21-13 lead. The Jaguars were driving to answer back, but a key drop on third down by Jamal Agnew forced them to settle for a field goal, which they missed. This continued the Jaguars’ streak of no made field goals to start the season, which they would maintain through the end of this game. The Titans added a field goal before halftime and the Jaguars would never pull within one score again. Derrick Henry scored three touchdowns total and the Tennessee defense came up with a big goal-line stand to keep the game out of reach. The Titans won 37-19 to improve to 3-2, while the Jaguars continue to seek their first win of the Urban Meyer era.

 

Tennessee Titans

 

Quarterback

 

Ryan Tannehill: 14/22, 197 yards, TD, 3 Sacks | 3 carries, 21 yards

 

Ryan Tannehill didn’t need to do much today, but aside from one throw that should have been intercepted, he looked sharp when called upon. He looked comfortable throwing outside the pocket and was effective in the play-action game. The aforementioned bad throw was just a bad read, as Tannehill tried to force it past defender Shaquill Griffin who just couldn’t hang onto the football. Tannehill’s touchdown was an easy throw to tight end MyCole Pruitt after the defense simply forgot to cover Pruitt, and aside from those plays, it was mostly just routine easy throws for Tannehill in a game his team was coasting in.

 

 

Running Backs

 

Derrick Henry: 29 carries, 130 yards, 3 TD

Jeremy McNichols: 1 carry, 9 yards | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 26 yards

 

Tannehill didn’t need to do much in large part because Derrick Henry did his usual thing and smashed the Jaguars’ defense. Henry didn’t have any spectacular plays, but he just consistently strung together solid runs. His offensive line did a good job of keeping him clean until the second level of the defense, and if Henry is allowed to get going like that he’s going to get results. His first touchdown run he ran untouched until he decided to initiate contact with one of his own offensive lineman to drive into the end zone.

 

 

On his second touchdown run, Henry went into the endzone completely untouched from nine yards out.

 

 

Jacksonville offered a little more resistance on his third touchdown run, as they did at least touch Henry prior to him walking into the end zone.

 

 

Jeremy McNichols didn’t see much work in this one, but he did come in for the two-minute drill to end the first half. His only carry came on a draw on said two-minute drill, against a defense that was playing to protect the pass. Since the Titans had a comfortable lead in the second half they didn’t face many obvious passing downs, which limited McNichols to just two targets.

 

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

 

A.J. Brown: 6 targets, 3 receptions, 38 yards

Marcus Johnson: 5 targets, 3 receptions, 52 yards

Chester Rodgers: 1 target, 1 reception, 26 yards | 1 carry, 9 yards

Josh Reynolds: 1 target, 1 reception, 8 yards

Anthony Firkser: 4 targets, 3 receptions, 33 yards

MyCole Pruitt: 1 target, 1 reception, 14 yards, TD

 

A.J. Brown returned from injury and looked to be fully healthy. He caught a slant off of play-action, a staple of this offense for him the past two seasons, and was tackled at the 1-yard line after taking a shallow crossing route and almost outrunning the whole defense to the end zone. He wasn’t asked to do much since the Titans didn’t really have to pass, but he did lead the team in targets. More importantly, he appears to have finished the game without reinjuring his hamstring so he should be good to go moving forward. Josh Reynolds drew a key defensive pass interference penalty to extend a drive, and Chester Rodgers had a big catch to get the Titans into field goal range at the end of the first half. Anthony Firkser earned an end-zone target but wasn’t able to come down with it.

 

Jacksonville Jaguars

 

Quarterback

 

Trevor Lawrence: 23/33, 273 yards, TD, INT, 2 Sacks | 7 carries, 28 yards, TD

 

Trevor Lawrence looked good today, especially with his legs. Lawrence is dangerous as a runner, and he did a good job of using his legs to extend passing plays. One play in particular that stood out saw Lawrence spin away from a sack before rolling to his left and finding Tavon Austin who picked up the first down.

 

 

Lawrence’s touchdown throw was a perfectly placed short throw to Jacob Hollister in the back corner of the end zone.

 

 

As a runner, Lawrence did most of his damage on what appeared to be designed quarterback run options. He didn’t scramble much, and despite how effective these runs were the Jaguars seemed hesitant to rely on them as a big part of the offense. He scored one touchdown on a quarterback keeper, going untouched into the endzone, and almost had a second one but was ruled down at the 1-yard line after review.

 

 

The only real critique for Lawrence today was he didn’t do a better job of involving his top playmakers, but that may have been a coaching decision so I won’t judge him too harshly for that. Lawrence’s only interception came on the last play of the game as he tried to force the ball into the end zone, although it is worth noting he had another interception earlier in the game called back for a defensive penalty.

 

Running Backs

 

James Robinson: 18 carries, 149 yards, TD | 1 target, 1 reception, -2 yards

Carlos Hyde: 5 carries, 13 yards

 

Carlos Hyde returned from injury this week, but James Robinson maintained his hold on an every-down role and out-snapped Hyde 41-18. Robinson broke a long run for 58 yards in the first quarter on a well-blocked play where Robinson did a good job of finding the hole quickly and accelerating upfield. It was a little disappointing to see him get caught from behind, but it looked like he just ran out of gas towards the end of the run.

 

 

Robinson came off the field for the next two plays, which allowed Hyde to get two carries in the red zone. Fortunately for Robinson, Hyde was tackled at the 1-yard line and Robinson was able to come back on the field to cap off the drive after doing most of the heavy lifting.

 

 

Robinson had a few more solid carries in the first half but was largely kept in check until a strong drive in the second half where the Titans appeared to play a little more conservative on defense. He wasn’t used much in the passing game, despite appearing to run routes on a lot of Lawrence’s dropbacks, but did have a short reception called back for a holding penalty. Surprisingly, with the game still in question, the Jaguars decided to hand the ball off to Hyde when faced with a 4th down from the 1-yard line rather than go back to Robinson or let Lawrence try to run it in. Unsurprisingly, this did not work.

 

 

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

 

Laviska Shenault Jr.: 3 targets, 1 reception, 58 yards

Marvin Jones: 5 targets, 1 reception, 25 yards

Tavon Austin: 5 targets, 5 receptions, 54 yards

Jamal Agnew: 8 targets, 6 receptions, 41 yards | 1 carry, 8 yards

Dan Arnold: 8 targets, 6 receptions, 64 yards, Fumble

Jacob Hollister: 1 target, 1 reception, 1 yard, TD

 

The Jaguars’ receivers were the most disappointing part of this game and ultimately their production is probably why the game wasn’t closer. For reasons known only to the Jaguars’ coaching staff, Laviska Shenault didn’t touch the ball until the fourth quarter.

 

 

When he did finally see the ball, he showed why he should be a featured part of this offense every week by breaking several tackles and ripping off a monster run after the catch.

 

 

Probably a good idea for that guy to get more than three targets. He did drop what should have been an easy touchdown on a shallow crossing route after the above play, but still, three targets for one of the team’s best playmakers is tough to excuse. Regardless of what the defense is doing Shenault is the type of player that the offense should be able to manufacture touches for.

 

 

A similarly strange decision was to not feature Marvin Jones, who saw just five targets and turned that into just one reception for 25 yards. Jones also almost had a touchdown, but Lawrence was a touch late on the throw and the defender was able to break it up. The Jaguars instead relied on Dan Arnold and Jamal Agnew,  a tight end playing in his second game with the team and a former defensive back who prior to this week had mostly been utilized as a return man. Arnold fumbled on his first reception, which was recovered by the Titans and returned for a touchdown.

 

 

He bounced back from that to have a solid game, and it was clear the Jaguars were making it a point to get him involved. They even called a tight end screen for him and seem to view him as a receiving threat worth featuring. Agnew had a crucial drop on third down that forced the Jaguars to settle for a field goal, which of course they missed. Tavon Austin was the other major piece of the passing game and was utilized mostly on underneath routes designed to give him a chance to run after the catch.

 

 — Dan Adams (@dadams0323 on Twitter).

Series Navigation
Introduction
Rams @ Seahawks
Jets @ Falcons
Lions @ Vikings
Broncos @ Steelers
Packers @ Bengals
Dolphins @ Buccaneers
Saints @ Football Team
Eagles @ Panthers
Titans @ Jaguars
Patriots @ Texans
Bears @ Raiders
Browns @ Chargers
Giants @ Cowboys
49ers @ Cardinals
Bills @ Chiefs

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