Jaguars Mailbag: What Does Week 1 Loss Mean?

Throughout the season, we will be taking questions on the biggest questions facing the Jacksonville Jaguars.

You can submit your questions every week by tweeting them to the Jaguars On SI Twitter handle or by submitting them here.

If the team continues to shoot itself in the foot, do you think there could be a HC change during the season?

Q: The Jags obviously let one slip away and a lot of the focus will be on the OL but what about the pass catchers? BTJ looked great and I thought Gabe looked good too. But Kirk wasn’t himself and Engram was a ghost. What happened?

A: It was an odd game for both of them. It was the sixth time in Engram's Jaguars career that he only caught one pass, and this was the second-lowest yardage output he had (he had one catch for four yards against the Baltimore Ravens in 2022). But it was the lowest Engram has been targeted since Week 17 in 2022, and it just seemed like it wasn't an Engram week for whatever reason. The fact that Engram had similar numbers vs. the Ravens in 2022 suggests it could just be due to the defensive scheme.

As for Kirk, he was credited by PFF with two drops. One of them is iffy to me because it wasn't a great pass with Lawrence fading back due to pressure. With that said, he has come up clutch in those situations before and just didn't do it on Sunday.

Q: Why did we throw a bag at Tyson Campbell? He had one good season and is often injured, as we saw in week one.

A: Before Tyson Campbell got hurt, he allowed two catches on three targets for 14 yards. He played well. And that is why they paid him. He is a really good cornerback when he is healthy. But he wasn't healthy last year and, to your point, it has already come up again.

Q: Why the hell did you go for it from your own 32, in the third quarter, with a three-point lead?

A: Doug Pederson is always going to be aggressive on fourth-and-short. He likely thought that if the Jaguars get that conversion, they get back some momentum and could keep a drive going like the one before. And it didn't hurt them either because Jason Sanders missed the field goal.

Q: I didn’t understand the plan in the second half. Going for it on 4th that deep in your own territory would seem the team wants to be aggressive but they also took the air out of the ball in the second half as well. Did the second half plan make sense to you?

A: Not really. I think the Jaguars should have kept a balanced approach in the second-half, but the inability to convert third downs and stay on the field ultimately doomed them more than anything else.

Q: How in your eyes does this team overcome themselves?

A: Figure out how to stop playing bad situational football. Taking bad sacks on second down that lead to third-and-longs, turnovers, penalties, missed tackles on third-down. The Jaguars need to improve all of that.

Q: How do people look at TLaw and think its time to move on after watching the likes of Bortles, Minshew, Kessler, and what other hot garbage we rolled out in the past?

A: Fans are upset when their team doesn't win, and the coach, play-caller, and quarterback are always the ones whose heads are called for. Just the nature of the sport. Lawrence is a good quarterback, but until they win more people will remain upset.

Q: Depending how long or if Tyson Campbell is out, who do you see stepping up in his absence?

A: Either Buster Brown or Jarrian Jones, but I would throw the rookie out there. He did well on Sunday against Tyreek Hill.

Q: Any silver lining takeaways from this game that bodes well for the season?

A: Absolutely. Find out here!

Q: Which happens first, us getting clarity on who’s calling plays on offense, or the end of the Doug/Press era in Jacksonville?

A: Yes.

Q: Although back-to-back 9-8 seasons is a improvement on what came before, I personally think Baalke and the coaching staff would have entered this season on the hot seat if they were on another team. Yet I don't think that's the case. If we stumble to another 9-8 season with an underwhelming offense, can you see Shad Khan actually making changes? (Haven't given up on us winning the South already - just some Scottish pragmatism at play here.)

A: I agree with you, and I think Shad Khan does have them on notice right now. I think Khan is finally past the point of being content with being around .500. They need to win now.

Q: Is the Jags’ apparent inability to overcome adversity a talent issue? Or a character of the team issue?

A: Not a character issue. They have the right guys. I don't really have an answer otherwise, though. It mystifies me.

Q: Can Doug Pederson progress this team further than 8 or 9 wins? He has only had 1 season with over 9 wins. If we win 8 or 9 games and miss the playoffs, is it time to move on?

A: He can. Doug Pederson is a good coach. It does need to happen eventually, though.

Q: Why would the team pay Lawrence 275 million and seemingly go out of their way to take the ball out of his hands when things get close? What’s the point of paying him if you don’t trust him enough to close out games? Make it make sense, Doug!

A: I have no earthly idea.

Q: What did you think of the safety performance? I remember Antonio Johnson guilty of missed tackles and coverage mistakes. Is there cause for worry?

A: I think Andre Cisco has had better games in coverage. Antonio Johnson missed three tackles per PFF. That just can't happen, especially in this defense. Not cause for worry because it was the Dolphins and Week 1, but it is something to watch.

Q: How do the Jaguars fix their third down issues, on both sides of the ball? It’s gotten so bad that when the Jaguars are on defense we refer to it as “Third and Convert”, and offensively it’s just 4th down.

A: Offensively, they need to be better on first- and second-down. They were put in some bad spots on third down because of penalties, sacks, or negative plays. Defensively, they simply need to tackle better. According to PFF, they missed 14 tackles yesterday. 14!

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