Tre Herndon encouraged by performance in first NFL start, but knows his work isn't done
When Tre Herndon signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent out of Vanderbilt in 2018, it is unlikely he thought he would eventually find his way into the starting lineup. After all, he was joining a defense that was coming off a historic season and featured cornerbacks like Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Bouye.
But after appearing in 11 games in his rookie season in a reserve and special teams role, Herndon's reality changed on Sunday. He started his first career NFL game against the Houston Texans due to Bouye being ruled out with a hip injury, and played a career high in snaps.
"I got a little action week 1 because I am kind of the guy (that) if anyone gets tired or anything, I have to step in," Herndon said Tuesday. "This following week, I knew A.J. (Bouye) throughout the week wasn’t feeling to his top potential."
"Every week I try to prepare like I am going to be in but just starting, it just kind of felt a little different, especially running out there. It felt good. "
Herndon was primarily matched up with Texans fourth-year wide receiver Will Fuller throughout the game since Ramsey shadowed DeAndre Hopkins. On the day, Herndon was thrown at seven times. He allowed three catches for 41 yards, giving Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson a 42.9% completion rate and 62.2 passer rating when he threw at who Herndon was covering, per Pro Football Reference.
"I felt like I did OK. Disappointed about a couple of catches he had, but I felt OK about it," Herndon said.
To get a deeper look into Herndon's day, he went over two of his plays in coverage on Fuller in detail with us:
Play 1: 3rd and 2, 6:49 left in 1st quarter
"Mannnnn, I tipped the ball," Herndon said, knowing he gave up a play of mere inches.
"I was disappointed about that because I knew it was coming and I think I should have looked at (Fuller) a little more instead of looking at the ball. But I felt the tip and he just made a good catch."
It is hard to fault Herndon on this third down conversion considering he was in tight coverage and didn't allow an easy window to complete the pass. Sometimes the opponents just make a good play.
But even if it was a good offensive play and only a gain of a few yards, it is still something Herndon wants to make sure he prevents next time.
"I am a guy that every catch, even if it is 3rd and 2 and a two-yard catch, I kind of feel it. I am able to get over it in the game, but when I watch it on film I want to try to keep that from happening (again)."
Play 2: 3rd and 15, 11:50 left in 2nd quarter
"I felt good about that play. I knew (Fuller) was a speed guy and I knew he was fast coming out of college and stuff. So, my game plan was to kind of play him on top," Herndon said.
Herndon was able to prevent Fuller from coming down with this third down conversion, a switch up from their previous battle. He showed good route recognition and learned from his earlier mistake and inability to prevent Fuller from securing the catch.
"I forget what down and distance it was, but I was in kind of off coverage and I had good eyes on him. I saw him cut and I had to speed turn, and all I could think about was ‘play his hands, don’t let him catch it,'" Herndon said.
"I saw the ball in the air, jumped it and incompletion. So it was a good play. I liked that play, for sure."
Herndon said he found out he was starting in place of Bouye on Saturday, but he was able to get insight from his older teammates like Ramsey, Bouye and D.J. Hayden to help prepare him for his start. And as the results showed on Sunday, it paid off for Herndon and the Jaguars defense.
"They were just saying, ‘don’t make it too big, don’t make the scene too big. Go out there and handle what you got to do. Know that you can play. That is why you are here," Herndon said.
"I talked to them throughout the week about tips and stuff to help me out, and it ended up pretty well."
If Bouye misses any more time with injury, Herndon's play on Sunday should at least give the Jaguars feel more comfortable with him in a starting role moving forward. And with Ramsey's tenure with the Jaguars likely coming to an end sooner than later, Sunday could be the first of many future starts for Herndon.
"I definitely could fix some technical stuff," Herndon said about his performance.
"I (have to) just keep going and keep my confidence up and keep trying to play at a high level."
