LOOKING BACK: JAGS VS PATS - 5 JaGUARS THAT IMPRESSED

Which young players were most impressive in the Jaguars win over the Patriots? Let's take a look!

By Nick Kramarich
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The Jaguars had a decent showing from the in their first game this preseason against the Super Bowl LI winning Patriots. We saw some players shine in their Jaguar debut and others come back stronger than ever. First let's look at the rookies on the list.

Rookies:

Leonard Fournette #27: 
Fournette finished the day with a respectable 9 runs for 31 yards and a rushing touchdown. He averaged 3.4 yards per carry, which isn't a great number, but looking at the situational football the Jaguars were playing during his carries, Fournette performed well. I feel he established the run game well early and set the running tempo for other running backs to come in the game later. He aggressively hit holes that the O-Line opened for him and wasn’t afraid to lower his shoulder on some linebackers and fall forward for an extra couple yards each run. He had a nice touchdown and hopefully will bring that confidence towards the next couple games. But, this whole game for him was against the Patriots' back ups, so it might have been a different story had he played against more starters. His job is only going to get harder from here on as he plays more preseason games and starts the regular season against other teams that have their best players out there to stop him.

Keelan Cole #84:
Keelan only had two catches. But they went for an eye popping 108 yards and one touchdown. One being a 97-yard touchdown grab that was launched down the field by Henne as Cole used his speed to breakaway from coverage. Cole was beyond excited to be playing his first NFL game for the Jaguars and you could see it on the field whether it was celebrating his touchdown by flailing his arms in excitement or by celebrating someone else’s touchdown by chasing them down like he did for Corey Grant when Cole was the first one to congratulate him on his run. I hope he never loses that excitement on the field. Keelan had a nice game and a nice touchdown and made a decent case for him to see the field during regular season. 

Next were the returning Jaguars:

Brandon Allen #10:
Coming into his second season with the Jaguars he got a chance to show what he’s got in the first preseason game as he lead the backup squad onto the field. Finishing the night 5 for 7 with 85 passing yards and 1 touchdown with an average of 12.14 yards and a 42-yard-long pass Brandon Allen showed up ready to impress and in my eyes, he did. He ran the offense very well and threw the ball even better. Allen looked very relaxed and poised in the pocket and did a great job at avoiding pressure and making good choices while stepping back to pass. He placed the ball very well on two long passes and was not afraid to leave the pocket and run for the first down. He has a great football IQ and it is seen when he’s out there. I feel there is a good battle between him and Henne for backup positioning.

Myles Jack #44:
Myles Jack made his MLB debut as I talked about in an earlier post he moved from LB to MLB with the coaching help of former MLB Paul Posluszny that moved to LB. This move has put a lot of pressure on Jack to prove he deserves to be MLB #1. Jack had a decent game with 6 combined tackles and 3 total tackles and seemed to run the defense well on most plays. There were some slip ups though with him misreading some plays and taking wrong pursuit angles to tackle the runner. He definitely has some ways to go before he is at Pos’ level but it’s preseason for a reason and I hope he uses these next three games to his advantage.

Corey Grant #30:
Grant finished the day surprising many with 8 rushes for 120 yards with one highlight reel touchdown that he ran for 79 yards. Corey broke free on an amazing run that was right up the gut until he used his speed to break to the outside and find the end-zone. Many forget about how fast Corey Grant really is. At his Auburn pro day, he ran a 4.25 40-yard dash which is impressive. Grant proved that despite the drafting of LF27 he still deserves to play.

Overall I was very pleased with how the Jaguars played especially against the Patriots. We have a lot of talent on this team that is itching to shine. I want us to finish this preseason strong and prepare for the regular season battles that we have ahead.