PLAYER NOTES
–RB Leonard Fournette (hamstring), OT Jermey Parnell (knee) and G A.J. Cann (triceps) were all listed as “limited” in the Jaguars injury report for Wednesday.
–RB T.J. Yeldon did not practice on Wednesday due to an ankle injury.
–C Brandon Linder did not practice Wednesday due to a chronic knee concern. Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone said Linder would likely miss all Wednesday practices the rest of the season just to give his ailing knee a breather.
–TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins also missed Wednesday’s workout due to a core muscle injury.
–RB Brandon Wilds who was promoted to the 53-man roster on Saturday from the Jaguars practice squad, did not participate in Wednesday’s practice due to illness.
–K Josh Lambo is off to a strong start. Lambo has connected on all three of his field-goal attempts as well as six consecutive PATs for a team-leading 15 points.
–DE Calais Campbell was added to the Jaguars injury list Sunday morning because of soreness in his right knee. He wore a brace during the game to protect his knee. Campbell missed some action during the game when he was poked in the eye in the third quarter but returned in the fourth quarter and finished the game.
–QB Blake Bortles has now passed for 15,104 yards in his 4-plus years with the Jaguars. That’s the most for a Jaguars quarterback through 63 games in franchise history.
–P Logan Cooke had all three of his punts against the Patriots travel less than 40 yards. But two of his kicks pinned New England inside the 10-yard line (6 and 9-yard line). He averaged 35.3 yards a kick, but none of the punts were returned.
–CB Jalen Ramsey who drew an abundance of national media attention (again) for his comments during the offseason in which he said Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski wasn’t that good, helped limit the Pats All-Pro tight end to just two catches for 15 yards in the game. The Jaguars used a number of different defenders on Gronkowski, with FS Tashaun Gipson probably getting the most time shadowing the New England standout tight end.
–LB Myles Jack got some pregame attention when a small plane flew across the stadium and parts of the city with a banner that read: “Myles Jack Wasn’t Down.” That was in reference to last January’s AFC title game between the Jaguars and Patriots when Jack recovered a fumble, got up off the ground and headed to the end zone for a likely touchdown. But officials blew the whistle (prematurely according to many) and said that Jack was down by contact. Had Jack scored on the play, it would have given the Jaguars a 17-point lead at that stage with approximately 14 minutes left in the game.
–TE Niles Paul was only targeted one time during Sunday’s game, but he made the most of that opportunity, coming up with a 22-yard reception on a 2nd-and-16 play for the Jaguars with just over three minutes left in the game. That helped the Jaguars kill the final 3:40 of the fourth quarter after the Patriots had scored to make it an 11-point.
–OL Josh Walker and OL Will Richardson were both listed as inactive on Sunday. Both have played some tackle though the rookie Richardson has seen more time at guard. With Cam Robinson now out for the season and Wells moving into the starting lineup, it’s likely that either Walker or Richardson will be active for Sunday’s game and will serve as the backup tackle to either Wells or Jermey Parnell.
GAME PLAN: A week ago the Jaguars had almost a 2-1 ratio of pass to run in terms of plays from scrimmage. That’s not the norm for a team that led the NFL in rushing a year ago would like to see. But if Leonard Fournette remains on the sideline with a hamstring issue, look for a similar ratio again this week against the Titans. That doesn’t mean the Jaguars will be flinging the ball downfield on a regular basis however. Of the 45 pass attempts last week, 12 were to running backs and another seven were short throws to a tight end. The Jaguars were highly successful on short, slant routes over the middle to either Keelan Cole or Dede Westbrook. If Fournette is limited or doesn’t play, look for more of the same this week against the Titans.
Defensively, look for the Jaguars to turn the heat up with their pass rush. If backup quarterback Blaine Gabbert gets the start and the Titans starting tackles, Taylor Lewan (concussion) and Jack Conklin (knee) are less than 100 percent or don’t play, the Jaguars could be bringing the house more times than usual.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “I think obviously it is a divisional opponent early in the season and things of that nature. We had an opener on the road versus New York which was a tough, physical game. We had a home opener here versus New England which was a tough, physical game. We know we are going to get into a tough, physical game with our divisional opponent. For us, I think, we are trying to make sure that we manage the schedule and we get ourselves back. We are kind of banged up a little bit.” — Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: LT Josh Wells. Wells is one of three undrafted rookies that signed with the Jaguars in 2014, including current reserve lineman Tyler Shatley. That makes the two of them tied with a couple others for currently the third longest tenure with the Jaguars. Each of the last five seasons Wells has had to battle right to the wire to make the Jaguars 53-man roster. He’s never started the season as a starter and in the past four seasons, he’s appeared in 32 games with three starts, those coming last year when he started three games for the injured Jeremy Parnell at right tackle. But now Wells is in line to start the Jaguars final 14 regular season games following the torn ACL to left tackle Cam Robinson. Wells has been dependable (other than the 2015 season when he was on injured reserve the entire year) for the most part, but he’s also been inconsistent. He’s particularly had trouble with the quicker defensive ends who can speed-rush their way by him to the quarterback. Wells will have to be more consistent as he’s now charged with the responsibility of protecting Blake Bortles’ blind side.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
–Titans RB Derrick Henry vs. Jaguars LBs Telvin Smith, Myles Jack and Leon Jacobs. The Jaguars have kept Henry in check for the most part in the two years that he’s been with the Titans. Henry, who played his high school football on the outskirts of Jacksonville (Yulee), has been over 60 yards only one time in four games against the Jags. That came in last year’s game at TIAA Bank Field when Henry ran for 92 yards in 14 carries (6.5 average) and one touchdown. It showed how the former Alabama standout can be a tough load to bring down. While the Jaguars front four will attempt to close down running lanes, it’s the Jaguars trio of linebackers that will need to be active and get to Henry early before he builds momentum for his 238-pound frame. The Jaguars will try to take advantage of the Titans possibly being without their two starting tackles for a second straight game due to injuries. If Jacksonville can win the battle up front, it will make the job of the linebackers much easier in limiting Henry’s rushing totals.
–Jaguars WRs Keelan Cole and Dede Westbrook vs. Titans secondary. Cole, an undrafted rookie a year ago, and Westbrook, a fourth-round draft pick in 2017, have both emerged as efficient receivers for the Jaguars for the second year in a row. Neither are big, Cole at 194 and Westbrook at 178, but both have shown a knack of finding openings in opposing teams’ territory. Both were effective on the crossing routes over the middle to accumulate a combined 199 yards against the Patriots. The Jaguars have used both in this capacity and that matches their best attributes — running away from defenders once they’ve made a catch. Both only need to get a step on the defender and it could result in a big gain like Westbrook’s 61-yard reception for a touchdown, with over 50 yards coming after Westbrook caught the pass from QB Blake Bortles. The Titans secondary is also young and has a lot of athleticism with corners Malcolm Butler and Adoree’ Jackson. Jackson showed his skill set last week with a leaping interception of a pass from Houston’s Deshaun Watson. These two defenders will have to keep Cole and Westbrook in hand in order to force the Jaguars to go more with a running attack.
