As we’ve been doing for several years now, we’ll break down the Pittsburgh Steelers’ opponent each week, telling you what to expect from a scheme and individual standpoint. Like last year, Josh Carney and I will cover the opposing team’s offense. I will focus on the scheme, Josh on the players.
Today, our report on the Jacksonville Jaguars’ offense.
ALEX’S SCHEME REPORT
Jaguars’ Run Game
A solid unit but not as explosive as last season. They’re 23rd in team yards per carry at 3.8 while RB Travis Etienne has seen his average dip by more than a yard compared to a season ago. They are able to punch the ball in on the ground with nine rushing scores, seven from Etienne. Overall, they have 19 runs of 10-plus yards, tied for 13th in football.
Etienne does lead the NFL with 127 carries. He’s not the biggest guy but has become a workhorse dude, playing 80 percent of the snaps for the team. No running back has played more than his 385 snaps this season and no one has a higher share of his snaps than Etienne. Backup RB Tank Bigsby has only 20 carries and an average just over two yards per carry. So he’s not doing much.
The receivers can get involved in the run game. WRs Calvin Ridley and Jamal Agnew (with a strong return man background) each have four carries this season though only for a combined 12 yards. All eight of them have come on 1st and 10 and all four of Agnew’s have come in opposing territory. So be aware of that.
Okay, let’s get to the schematics. Though it’s somewhat dependent on the defensive front they see, if teams play with those Wide 9 defensive ends, but they will use wham blocks to counter early in the game. Ear-hole the three-tech and hopefully slow them down. Pistol with late motion by the tight end is an alert for this. Couple examples.
And a big staple is their power run game. Lot of counter action, guards on the move, some crack toss mixed in. Often, they use jet motion as some window dressing to slow down the linebackers reacting to the pullers.
In short-yardage and on the goal line, they’ll use read options with QB Trevor Lawrence being enough of a threat to keep the ball if the end crashes down.
Last thing. Watch for some trickery, run and pass game. Etienne had a Wildcat rushing touchdown the first play off a turnover against the Indianapolis Colts. They also ran a WR throwback/QB pass gadget play the following week against the New Orleans Saints (wasn’t the first play off a turnover), though it was unsuccessful. Punter Logan Cooke also threw a pass on a fake last week against the Saints. There’s some aces up their sleeves.
Some other quick notes. They’re averaging 24.7 points per game, ninth-best in the NFL. Three games with 30-plus points and they’ve done in each of their last two, including in a 31-24 win against the Saints in Week Seven. Like the Steelers, they are plus-six in turnover differential. But they have given the ball away more often, 10 times in total, and have made splash defensively to have the same net figure as Pittsburgh.
Jaguars’ Pass Game
Led by third-year QB Trevor Lawrence. He’s having a good year with a career-best completion percentage of 67.5 with eight touchdowns and three interceptions. His numbers aren’t gaudy, but his tape has largely been good.
Their top receiver is WR Christian Kirk, but TE Evan Engram leads the team in receptions. Engram has been used underneath and has a 41/346/0 line compared to Kirk’s 39/474/3 stat line. WR Calvin Ridley, playing after being suspended all of last year, has been hit-or-miss but has 27 grabs for 368 yards and two scores. He’s big-play capable. WR Zay Jones has only eight receptions but two touchdowns.
As a team, the Jaguars have 18 completions of 20 or more yards. That’s slightly below average and tied for 19th in football. A little lower than I expected for the talent they have.
Similar to our Los Angeles Rams report, the Jaguars also like to use a lot of pre-snap motion. Not necessarily this elongated, full motion across the field, though there’s a bit of that. But you’ll also see the “cheat” motion that’s become popular around the NFL. One thing they do frequently is align 3×1 “conventionally” and then motion into bunch, or at least a “loose bunch.” Again, very Rams-like. Cutup of those.
Healthy mix of 3×1 and 2×2. Out of 2×2, you get lots of mirrored concepts and half-field reads for Lawrence. TE Evan Engram is a great athlete and doesn’t get a lot of love, but he’s used all over the field. As a sniffer to pass protect, sidecar in split back formations, isolated in 3×1 as the nub tight end or standup X receiver, designed swing plays for him in the flat. He’s a talented player and a chess piece for that offense. Shouldn’t be slept on.
Alert play-action on 1st and 10, especially the first play of a drive. In the first half against the New Orleans Saints alone, they did it three times. Very much part of their personality. Also need to alert sprint outs to the right on 1st and 10 for easy yardage to get them into second and short/medium. Smash concepts with a corner/curl or speed out.
Josh’s Individual Report
It’s Jaguars week, Steelers fans!
Coming off a big win on the road against the Los Angeles Rams, the Pittsburgh Steelers return to Acrisure Stadium to take on the red-hot Jacksonville Jaguars, looking to pick up their first win at home against the Jags since the 2011 season.
It’ll be a tough task as the Jaguars are one of the best teams in football on both sides of the football, averaging over 29.0 points per game offensively in the month of October while having a play-making defense that takes the football away at a high rate.
It all starts on offense with burgeoning star quarterback Trevor Lawrence under head coach Doug Pederson. Lawrence, through the first seven games of the season, sits 11th in the NFL in passing yards with 1,643 yards and has eight touchdowns to just three interceptions.
He went No. 1 overall for a reason. He has a big arm and great accuracy overall, putting the football wherever he wants to all over the field.
After putting together a great second NFL season last year, Lawrence is taking the next step this season, thanks to the addition of standout wide receiver Calvin Ridley, who has emerged from his season-long suspension to become one of the top receivers in football once again.
The pairing of Lawrence and Ridley has been highly productive this season, combining for 27 receptions for 328 yards and two touchdowns. When Lawrence needs to make a play, he’s going to look Ridley’s way.
He’s a great route runner, has high-end speed and can separate down the field in big spots.
Along with Ridley, Lawrence has the speedy Christian Kirk to work with out of the slot. Kirk went from being one of the most overpaid receivers in football into one of the most underrated and productive in the game.
Kirk has elite speed and has really taken off as a route runner, able to shift into and out of his cuts with quickness, creating great separation. With the football in his hands, he’s a speed demon and an angle destroyer, which the Saints found out the hard way last week.
Ridley and Kirk are handfuls for defenses, which opens up things greatly for tight end Evan Engram.
Engram leads the Jaguars in receptions with 41 for 346 yards, though he has yet to find the end zone on the season. He’s a true mismatch tight end, one who can line up all over the formation and act as a receiver.
He’s really improved his hands, too, since coming into the league and a very dangerous weapon wherever he lines up at.
Along with Engram, the Jaguars brought in rookie tight end Brenton Strange, who is a good blocker already in the NFL. Plus, he’s a nice receiving threat who has emerged in recent weeks, whether it’s in the screen game or downfield.
That’s a guy to watch who could give the Steelers fits on Sunday in key spots if they aren’t careful.
While Lawrence and the passing game have taken a step this season, the work of running back Travis Etienne has been quite impressive.
He’s scored two touchdowns in three straight games and is a true home-run threat, building off the strong rookie season he showed in 2022.
Etienne isn’t a power back by any means, but he has a knack for getting skinny between the tackles, slipping through small gaps and hitting the home run, much like he did in London to put the game away against the Buffalo Bills.
The Jaguars have gotten a bit creative with him in recent weeks, too. Jacksonville busted out the Wildcat with Etienne in Week Six, and it led to an explosive-play touchdown.
He’s a great running back, one that the Steelers need to prepare to take away. He has great speed and can turn the corner in a hurry. Splash plays from anywhere on the field.
It helps that the offensive line in front of him is playing quite well. Here’s how I expect the Jaguars to line up on Sunday, left to right:
LT — Cam Robinson
LG — Tyler Shatley
C — Luke Fortner
RG — Brandon Scherff
RT — Anton Harrison
The tackle duo of Cam Robinson and rookie Anton Harrison is rather solid overall. Harrison, though he’s allowed four sacks in his rookie season, remains a promising tackle that the Jaguars are attempting to develop, though he is playing out of position at right tackle.
Robinson is a powerful run blocker, one who moves guys in the run game, but he has had issues with speed on the edge in the passing game.
The interior trio of Shatley, Fortner and Scherff has been awesome to watch on tape.
Fortner is an athletic lineman who really thrives in the Jaguars’ scheme, while Scherff was the big-time signing this offseason. He’s been worth every penny.
This is a group that’s done a nice job in recent weeks protecting Lawrence. We’ll see if the unit holds up against the Steelers.
Special teams is a solid group for the Jaguars, too, led by punter Logan Cooke and return specialist Jamal Agnew.
Agnew is a true game-breaker. He has two kick returns for touchdowns and four punt returns for touchdowns in his career dating back to 2017. He’s a nightmare in the open field, one who can make a number of defenders miss and has the long speed to house punt and kicks from anywhere on the field.
Kick the ball away from him.
Cooke has quietly been a steady presence for the Jaguars, and one of the better punters in the league. He’s averaging 48.1 yards per punt on the season and has downed 18 of his 29 punts inside the 20-yard line. He’s had just two touchbacks on the season.
Kicker Brandon McManus came over from Denver in free agency and has connected on 13-of-15 kicks on the season. He’s not as good as he once was and doesn’t have as strong a leg as he did earlier in his career, but he’s still an accurate, consistent kicker who puts points on the board.
