JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — It’s no secret the Jaguars have struggled the last couple of weeks, especially on the offensive side of things.
While the team has been turnover-free, they’ve largely been unable to move the chains or find the end zone.
On the brighter side of things, the Jaguars’ rushing attack remains strong, just underutilized as the offense has found themselves regularly playing from behind and in challenging down and distances.
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The penalties, sacks, and drops are very much the root of the problem. The first offensive play each of the last two weeks has been a quarterback sack, making it tough to call designed run plays from the get-go.
Travis Etienne saw just eight carries against the Rams this past weekend; however, he did manage to gain 44 yards.
As I mentioned, the team isn’t turning the ball over; however, they are being forced to punt at the sixth-highest rate (40% of Drives) in the NFL.
In addition to total punts, the Jaguars are going 3 & Out at the eighth highest rate in the league, 25% of all drives.
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That said, the team’s propensity to punt isn’t due to their inability to gain yards on the ground.
The Jaguars are among the league leaders in just about every rushing statistic imaginable.
Jacksonville is averaging 4.7 yards per carry (9th) and gaining 1.97 yards before contact on average, according to the NFL’s NextGenStats. For reference, that ranks fifth best in the league.
The running backs are doing their part as well, as Travis Etienne ranks 14th in rushing yards over expected.
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The most complimentary stat regarding the Jaguars’ run game is their league-best 77% Run-Block Win % from ESPN Analytics, which uses data from NextGenStats.
Individually, Walker Little, Ezra Cleveland, and Robert Hainsey all rank within the Top-5 at their respective positions.
There’s a lot that isn’t going well for the Jaguars offensively, but their ability to run the football isn’t one of them. The team just has to play cleaner, both in terms of penalties and plays that result in a loss of yards.
Do that, and the Jaguars should stay ahead of the sticks and get back to their identity, running the football
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