Jaguars vs. Bengals: Week 4 Snap Count Analysis

Who played the most snaps vs. the Bengals in Week 4 and why? We break it down here.

While watching a game live can give you one impression of a player's usage, looking at the actual amount of snaps they played compared to their teammates can also give insight into the team's strategy and outlook.

When looking at the snap counts for the Jacksonville Jaguars after their 33-25 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, it is clear to see what kind of plan the Jaguars went into the game with, and what limitations they had from a personnel standpoint.

Who played a lot, and why? Did the snaps mean anything or nothing? We examine below:

Offense (68 snaps)

LG Andrew Norwell: 68 (100%)

C Tyler Shatley: 68 (100%) 

RG A.J. Cann: 68 (100%) 

RT Jawaan Taylor: 68 (100%)

QB Gardner Minshew: 68 (100%)

WR DJ Chark: 58 (85%)

LT Cam Robinson: 53 (78%)

RB James Robinson: 52 (76%)

WR Keelan Cole: 50 (74%) 

TE Tyler Eifert: 46 (68%)

WR Laviska Shenault: 37 (54%)

TE James O'Shaughnessy: 35 (51%)

WR Chris Conley: 21 (31%)

RB Chris Thompson: 16 (24%)

LT Will Richardson: 15 (22%) 

WR Collin Johnson: 13 (19%) 

TE Tyler Davis: 7 (10%) 

FB Bruce Miller: 5 (7%)

• The Jaguars didn't slowly bring DJ Chark back into the fold ... he played more snaps than any player on the offense other than Gardner Minshew and the starting offensive line. Chark was once again the focal point of Jacksonville's offensive, just as Jay Gruden has envisioned since he took the Jaguars job.
• Will Richardson played double-digit snaps for the second week in a row. He subbed in for an ejected Cam Robinson last week, and this week he came in when Robinson went down with an injury.
• A week after Chris Thompson and James Robinson essentially split snaps, the Jaguars changed their strategy and went with Robinson as the clear lead back. Most of Thompson's snaps came on the game's final drive when the Jaguars were in hurry-up mode, so it is clear the Jaguars finally realized it is time to make Robinson the sole member of the backfield. 
• The Jaguars went with fewer three tight end sets and didn't use Bruce Miller often either. Jacksonville wanted to spread it out and throw it or run downhill out of shotgun against the Bengals, which explains why Tyler Davis and Bruce Miller didn't play much.

Defense (75 snaps) 

FS Andrew Wingard: 75 (100%)

SS Josh Jones: 74 (100%)

LB Joe Schobert: 74 (99%)

CB Tre Herndon: 71 (95%)

DE Josh Allen: 58 (77%) 

CB D.J. Hayden: 56 (75%)

CB Chris Claybrooks: 54 (72%)

LB Myles Jack: 43 (57%)

DT Taven Bryan: 41 (55%)

DE K'Lavon Chaisson: 40 (53%)

NT Abry Jones: 38 (51%)

DE Dawuane Smoot: 36 (48%)

NT DaVon Hamilton: 35 (47%) 

LB Dakota Allen: 32 (43%)

DT Doug Costin: 30 (40%)

DE Cassius Marsh: 24 (32%) 

DE Adam Gotsis: 17 (23%) 

CB Sidney Jones: 12 (16%)

CB CJ Henderson: 12 (16%) 

FS Brandon Watson: 2 (3%)

• CJ Henderson played just 12 snaps after injuring his shoulder in the first quarter. As a result, Chris Claybrooks played the most snaps of his NFL career with 54 snaps. He got beat in a few instances and was the primary culprit on Joe Mixon's 34-yard touchdown in the third quarter when he lost contain on the edge. 
• In his NFL debut (replacing Timmy Jernigan), Doug Costin played 30 snaps. Costin recorded two tackles and was disruptive at times, especially against the run. 
• Adam Gotsis played a season-low 17 snaps, which makes sense considering the Bengals spread the formation out more than anything else. As a result, K'Lavon Chaisson was able to play more snaps than he played in each of the last two weeks. 
• Dakota Allen and Sidney Jones were two more players who had to play sizeable snaps for the first time this season due to injuries at linebacker and cornerback. Allen played most of the second half, but he struggled a fair bit.