Behind Enemy Lines: Jacksonville Jaguars - Wk3
HTown Football goes behind enemy lines with an in-depth look at Week 3 opponent Jacksonville Jaguars
HOUSTON TEXANS (0-2) AT JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (1-1)
Sunday, September 24, 2023, 1:00pm ET | FOX: Chris Myers, Robert Smith, Jen Hale
All-Time Series: Houston Leads 28-14 (won 9 of past 10) | Last Time: 1/1/23: JAX 31 at HOU 3
(Photos: courtesy Jaguars.com)
HTown Football goes ‘Behind Enemy Lines’ in NFL Week 3, as the Jacksonville Jaguars host the Houston Texans. After falling to the Indianapolis Colts a week ago, Houston has another key game within their division and are looking to avoid dropping to 0-3. This will be the last divisional opponent Houston meets until November 26th, when the Jaguars visit the Texans. Below is an overview of the Jaguars and what to expect come Sunday. You will also find a game prediction at the bottom of this article, buckle up HTown!
JAX O vs HOU D
20 – Scoring – 28
306.5 – Total Yards – 309
217 – Passing – 191
89.5 – Rushing – 118
JAX D vs HOU O
19 – Scoring – 14.5
339.5 – Total Yards – 328.5
256.5 – Passing – 266.5
83 – Rushing – 62
JAX D vs HOU D
5 — Sacks — 4
6 — Takeaways — 2
+3 — Turnover Differential— 0
Head Coach: Doug Pederson (2nd Season)
Known for his offensive innovation and aggressiveness, Pederson, 54, has implemented a modern day, shotgun-based, spread offensive attack. The balanced scheme relies heavily upon pre-snap motion. Pederson joined the Jaguars after spending five seasons as the head coach (2016-20) of the Philadelphia Eagles, compiling a 46-39-1 record and guiding them to their first-ever Super Bowl Championship. He served as the offensive coordinator of the Kansas City Chiefs from 2013-15 and quarterbacks coach in Philadelphia from 2011-12. A 12-year NFL veteran, Pederson played quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles and Cleveland Browns after originally being drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the 1995 expansion draft. The Bellingham, Wash. native attended Northeast Louisiana (now Louisiana Monroe), where he was a three-year starter at quarterback.
“I tell you, these guys fly around. They play with a lot of speed, enthusiasm and aggression. It was just a tribute to what DeMeco [Texans Head Coach DeMeco Ryans] is doing down there. He’s changing that culture and obviously they’re young on offense with the quarterback and everything, but he’s a talented player. Dangerous out of the pocket, throws well on the run. A good football team, a scheme that we’re familiar with defensively, but they’re playing extremely well.” — Doug Pederson on Houston Texans
Offensive Coordinator: Press Taylor (2nd Season)
After splitting play-call duties with Pederson last season, the 35-year old Taylor has assumed the full-time role in 2023. Born in Norman, Oklahoma, he spent the 2013-20 seasons on Philadelphia's coaching staff, including five seasons with Pederson from 2016-20. In 2021, he served as a senior offensive assistant with the Indianapolis Colts. Prior to Philadelphia, Taylor was a graduate assistant/quarterbacks coach for two seasons (2011-12) at Tulsa. He played collegiately at Marshall (2009-2010) and Butler (Kan.) Community College (2007-08). He helped Butler win the Junior College National Championships in 2007 and 2008.
“Yeah, they’re still going to play the same thing. Shaq [Texans CB Shaquill Griffin] came up in Seattle, come up in this coverage scheme. It’s something that he’s familiar with, he played in the Indy game and you see him out there in that game as well. A lot of these guys have played, whether it’s in this system in Houston getting implemented for the first time, a lot of these guys come up in the system. That’s where Shaq cut his teeth playing in this style of coverage unit. It’s something he’s very familiar with obviously and he’s done it for a long time.” — Press Taylor on the loss of Derek Stingley Jr.
Defensive Coordinator: Mike Caldwell (2nd Season)
Jacksonville runs a 3-4 base defensive scheme, led by Caldwell but it acts more as a hybrid, featuring many interchangeable parts, especially at the linebacker position. The unit has played better overall early on 2023. Prior to the Jags, Caldwell spent the last three seasons (2019-21) as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers inside linebackers coach. Presviously, Caldwell spent the 2015-18 seasons working as the assistant head coach/inside linebackers coach with the New York Jets and linebackers coach for the Arizona Cardinals (2013-14). He began his coaching career with the Philadelphia Eagles (2007-12). An 11-year NFL veteran, Caldwell played with the Cleveland Browns (1993-95), Baltimore Ravens (1996), Arizona Cardinals (1997), Philadelphia Eagles (1998-2001), Chicago Bears (2002) and Carolina Panthers (2003). He attended Middle Tennessee State University, where his collegiate career earned him a spot in the Football Hall of Fame at MTSU.
“He’s a guy that I knew a little bit coming into college. My brother-in-law was with him and I kept hearing about him, about how he’s a great college quarterback and he can do this. Watching him on film, he’s poised back there and he hasn’t thrown an interception yet. He’s completing so many – I think he’s up in the 60% of his completions. He’s a guy that’s poised, has good accuracy and he’s a quarterback that stands back in the pocket and makes good decisions.” — Mike Caldwell on CJ Stroud
Jaguars Notebook:
RB Travis Etienne had 100-plus scrimmage yards in both games against the Texans last season, including 140 scrimmage yards (108 rushing, 32 receiving) during their last meeting in January.
Backup RB Tank Bigsby received 13 snaps last week and could see an increased role.
WR Christian Kirk led Jacksonville with a career-high 11 catches for 110 yards last week.
WR Jamal Agnew is an x-factor who duals as a dangerous punt/kick returner but has also had an increased role in the slot.
TE Evan Engram is one of two AFC tight ends (Hunter Henry) with at least five catches in each of the first two games.
LB Josh Allen had six tackles, one sack and a forced fumble in last meeting. He played just 57% of the Jaguars defensive snaps last week (38)
LB Foyesade Oluokun is seeking his fourth consecutive game with at least 10 tackles, dating back to last season.
LB Devin Lloyd led the team with 11 tackles last week. First overall pick LB Walker ….
The secondary duo of CB Tyson Campbell and S Andrew Cisco each have registered one interception and one forced fumble apiece.
Jaguars Two Deep Depth Chart: Offense
QB Trevor Lawrence // CJ Beathard
RB Travis Etienne Jr. // Tank Bigsby
WR Christian Kirk // Jamal Agnew
WR Zay Jones // Tim Jones
TE Evan Engram // Luke Farrell
LT Walker Little
LG Beb Bartch // Blake Hance
C Luke Fortner // Tyler Shatley
RG Brandon Scherff
RT Anton Harrison // Cole Van Lanen
“He’s a great player. You look at San Francisco and where Coach Ryans [Texans Head Coach DeMeco Ryans] came from, that’s what he’s trying to do in Houston and that scheme is carrying over, it all starts with the guys up front. They got a good group up front that really make it go. The linebackers fly around, we’ve played Denzel [Texans LB Denzel Perryman] last year when he was with Vegas and now he’s with the Texans. They’ve got some young guys in there that are playing good, and the backend they’ve had some injuries early on, but they’ve been flying around playing great. I know Pitre [Texans S Jalen Pitre] is a guy that stuck out to us a lot last year when we played against him. We’ll see if he’s healthy to go this week but guys are flying around, they’re well-coached, I feel like they’re still getting their system going and get guys are all in the right spots, but they’re playing really hard. The group up front gets after the quarterback, they’re really explosive. Those two edge guys are really good players. Just like any week, there’s great players all over the field but you can see what they’re trying to do there and they’re doing a good job in the first two weeks. Their defense is playing pretty well and flying around.” — Trevor Lawrence on Will Anderson Jr.
Jaguars Two Deep Depth Chart: Defense
DE Roy Robertson-Harris // Angelo Blackson
NT Folorunso Fatukasi // Jeremiah Ledbetter
DE Adam Gotsis // Tyler Lacy
OLB Josh Allen // Yasir Abdullah
ILB Foyesade Oluokun // Shaquille Quarterman
ILB Devin Lloyd // Chad Muma
OLB Travon Walker // K’Lavonn Chaisson
CB Darious Williams // Christian Braswell
CB Tyson Caampbell // Tre Herndon
S Andre Cisco // Daniel Thomas
S Rayshawn Jenkins // Andrew Wingard
Jaguars Injury Report
Did Not Participate:
Wednesday
DT Folorunso Fatukasi (shoulder)
S Antonio Johnson (hamstring)
WR Zay Jones (knee)
G Brandon Scherff (not injury related - personal matter)
Thursday
S Antonio Johnson (hamstring)
WR Zay Jones (knee)
Limited Participant:
Wednesday
LB Josh Allen (shoulder)
S Andrew Wingard (shoulder)
Thursday
LB Josh Allen (shoulder)
DT Folorunso Fatukasi (shoulder)
S Andrew Wingard (shoulder)
Full Participation:
Thursday
G Brandon Scherff (not injury related - personal matter)
* Be sure to follow Aaron Wilson and H-Town Football on Twitter for the latest Texans news!
Week 3 Prediction
With injuries mounting up after an 0-2 start, the Texans get dealt a hungry Jaguars team. Jacksonville is coming off a one-score loss to the defending Super Bowl Champion Chiefs, after being eliminated by them in the playoffs this past January. Houston must be alert on defense for trick plays. Both teams will look to establish the run. However, we have seen Houston get away from establishing the ground game when they fall into an early deficit. Getting on the scoreboard first and controlling the clock will be key to a Texans victory. Unfortunately, the Jaguars have a slew of playmakers on offense and a dangerous return man that could make it difficult to keep pace with in the second half. Final Score: Jaguars 31 Texans 10