Falcons 28, Jaguars 12: Tim Jones, Devin Lloyd and Other Winners

The Jacksonville Jaguars are 14 days away from taking on the Washington Commanders in Week 1, and they are even closer to having to finalize their Week 1 53-man roster.

With the Jaguars finishing the preseason with a 28-12 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Saturday, the Jaguars got one final chance to take stock and look at their depth and bubble players ahead of Tuesday's cut day.

“I feel good. I feel good about the starters. The way they’ve played the last couple of weeks and have really dominated while they were in there," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said.

"These guys today got chances to solidify some of those backup spots that we’re looking for and really try and find some special teams’ guys that are willing to step up and play special teams and that’s what these games are all about. Who is willing to embrace that? Overall, I feel good about the starters and where they are and how they are focused and ready to get this thing going”.

So, which Jaguars stood out against the Falcons and what could it mean for them moving forward? We break it down below.

Tim Jones

No player did more for their chances to make the 53-man roster than second-year receiver Tim Jones, who finished the game with three catches for 103 yards (34.3 yards per catch) on three targets. He caught two passes of 40+ yards, including a 49-yard gain on an underthrown deep ball that helped him show off his ability to track the ball. Jones showed speed, hands and toughness on Saturday and was arguably the best player on the field.

“Some of these guys have really taken advantage of their situations and opportunities and some of the veteran players showed up in the first half today and it was really good to see some of these young guys really taking advantage of the extended playtime," Pederson said after the game.

Cole Van Lanen

The Jaguars' reserve offensive line clearly struggled against the Falcons, with the Jaguars' running backs carrying it 16 times for 44 yards (2.75 yards per carry). This included fifth-round rookie Snoop Conner getting just 15 yards on 11 carries; some of this was due to indecisiveness from Conner, but most of the issue was the offensive line.

The lone exception along the line, though, was recently acquired guard Cole Van Lanen. Van Lanen started the game at right guard in his first appearance with the Jaguars after they traded a seventh-round pick for him earlier in the week, and he looked like he belonged and then some. He isn't competing for a starting spot, but the fact he stood out amongst a bad line on Saturday says a lot.

Devin Lloyd

The long wait finally ended for No. 27 overall pick Devin Lloyd. The Jaguars saw Lloyd make his preseason debut after a hamstring injury kept him sidelined for much of training camp, with the rookie linebacker Lloyd playing most of the first-half and recorded five tackles (three solo, two assists). He was physical and showed off his range throughout the game, not looking much at all like a rookie who was getting his first-ever NFL minutes.

"He’s strong and healthy. We wanted to get him at least(the) first quarter and he played almost the first half with 25 or 26 snaps and he did well from what I can see. We’ll watch the tape on the way home but he looked good he played fast and that was good to see," Pederson said.

Da'Shaan Dixon

With the Jaguars not playing Josh Allen, Travon Walker, Dawuane Smoot, Arden Key, or K'Lavon Chaisson on Saturday, this meant the preseason finale gave the Jaguars' young defensive linemen and outside linebackers a great chance to make an impact. The player who stood out the most amongst this group was undrafted free agent outside linebacker Da'Shaan Dixon, who recorded a sack and a tackle for loss and was disruptive throughout the course of the entire contest.

Daniel Thomas

Third-year safety Daniel Thomas hasn't had the best preseason after some tackling issues in the first couple of games, but he helped put all of those plays in the rearview mirror on Saturday. On the first play of the game, Thomas made a great play on a bad throw from Desmond Ridder, driving downhill on the ball and intercepting the first attempt of the game. Thomas also made an impressive tackle on special teams and wasn't credited with any missed tackles on defense.

James McCourt

It is hard to think Saturday didn't go perfect for new Jaguars kicker James McCourt, who Jacksonville claimed on waivers earlier this week. McCourt and fellow new kicker Jake Verity were given chances to make a statement on Saturday and McCourt did that in a big way, recording three touchbacks on kickoffs and making field goals from 38 and 54 yards out, while Verity missed a 46-yard attempt.

“Well, I think it’s enough to get on tape, but I don’t think we can necessarily decide. I think we have to figure that out this week in practice and try to go from there and make that decision," Pederson said.