PERSONNEL NEWS

Strategy And Personnel

The Sports Xchange

October 04, 2018 at 1:09 am.

PLAYER NOTES

–RB Leonard Fournette on Wednesday was declared out for the Kansas City game this Sunday due to the hamstring injury he aggravated in last week’s game against the Jets.

–CB D.J. Hayden was ruled out on Wednesday due to a toe injury. It will be the third straight game that Hayden has missed after suffering the injury three weeks ago against New England.

–TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins has been targeted twice in the red zone in four games and both resulted in touchdown receptions though one was called back because of a penalty on LG Andrew Norwell. Look for more such throws to Seferian-Jenkins in the weeks ahead. He missed Wednesday’s practice due to a core muscle injury. Seferian-Jenkins has missed the last couple of Wednesday practices in order to help recuperate from the injury. He has not missed any games for the Jaguars this season.

–LG Andrew Norwell did not practice on Wednesday due to a foot injury.

–RB T.J. Yeldon and DE Calais Campbell were both limited in Wednesday’s practice due to ankle injuries.

–RG A.J. Cann and RT Jermey Parnell were both limited in Wednesday’s practice due to injuries. The two starters on the right side of the line have triceps and knee injuries respectively.

–FS Tashaun Gipson lost out on recording the first interception by the Jaguars secondary this year when his pick against the Jets last Sunday was nullified due to a holding call on teammate A.J. Bouye.

–CB A.J. Bouye had an opportunity for a possible pick-6 when he dropped a pass late in the third quarter inside the Jacksonville 10-yard line. Bouye had an open field and a running start on what would have been a 90-plus yard return for a score.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: RB T.J. Yeldon. With Leonard Fournette likely to miss at least several more games, the brunt of the running game falls to Yeldon. He’s had two solid games, against New England (5.8 per attempt) and Tennessee (6.3) but the two games against the New York teams he’s struggled, 3.6 (Giants) and 2.9 (Jets). For the season, Yeldon has run for 205 yards in 49 carries, a 4.2 average. Yeldon needs to be above the 4.0 mark in every game in order for the Jaguars running game to be effective and take the pressure off Blake Bortles. Yeldon brings an added dimension in that he’s an adapt pass receiver out of the backfield. He’s caught 14 passes for 125 yards and two touchdowns. His 31-yarder for a score against the Jets last week is a perfect example of how potent of a receiver he can be when Bortles can’t find a wide receiver or tight end. Look for Yeldon to get at least 20 touches in all games until Fournette returns to the lineup.

GAME PLAN: The Jaguars’ game plan is to control the ball and time by putting together lengthy drives against the Chiefs. Doing so will keep the Chiefs offense on the sideline. When quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his offensive unit have the ball, they’ve been very successful in putting points on the board. Look for the Jaguars to go with five defensive backs much of this game, similar to what they did against both the New York Giants and New England. Mahomes has been very effective in his first four games this season which is why the Jaguars secondary will have five, sometimes six defensive backs in the game.

The Jaguars offense will be without Leonard Fournette for the third time in five games this year and that will put more emphasis on the passing game. Blake Bortles has been most effective with the short throws, the slants over the middle or quick tosses to wide receivers near the sidelines. Look for added attention to backup running back Corey Grant on the short throws out of the backfield.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH

–Chiefs TE Travis Kelce vs. Jaguars FS Deshaun Gipson. This will be a matchup of two of the league’s top players at their position. Kelce leads the Chiefs with 38 targets and has 23 catches for 307 yards and three touchdowns. His size, athleticism and ability to find an open spot in opposing secondaries makes him a threat on every passing play. Gipson has had a solid start to the 2018 season and says he’s up for the challenge of playing one of the best tight ends in the game today. “This is a matchup that I’m really excited about,” he said. “When the schedule came out for this year, I circled the games where there were tight ends I knew I would really be amped up to play, and this is certainly one of them. If you feel like you’re the best or want to put it out there that you’re the best, you have to go against the best and that’s Kelce. He and (New England’s) Rob Gronkowski are 1-A and 1-B.”

–Jaguars QB Blake Bortles vs. Chiefs secondary. With no Fournette in the lineup, the Jaguars will be forced to put the ball in the air more than they would like. That happened Sunday when the Jaguars had seven more passing plays than running attempts once Fournette was out of the lineup. Watch for the Chiefs secondary to play tight on the Jaguars receivers. In last Sunday’s game against the Jets, Bortles completed all 11 of his pass attempts in the first two series, but all 11 passes were short throws and only four of the completions resulted in a gain of more than 10 yards. The linebackers will have to be alert for when Bortles takes off on scrambles. He’s not particularly fast, but if he sees an opening he’ll make the most of it. His 132 yards in 18 running plays (7.3 average) is second highest on the Jaguars, trailing only Yeldon’s 205 yards.

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