Gardner Minshew, Mike Glennon to Compete for Jaguars' Starting Gig in Week 16
The Jacksonville Jaguars do not yet know who their starting quarterback will be against the Chicago Bears this Sunday, instead pitting Mike Glennon and Gardner Minshew II against each other in a one-week competition.
Minshew got the nod over Glennon against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 15 and was the one put on the field when Glennon was benched the previous week. But now, Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone will make his decision based on practice following the 40-14 loss to the Ravens.
"What we are doing is we told both players, Mike and Gardner, that we are going to split the reps and see how practice goes," Marrone said on Wednesday.
Marrone went on to note that the Jaguars will have numerous position groups competing for major roles during practice. With that said, it is obviously a bigger emphasis when that competition comes at quarterback, especially in Week 16.
"They are not the only position. We are looking at some other players and saying hey, whoever has the best week of practice, know what I am saying, to try to make sure we get the right guy out there that can do the game plans that we need to win," Marrone said. "So we have a competition going on and we will see who does well.
Jacksonville has had a carousel at the quarterback position in 2020. Minshew started the first seven games before a thumb injury sidelined him for the next six. Jake Luton started three games in his place before being benched, while Glennon then got the next three starts.
Against the Ravens, Minshew completed 22 of 29 passes for 226 yards and two touchdowns, though he did fumble once and was also sacked for a safety. Jacksonville had fewer than 70 yards of offense at halftime, so a bulk of his production came in garbage time.
"It was very hard. It felt like everything we were doing, they had an answer for it. I felt they played really well and we didn’t execute consistently enough in the first half," Minshew said Sunday.
In eight starts this year, Minshew has completed 66.1% of his passes for 2,259 yards (6.9 yards per attempt) with 16 touchdowns and five interceptions. Glennon, meanwhile, has completed 61% of his passes for 600 yard (6.0 yards per attempt) with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
"I want to see which one can execute the game plan better during the week to feel that we give us the best opportunity," Marrone said.
"Because I think when I look at both of them, there are plusses and minuses with both. And knowing that I am trying to get the best I can of who has the best week and gives me the best odds of playing the best on Sunday."
Jacksonville (1-13) is set to play the Bears at home on Sunday. With the chance to pick Trevor Lawrence on the line, it remains to be seen which passer he will be directly replacing.
