Texans 37, Jaguars 21: Jaguars Outplayed, Outcoached in Lawrence's and Meyer's NFL Debuts
That wasn't the start the Jacksonville Jaguars expected. That wasn't the start anyone expected.
The Jaguars looked slow out of the gate in Sunday's season-opener against the Houston Texans, dropping the Week 1 road trip in a 37-21 loss.
And perhaps the worst part for those involved is that there isn't one single thing to point to -- the Jaguars failed on a complete level on Sunday.
Jacksonville turned in an extremely sloppy performance on both sides of the ball in Urban Meyer's NFL debut. At one point, it would have been accurate to say even lining up correctly would've been an improvement for a Jaguars team that looked unprepared offensively and undisciplined defensively.
Jacksonville got off to an ugly start, quickly falling behind 14-0 after Houston and Tyrod Taylor converted four third downs on the first scoring drive of the game, a 14-play, 84-yard scoring drive that took 7 minutes off the clock.
The Jaguars had some life breathed into the defense at points, but they came up short each time. Josh Allen recorded a sack on the Texans' first scoring drive, but Houston running back Mark Ingram would punch it in for a one-yard score after a Phillip Lindsay fumble recovered by Jacksonville was ruled an incomplete pass.
Things didn't get much better when No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence had his chance, either. The Jaguars set the tone for Lawrence's debut on the first drive, getting flagged for an illegal formation on the first play, and then having to call a timeout before the second play to avoid a delay of game.
The Jaguars finished the first-half with seven penalties, with several of those being ruled as procedural penalties (too many men in the huddle, illegal formation, illegal motion). The Jaguars ended the game with 10 total penalties for 82 yards, a sign of the self-inflicted issues facing the offense.
The special teams weren't great, either. The Jaguars had just 10 players on the field on their first punt return, while Josh Lambo missed a 55-yard field goal on the Jaguars' second drive. From the offense to the defense to the special teams, nothing was going well for the Jaguars.
Lawrence had some bright spots, such as a 33-yard completion to Marvin Jones Jr. early in the first quarter. He also threw two touchdowns; a 22-yard dart to Chris Manhertz in the second quarter and a 44-yard deep score to DJ Chark late in the third.
But Lawrence also had his down moments. The rookie passer ended his day 28 of 51 (54.9%) for 332 yards (6.5 yards per attempt) and three touchdowns, along with three interceptions, two of which came on back-to-back drives in the second half.
Then, things truly went downhill. With the Jaguars down 17-7 with 2:32 left in the first-half following Lawrence's second interception, the Texans took the game over.
From that point on, the Texans scored 10 points to close out the half. The true signal of the Jaguars' complete lack of preparedness came at the end of half, with Taylor and Brandin Cooks once again doing whatever they wanted against the Jaguars' defense.
The death-knell to the Jaguars came with less than 0:30 left in the half. K'Lavon Chaisson came off the right edge unblocked but missed two chances to sack Taylor, resulting in Taylor breaking to his left and completing a 52-yard pass to Cooks with 0:12 left on the clock, putting the Texans on the Jaguars' eight-yard line.
Two plays later, Danny Amendola caught an eight-yard touchdown to put the Texans up by 20 entering the half, effectively shutting down any positive momentum for the Jaguars to move forward.
Ultimately, the Jaguars' defense looked mostly toothless against Houston and Taylor. Taylor finished the day with 21 of 33 for 291 yards and two touchdowns, while Cooks and Amendola combined for 166 yards and one touchdown on 10 catches.
Perhaps most concerning was the Jaguars' complete inability to stop the run. The Jaguars built their defense around stopping the run and thrived at doing so during the preseason, but Houston ran with ease as Mark Ingram led the charge for the Texans' 160-yard performance on the ground.
Jacksonville also was handily outplayed on third-down throughout the contest. Houston frequently picked up third downs with ease through the air, converting 12 of 21 third downs (57%).
Meanwhile. The Jaguars looked like it took everything in their power to pick up any first-downs, let alone one on third-down. The Jaguars finished the game with a 3 for 11 (27%) conversion rate on third-down.
Lawrence had flashes, of course, but also looked like a rookie quarterback playing on a team in transition. In fairness to him, the Jaguars didn't do much to support him, rushing only 16 times for 72 yards, including only five carries given to James Robinson. The Jaguars also dropped six passes, with multiple coming from Robinson and one from DJ Chark on third-down.
All in all, it was beyond a concerning start for the Jaguars. It is a long season, but the start of the Meyer era got off to the ugliest of ugly starts.
The rookie quarterback looked like a rookie, which is expected, but what wasn't expected was for the Jaguars to come out the gate looking like a team that wasn't prepared to play. That is exactly what happened, and that is exactly why the Jaguars will start the year 0-1.
