Jaguars-Bears: 5 Observations

What did we see in the Jacksonville Jaguars' brutal 35-16 loss to the Chicago Bears in London?

Oct 13, 2024; London, United Kingdom; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) and Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Gabe Davis (0) and team mates celebrate a touchdown during the second half of an NFL International Series game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter van den Berg-Imagn Images / Peter van den Berg-Imagn Images

The Jacksonville Jaguars came to London to get their season back on track. Instead, they went as far off the rails as they have all season.

The Jaguars dropped their Week 6 bout vs. the Chicago Bears in embarrassing fashion, allowing rookie quarterback Caleb Williams to throw four touchdown passes in a 35-16 loss.

So, what did we see in the Jaguars' loss and what do we think it means moving forward? We break it down below.

Ryan Nielsen's defense is starting to doom the season

After an impressive overall showing in Week 1 against the Miami Dolphins, defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen's unit has been lost and it is only getting worse. Allowing 16 points and a few big plays to Deshaun Watson? Not ideal, but not season-ending.

Getting completely torched by Josh Allen? They aren't the first defense to do that. Letting C.J. Stroud have a big day in a last-minute loss? Geniune cause for concern.

And then the last two weeks have happened. In that span, the Jaguars have allowed 69 points, seven passing touchdowns, and 820 total yards. The Jaguars have finally started to get some turnovers, but they are letting offenses march up and down the field on then.

Nielsen wants to run man coverage and lean on the front four to get pressure, but he simply doesn't have the horses to do it -- and it is starting to cost the Jaguars their season.

Evan Engram has a great showing in his return

We will preface this by acknowledging that Evan Engram's third quarter fumble was one of the plays that truly put this game away, but otherwise ... Engram looked pretty dang good in his return from a hamstring injury.

The Jaguars offense struggled without him in the middle of the field and in terms of creating after the catch, but Engram picked right up where he left off.

Engram finished the day with 10 catches for 102 yards, marking the sixth 100-yard game of his career and his third with the Jaguars. He also passed tight end Pete Mitchell in all-time caches, now ranking third among tight ends and eighth overall, Almost half of Engram's yards came after the catch, too, which should translate into bigger plays and easier passing situations for Trevor Lawrence.

Drops continue to hurt the Jaguars' offense

Every quarterback in football has to deal with drops from his pass-catchers, no matter their age or level of experience. But it is an indisputable fact that no quarterback has dealt with more drops -- or has lost more big plays due to drops -- than Trevor Lawrence since 2021.

It was an issue his rookie year and it has flared up again in every year of the Doug Pederson regime.

The drops continued on Sunday, and this time they even set the tone for the day. The Jaguars had to settle for three points on the opening drive due to a dropped touchdown from Gabe Davis, but that wasn't it. Davis would drop another touchdown in the second-half, and he wasn't alone as Christian Kirk and Brian Thomas Jr. would go on to drop passes as well. Every team has drops, but none are doing it like the Jaguars.

Can Tyson Campbell save the secondary all by himself?

It almost feels like the Jaguars are hoping their pass defense will be saved when they get some defensive players off the injury list, namely starting cornerback Tyson Campbell. And Campbell's eventual return should boost the unit considering his talent.

He is easily the Jaguars' best defensive back, and he was having a dominant Week 1 performance before his injury.

With that said, this Jaguars' defense simply feels like it is far too gone for one player to save them all by himself. Campbell is a good, potentially even great player.

But the Jaguars' defensive issues are so deep-rooted and systematic that it is hard to believe Campbell's return all by itself will save the unit -- even if that is what they are hoping for.

Why this was such a bad loss for Doug Pederson and Trent Baalke

When you enter a week 1-4, every game is a must-win game. Realistically, there are only a small number of extra losses a team can sustain until their playoff hopes are dead.

Losing on Sunday dropped the Jaguars to 1-5 and made their postseason chances even smaller than they were entering the game, but that isn't the only reason Sunday's loss to the Bears was bad news for head coach Doug Pederson and general manager Trent Baalke.

In short, there is nothing Jaguars owner Shad Khan hates more than being embarrassed. Nothing. And while Khan is not a quick-trigger owner who will dump his head coach after early signs of disappointment, there is no question that a blowout loss in London did Pederson or Baalke any favors in the long-term picture.

Khan expects the Jaguars to be competitive week in and week out. When they aren't, that is when things get dicey

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