Nick Foles Benched For Gardner Minshew After First Half
After a disastrous first half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone has benched veteran quarterback Nick Foles for rookie Gardner Minshew.
Marrone made the switch at halftime after Jacksonville had fallen behind 25-0 to the 4-7 Buccaneers at home at TIAA Bank Field. As Minshew took the field to start the second half, the stadium erupted in cheers, signs of a fan base finally being appeased.
Foles committed three turnovers on the first three drives of the game, with two coming in the red-zone. First, he threw a brutal interception to linebacker Devin White after driving the Jaguars into scoring possession. Then on the second drive, he was hit from behind by Shaquill Barrett while in the pocket and fumbled the football, leading to White scooping it for a touchdown.
Finally, Foles led the Jaguars to an 11-play drive that found the team at the Buccaneers 11-yard line with a chance to make the 15-0 score a one-possession game. Instead, he fumbled the ball after being sacked by Carl Nassib, committing a costly turnover and his third of the day.
After the turnovers, Foles didn't do much more. The offense committed three straight three-and-outs after the turnovers, leading to Jacksonville being shut out by the Tampa Bay defense despite Tampa having the second-worst scoring defense in the NFL.
The crowd at TIAA Bank Field let the team know exactly how they felt about the performance and the quarterback situation, chanting "We want Minshew" loudly after the turnovers and letting Foles hear it with boos.
Foles finished the first half with 7-of-14 passing for 93 yards, one interception and two fumbles lost. He has started two games at TIAA Bank Field but has yet to take a second half snap after being injured in Week 1 and benched in Week 13.
Since Foles regained the starting job in Week 11, Jacksonville had scored 10 points in three first halves, with only three of those points the last two weeks.
