Jaguars Mailbag: How Does Chris Jones Impact Week 2?

The Jaguars will likely have to face Chris Jones in Week 2, but what kind of impact should they expect?

Throughout the offseason, we will be taking questions on the biggest questions facing the Jacksonville Jaguars until Week 1.

You can submit your questions every week by tweeting them to the Jaguar Report Twitter handle or by submitting them here.

In this week's mailbag we take questions on the Kansas City Chiefs, Chris Jones and more.

Q: Is the IOL in trouble with our backups against Chris Jones?

A: A lot obviously depends on how much Jones plays. Tyler Shatley will get the start at right guard if Brandon Scherff can't play, so there is at least some familiarity since he played two games against Jones and the Chiefs last year. And unlike the Colts' strong interior duo of Grover Stewart and DeForest Buckner, the Chiefs just have one truly impactful player inside.

Without Jones, the Chiefs' defensive tackles recorded one pressure and three defensive stops, per PFF, in Week 1 -- with 75% of that production coming from Derrick Nnadi. They were playing one of the best offensive lines in football, but they also weren't blowing many plays up in the interior without Jones, either. 

I think Jones will make an impact because he is one of the best defensive players in the NFL, but we will see if he has a full role this week.

Q: Do you think Kirk gets an abundance of targets in week 2 after getting very few last week?

A: Honestly, I don't think this is a great matchup for Kirk either. The Chiefs' best cornerback Trent McDuffie has turned into a lockdown defender in the slot and the Lions had more success throwing away from him last week, instead testing the Chiefs' outside cornerbacks. The Jaguars should focus on their matchup advantage on the outside with Calvin Ridley this week.

Q: What does Yasir Abdullah need to do to this weekend to continue to see his snaps increase? His PRWR was fairly high last weekend. Would love to see more of him and less of 45.

A: He only played six snaps, rushing the passer on five of those and recording a pressure on one of the reps. That is a solid performance in a small sample size but, like you said, he will have to leapfrog K'Lavon Chaisson to play more. He didn't play until the final drive of the game, and this is likely because the Jaguars just trust a veteran like Chaisson with more on his plate. Until Abdullah gets more experience, this is the usage I would expect. 

Q: Is the Oline a genuine concern or would you attribute the week 1 performance to rust

A: On one hand, the Colts have a great front seven. Kwity Paye and Grover Stewart are good players, their inside linebackers fly to the line of scrimmage, and DeForest Buckner is one of the best defensive tackles in the entire NFL. With that said, there were quite a few losses in either the running game or passing game between the three interior linemen, so question marks will remain as long as the Jaguars keep drawing tough opponents. 

Q: My first 4 week prediction has us 3-1 with this being closer than our previous 10-point deficits, but still a loss. Is there anyway you could convince me otherwise?

A: I think the Houston Texans could make things interesting. They are well-coached, have a rookie quarterback who was likely the best Year 1 passer in Week 1, and Will Anderson was absolutely fantastic against the Ravens. With that said, I think the Jaguars should be able to handle the Atlanta Falcons in London. They have a strong enough run defense to hand with Bijan Robinson, and Desmond Ridder isn't scaring anyone. 

I am back and forth on Week 2. Get with me later in the week for my prediction there. 

Q: How do the analytics show Anton Harrison did? Just watching the game from home it looked like Walker Little struggled all game. I didn't notice anything bad with Harrison (probably because most of my attention was on Ridley)

A: PFF and Sports Info Solutions both have him with two pressures and one sack allowed. One pressure came on a first-quarter drive, while the other was a sack shortly before halftime to knock the Jaguars out of field goal position. On re-watch, it was a so-so game for Harrison. He was mostly good in the run game, but he did have one whiff on a Jamal Agnew run and then his sack potentially took points off the board. 

As for Walker Little, the only pressure he allowed was on his holding penalty in the second half that negated a big Calvin Ridley catch. He had a good game in pass-pro. 

Q: How do you see Kirk and Jones targets shaking out behind Ridley?

A: I think Ridley will still get the lion's share of the targets throughout the season. He is the clear No. 1 receiver and Trevor Lawrence already has incredible timing and chemistry with him, especially downfield. When you are as good at processing and timing in the passing game as Trevor Lawrence, receivers who can win downfield on any route are a special type of weapon. 

I do think you will see Jones and Kirk probably rotate as the No. 2 target in the passing game depending on the week. Some weeks the Jaguars will play teams that are tougher inside than outside, so it will likely be matchup-dependent week in and week out. 

Q: What would be your guess on how many snaps Chris Jones plays on Sunday?

A: It may not be a direct comparison because we don't know what kind of shape Chris Jones is in, but Nick Bosa was in a similar situation and played 56% of the snaps in Week 1 for San Francisco, logging 35 snaps. If Jones plays around 60% of the snaps, that would make a lot of sense.