Jaguars vs. Dolphins: 5 Players to Watch in Week 1

From Evan Engram and Travis Etienne to Andre Cisco and Ronald Darby, here are your five Jacksonville Jaguars to watch in Week 1 vs. the Dolphins.

Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Evan Engram (17) sprints during a combined NFL football training camp session between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024 at EverBank Stadium’s Miller Electric Center in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Jacksonville Jaguars will take their first step toward a hopeful AFC South title this Sunday, travelling south to take on a tough and electric Miami Dolphins squad.

“Yeah, it's interesting. I think if you watched the game last night, does Baltimore, Kansas City think—I think in their minds, yeah, they think they're a good football team. I think everybody, Week 1, thinks they're a good football team," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said on Friday.

"It gives you confidence, obviously, going into the game and going into these early games. But you still have to go execute, you still have to go play and perform and eliminate mistakes and you're going to have to overcome adversity and all of that. But I think in your mind, going into it, you feel good about where you're at and how camp went and all of that. A healthier team factors into all that too. So, it does give you confidence, going into these first few games.”

If the Jaguars are going to walk out of Week 1 with a victory, it will come down to a handful of key performances. So, which Jaguars do we think hold the key against the Dolphins? We break it down below.

Josh Hines-Allen

It is difficult to get after the Dolphins' offensive line due to how quickly the ball comes out, but that doesn't mean the Jaguars won't try.

Josh Hines-Allen, Travon Walker, and Arik Armstead will all play critical roles in disrupting Miami's offensive timing, but it will be Hines-Allen who is the most important factor.

Hines-Allen has proven himself to not just be the Jaguars' top player, but one of the best defensive players in the entire NFL. For the Jaguars to slow down one of the NFL's best offenses, they will need their own blue-chip talent to come up big in critical moments.

If the Jaguars are going to make plays on defense, it is going to come down to Hines-Allen.

Andre Cisco

The key to the Miami offense is their speed. They want Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, and the NFL's most explosive running back room to be able to get in space and even get bhind defenses. As a result, Jaguars safety Andre Cisco will likely have to be the last field of defense in several big moments.

As long as he does his job to limit big plays to his best ability, the Jaguars could have a chance to go blow-for-blow with their offense.

"Speed, speed, speed. And a lot of misdirection, a lot of motions and shifts. Obviously, they do a great job with that in their run game as well and it kind of can cause you to just distort your eyes a little bit, and get off your cues," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said this week. "That's where some of the big plays have come for them. Obviously, we know Tyreek [Hill] and Waddle and the guys. There’s just a lot of speed and something that we've got to be able to at least try to match, otherwise, be in the right position.”

Ronald Darby

Don't expect the Jaguars to shadow cornerback Tyson Campbell on wide receiver Tyreek Hill. Instead, both Campbell and Ronald Darby will get their fair share of reps against both Hill and Jaylen Waddle.

As a result, it will be up to Darby to ensure the Dolphins don't just ignore Campbell's side of the field, especially when he is lined up against Hill.

Darby has played well against the Dolphins in the past, so there is reason to believe it can continue. Darby played 47 snaps in Week 17 against the Dolphins last year and, while the Dolphins didn't have Waddle, he had a good performance.

Per Pro Football Focus, he allowed 5 catches on 10 yards (50%) for 42 yards (8.4 yards per catch). He also allowed 4.4 yards per target, the best among Ravens defensive backs that day.

Against Hill specifically, Darby was targeted four times and allowed 2 catches for 17 yards with the longest gain being 9 yards.

Travis Etienne

The easiest way to limit the Dolphins' defense isn't by getting to the quarterback or trying to find a way to limit Tyreek Hill. Instead, the key is keeping Miami and their weapons off the field.

The more drives the Dolphins get, the more chances they have to put points on the board. To ensure that doesn't happen, the Jaguars will need Travis Etienne and the running game to extend drives and stay on the field on third downs.

"If another offense gets rolling a little bit, we’ve got to be able to answer. We’ve got to be able to hold the ball, have some long drives, finish drives with touchdowns in the red zone instead of field goals. All those things are important, and it just depends on what the game is," Trevor Lawrence said this week.

"That's why it's a team sport. You never know how it's going to unfold each week, but you’ve got to be prepared to do whatever you need to do to win. I think having Travis [RB Travis Etienne Jr.] and Tank [RB Tank Bigsby] both playing great ball, and D’Ernest [RB D’Ernest Johnson], we’ve got three great backs that have played really well in camp and are really bought into the system, and I feel great about. So having those guys, the run game and obviously all the weapons just everywhere we have up front, passing game, all that is going to help us, too.”

Evan Engram

The Dolphins are likely going to send quite a few blitzes at Trevor Lawrence on Sunday considering Anthony Weaver's background. The Dolphins blitzed at one of the lowest rates in the NFL a year, but they are now under a coach whose background comes from a blitz-heavy Ravens scheme.

And the Jaguars' best answer to the blitz in recent years has been tight end Evan Engram.

Engram has become a safety blanket for Lawrence over the years, and there is no reason to think he can't have a big game if the Miami defense sends the house after Lawrence and tests the Jaguars' offensive line.

If the Jaguars' offense comes under attack, then look for Engram to be one of their first options to throw Miami off its course.

Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @JaguarsOnSI and @_John_Shipley and never miss another breaking news story again.

Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.