Giants 23, Jaguars 17: Game Balls

Which Jaguars stood out the most in Sunday's loss against the Giants?

Each week during the 2022 season, we will take a quick post-game look at which Jacksonville Jaguars stood out the most.

Win or lose, rain or shine, we will hand out game balls to an offensive, defensive and special teams player.

In this edition, we take a look at the Jaguars' 23-17 loss to the New York Giants in Week 7 and which players stood out in big ways.

Offense: Jawaan Taylor

Jaguars right tackle Jawaan Taylor has had a relatively solid 2022 season, and this continued on Sunday against a Giants' pass-rush that relied solely on Kayvon Thibodeaux and their interior rush. And while the Giants did record eight pressures against the Jaguars' offensive line per PFF (four by Brandon Scherff, two by Luke Fortner and two by Cam Robinson), Taylor went the entire game without allowing a single player to pressure Trevor Lawrence.

The Jaguars are first in quarterback hits allowed and tied for second in sacks allowed with 10, just one behind the Buffalo Bills' leading figure of nine. That is in part due to scheme, in part due to Trevor Lawrence showing a good ability to manage the pocket but also in part due to some massively improved play from Taylor, who has now allowed just seven pressures through seven games.

Defense: Darious Williams

For as much as the Jaguars struggled to stop Daniel Jones from completing passes to in the intermediate area of the field, they struggled to get their slot receivers involved downfield thanks to a good performance from Darious Williams. Williams had his best game as a Jaguar yet, allowing just five catches for 41 yards on nine targets while also recording two pass breakups. 

It hasn't always been a smooth transition to the slot for Williams, but he has come along nicely over the last several games. Jones had just a 67.4 rating when targeting Williams in coverage, by far the best among the Jaguars' starting cornerbacks. Williams has consistently been able to break up passes in recent weeks and did so again this week, including a pass-breakup on third-down to force the first Giants punt of the game.

Special teams: Logan Cooke

It is tough to say if there is any player on the Jaguars roster who is more consistent week in and week out than Logan Cooke. Cooke is a legit All-Pro caliber punter, something that would likely be recognized if the Jaguars won more, or if the Jaguars even simply had to punt more. Cooke only punted twice but still netted 106 yards, including a 57-yard punt that helped pin the Giants.