Jaguars vs. Colts: Week 1 Snap Count Analysis

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 27-20 home victory over the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1, 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 (50 snaps)

LT Cam Robinson: 50 (100%)

LG Andrew Norwell: 50 (100%)

C Brandon Linder: 50 (100%)

RG A.J. Cann: 50 (100%)

RT Jawaan Taylor: 50 (100%)

QB Gardner Minshew II: 50 (100%)

WR DJ Chark: 42 (84%)

RB James Robinson: 34 (68%):

WR Keelan Cole: 33 (66%)

WR Laviska Shenault: 31 (62%)

TE Tyler Eifert: 28 (56%)

TE James O'Shaughnessy: 20 (40%)

WR Chris Conley: 16 (32%)

TE Ben Ellefson: 13 (26%)

RB Chris Thompson: 12 (24%)

FB Bruce Miller: 11 (22%)

WR Collin Johnson: 9 (18%)

RB Nathan Cottrell: 1 (2%)

A few notable things here. First off, it is interesting how little Chris Thompson played. James Robinson got 100% of the carries, which was expected to a degree, but we figured Thompson would be more of a factor than he was Sunday (two receptions for six yards). It doesn't help his case that the Jaguars only ran 50 offensive plays, but this will be a usage worth monitoring moving forward.
Keelan Cole and Laviska Shenault are clearly the No. 2 and No. 3 receivers behind DJ Chark, and you can order those two however you'd like. Cole played slightly more snaps and led the team in yards, catches and targets, but Shenault was the receiver across from Chark on the offense's first play, which featured just two receivers in the formation. Cole looks to have finally emerged from Jacksonville's dog house and has gotten his much-deserved snaps.
Chris Conley playing just 16 snaps show how reduced his role will be this year compared to last season. In 2019, the fewest amount of snaps he played in a game was 38 and the lowest % of offensive snaps he played was 70, stark contrasts from how much he was on the field on Sunday.
Jacksonville went with less 12 personnel than we thought they would initially, with Tyler Eifert and James O'Shaughnessy more or less playing the same amount of meaningful snaps.
In his first game since 2015, fullback Bruce Miller played 11 snaps and caught one pass, which was a two-yard gain for a first down.
Collin Johnson didn't play much in his rookie debut, which was expected considering he is the team's No. 5 wide receiver. He did catch a key third-down pass for a 14-yard reception.

Defense (74 snaps)

LB Joe Schobert: 74 (100%)

LB Myles Jack: 74 (100%)

CB Tre Herndon: 73 (99%)

SS Josh Jones: 72 (97%)

CB D.J. Hayden: 66 (89%)

FS Jarrod Wilson: 63 (85%)

CB CJ Henderson: 62 (84%)

DT Taven Bryan: 57 (77%)

DE Josh Allen: 46 (62%)

DE K'Lavon Chaisson: 46 (62%)

DE Adam Gotsis: 39 (53%)

DE Dawuane Smoot: 33 (45%)

NT Abry Jones: 30 (41%)

NT Davon Hamilton: 26 (35%)

DT Timmy Jernigan: 19 (26%)

FS Andrew Wingard: 13 (18%)

LB Leon Jacobs: 11 (15%)

CB Chris Claybrooks: 10 (14%)

In his debut with the Jaguars, strong safety Josh Jones played nearly every snap and likely would have played even more if he didn't leave the field for a few snaps with an injury. He led the team with 12 tackles and showed solid run defense as a box safety.
D.J. Hayden had a rough day, especially against screens and in man coverage, but there were only two games last season in which he played a higher % of the defensive snaps. Expect for him to play a ton next time they play the Colts as well.
Jacksonville had a true rotation at defensive tackle and the big end position. Adam Gotsis, Daquane Smoot, Abry Jones, DaVon Hamilton Timmy Jernigan and Taven Bryan all played at least 26% of the snaps, with the Jaguars sometimes using four of the six at once to form a heavy defensive line.
Josh Allen and K'Lavon Chaisson played the exact same number of snaps, though Allen missed some series due to cramping. Expect for the Jaguars to continue giving Chaisson a heavy workload, however.
Chris Claybrooks made his NFL debut by playing 10 snaps in place of CJ Henderson and Tre Herndon when they had to be examined off of the field, and the rookie seventh-rounder didn't look out of place. He is the team's true backup on the outside, getting the spot over Josiah Scott and Luq Barcoo.

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