JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jaguars are headed to their home away from home with a lengthy list of issues to fix in London.
Jacksonville is coming off its leanest all-around performance of the season in a 20-12 loss to Seattle in Week 6. The Jaguars had been able to navigate some tricky spots this season with a defense that has forced takeaways at a breakneck pace.
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But those didn’t happen against the Seahawks, and the offense wasn’t able to get going.
Jacksonville rarely pressured quarterback Sam Darnold and didn’t force a turnover for the first time this season. Linebacker Devin Lloyd, perhaps the team’s defensive MVP this year, left the game with a hamstring injury, and isn’t making the trip to London to face the Rams (4-2) on Sunday at 9:30 a.m.
The opposition doesn’t lighten up, with head coach Liam Coen and general manager James Gladstone facing their mentors (head coach Sean McVay and GM Les Snead) for the first time. Coen said how the game falls on the schedule is at an ideal time. The Jaguars left for London on Monday afternoon and will be there together for the bulk of the week.
When adversity hits, it’s time to respond.
“It was just something that when we talked about in the offseason, this could be a possible opportunity for a new everything to maybe be together for an extended period of time,” he said. “It just so happens I told the team, what a perfect time for this to come up, that we’re coming off of a tough loss and we’ve got to face a little adversity as a team. Well now we’re together for an extended period of time in a new setting, in a different place.”
The Jaguars had their worst offensive performance of the season against the Seahawks. It started up front on the line where Seattle eviscerated Jacksonville and continued with things like penalties and dropped passes. According to ESPN, Trevor Lawrence was pressured 27 times on his 50 dropbacks, the highest amount in a game since 2022. The Titans pressured Patrick Mahomes 28 times in a Week 9 game that year.
The only new starter on the line against Seattle was rookie center Jonah Monheim, and Coen said he thought Monheim played “pretty well” in place of the injured Robert Hainsey. The team was also flagged 10 times, including one that wiped out a touchdown.
“At the end of the day, we did not play well enough up front. It starts there and we did not meet our standards of operating up front,” Coen said. “We can help them with some chips and stuff like that, but ultimately, I think those guys understand and they know that we didn’t meet a standard, and we’ve got to get back to playing the game that we know how.”
Jacksonville had done enough this season to minimize the pressure coming at Lawrence and open up lanes for the ground game to thrive. None of that happened against the Seahawks. Lawrence had been sacked a total of six times all season before Sunday’s game. Seattle sacked him seven times.
The Jaguars face another good defensive front in London against Los Angeles. Coen said that Jacksonville continues to monitor the progress of Hainsey (hamstring) and plans to get rookie guard Wyatt Milum more reps this week.
“You definitely flush it at some point, but we got to look at it, take accountability for it. Definitely learn and grow from it and once those have been set in place, then I think you flush it and you move on,” right guard Patrick Mekari said.
“So, watch the film today. Correct the stuff that needs to be corrected, practice at it this week, and then not make the same mistakes, focus on the Rams, get better.”
The offensive line’s struggles have largely been limited to that Seattle game. What has been a lingering issue for Jacksonville on offense is the inconsistency from its pass catchers.
Brian Thomas Jr. caught his first receiving touchdown of the year (he rushed for a score in Week 1) but again had a critical dropped pass on third down that would have helped the Jaguars extend a drive in the fourth quarter. Coen said Thomas’ struggles are something he points to as surfacing in multiple areas.
“I mean, it is no different than some of the inconsistencies in a lot of our guys right now is. Our good and some of the good has been really good, and some of the bad just goes to a really bottom floor in some ways,” Coen said. “And that’s just the consistent play that we’re looking for from everybody.”
Jacksonville’s pass catchers have underwhelmed as a group. After a spectacular rookie season where he made the Pro Bowl, Thomas has been the biggest disappointment on the offensive side of the ball. Free agent Dyami Brown has struggled. Rookie Travis Hunter has made some dazzling catches but struggled at times with penalties and lining up in the right spot. Brown ranks third in the league with drop percentage (13%), according to Pro Football Reference. Thomas is tied with Jerry Jeudy for most dropped passes (five) by a receiver.
Pro Football Focus has Jacksonville with 16 dropped passes this year. Pro Football Reference has the Jaguars with 17 drops. Both of those totals lead the NFL. Lawrence is seeing passes dropped at 8.3%, the worst mark in the league by a substantial margin. Tennessee’s Cam Ward is second at 5.3%.
Coen said that he still has confidence in Thomas, as well as kicker Cam Little. The second-year kicker from Arkansas missed the first PAT of his college or NFL career against Seattle. Little also missed a 50-yard field goal against the Seahawks.
“A part of this thing is trying to not let those dips dip down so low that it’s game changing. We’re all going to make mistakes or have physical errors, cut down on the mental errors, but the dips can’t go so low. So, I still have confidence,” Coen said.