Week 11 scouting report: Jacksonville Jaguars are ghosts of Detroit’s past

The Jacksonville Jaguars are a franchise that is similar where the Detroit Lions were. A closer look in our Week 11 scouting report.

After a dramatic comeback win on the road against the Houston Texans , the Detroit Lions improved to 8-1 and return to Ford Field to play another AFC South team, the Jacksonville Jaguars . This matchup used to be a battle between two teams that were constantly in a rebuild, changing out players and coaches and hopeful for the future. Now, Detroit has taken the next step and is becoming a Super Bowl contender, even a favorite by some people . On the other hand, Jacksonville is still trying to figure things out, as they have the same amount of losses right now as they did last season.

They have the quarterback in Trevor Lawrence, but the coaching staff and front office have been a revolving door with new ideas and faces constantly appearing. The roster has improved, and they have skilled players in multiple spots, but they just can’t seem to put it all together into a winning formula.

In our Week 11 scouting report for the 2024 season, let’s look deeper at the Jaguars.

Jacksonville Jaguars

2024 season thus far (2-8)

Week 1: Lost to Miami Dolphins , 20-17
Week 2: Lost to Cleveland Browns , 18-13
Week 3: Lost to Buffalo Bills , 47-10
Week 4: Lost to Houston Texans, 24-20
Week 5: Defeated Indianapolis Colts , 37-34
Week 6: Lost to Chicago Bears , 35-16
Week 7: Defeated New England Patriots , 32-16
Week 8: Lost to Green Bay Packers , 30-27
Week 9: Lost to Philadelphia Eagles , 28-23
Week 10: Lost to Minnesota Vikings , 12-7

Stats:

• 21st in points scored, 27th in points allowed
• 23rd in DVOA
• 16th in offensive DVOA (18th in pass DVOA, 15th in run DVOA)
• 31st in defensive DVOA (32nd pass DVOA, 12th in run DVOA)
• 5th in special teams DVOA

Being the laughing stock of the NFL is something the Lions have been used to for decades. When the Jaguars formed in 1995, they would join the Lions in being a franchise that hasn’t had much success. Changing coaches constantly, drafting high and either missing on talent or not keeping them around for long, it never seemed to work out for either team until the Lions hired head coach Dan Campbell back in 2021. That same year, the Lions traded away franchise quarterback Matthew Stafford and landed Jared Goff.

Jacksonville made a similar move in 2021, drafting Lawrence as their next franchise quarterback and hiring legendary college coach Urban Meyer. The paths these teams have gone on since 2021 have been drastically different. Meyer wouldn’t last an entire season, and his replacement was Doug Pederson, the Super Bowl-winning coach from the Eagles. After winning a Wild Card game in 2022 after finishing 9-8, the team would finish 9-8 again in 2023, but with no playoff appearance. This season, Jacksonville is 2-8 and on pace to have the number one pick in the 2025 NFL Draft .

What has happened this year has been a sign of a lack of development from Pederson and his staff. To make matters worse, Lawrence hasn’t been having a strong year so far, throwing for 2,004 yards with 11 touchdowns and six interceptions.

He has weapons in rookie wide receiver Brian Thomas, who leads the team in catches (37) yards (607), and touchdowns (five). His former top target, Christian Kirk, suffered a broken collarbone against the Packers and is out for the season. Free agent signing Gabe Davis has had an impact, getting 19 catches for 236 yards and two touchdowns. Tight end Evan Engram continues to be a presence in the passing game, getting 31 catches for 263 yards and a touchdown.

What has hurt the team offensively has been the running game. Travis Etienne was the starter, getting 70 carries for 298 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 4.4 yards per carry. His backup, Tank Bigsby, took off and helped give the Jaguars some life on the ground when Etienne went down with an injury. He has 95 carries for 519 yards and four touchdowns, averaging an impressive 5.5 yards per carry.

When it comes to their defense, their defensive line has been the most impactful portion of it. Former number one overall pick defensive end Travon Walker is having his best year in the NFL, getting 37 tackles, nine tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, a pass deflection, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery he scored on. Besides Walker, defensive end Josh Hines-Allen has had an impact on the front as well with 26 tackles, five sacks, four tackles for loss, two pass deflections, and a fumble recovery.

Injury notes

Key players ruled out: WR Christian Kirk (IR/collarbone)

Key players to monitor: QB Trevor Lawrence (shoulder), RB Tank Bigsby (ankle), G Erza Cleveland (ankle)

Overall, the Jaguars don’t have many injuries. Losing Kirk for the year is a blow to the passing game, and while he is out, the biggest dent to the team is Lawrence. Lawrence didn’t play against the Vikings, and with the team having a bye week after playing Detroit, the question is if Lawrence should rest and come back off the bye week or if he can play and give his team a better chance to win against Detroit. If he can’t go, it’ll be Mac Jones.

Lawrence isn’t the only offensive player that the Jaguars will be monitoring this week as Bigsby left the Vikings game with an ankle injury, but he did return. The fact that he returned leads me to believe he will play this week, but we will see. Starting guard Erza Cleveland has missed two games in a row with an ankle injury. If he is unavailable, the Jaguars will have a tougher time protecting whoever is under center.

Biggest strength: Defensive line

Back in the 2022 NFL Draft, the Jaguars had the first pick, and with bated breath, Lions fans around the state of Michigan waited to see if the Jaguars would take defensive end Aidan Hutchinson or Walker. Jacksonville chose Walker, and while the move is still looked at as a miss by the Jaguars with how Hutchinson has been playing, Walker has improved himself. He is the team’s top pass rusher and a focal point on the defensive line as a whole.

While Walker has plenty of good qualities, he also has some bad ones. Plays like the one below are just an example of how the Jaguars have been as a team this season; they need to be more organized and think more clearly.

Outside of Walker on the defensive line, though, the Jaguars have some helpful bodies with him. Hines-Allen is playing well on his new contract, while veteran Arik Armstead has 17 tackles, two for loss, and a sack. While the Jaguars aren’t racking up the sack numbers, their run defense has been a big part of the defensive line’s success.

The Jaguars are holding teams to an average of 4.3 yards per carry, placing them in the top 10 for yards per carry allowed. The Lions struggled running the ball against Houston last week, and now they’re facing a Jaguars team that is just as good at stopping the run, if not better.

Biggest weakness: Pass defense

The Jaguars have an average defense, ranked 18th according to PFF, with a 65.4 grade. Where they struggle the most, though, is in the secondary. They have the 24th-ranked coverage with a 58.2 grade from PFF. They also have the third most yards allowed in the NFL. Not only are they allowing teams to throw the ball on them easily, as they are third in the NFL in yards per attempt with 8.0 and fourth passing touchdowns allowed with 19.

Another part that the secondary needs help with is turnovers. The Jaguars have only five interceptions this season, and three of those came just last week. There is not a single member of Jacksonville’s starting secondary who ranks in the top 50 in PFF grade at their own position outside of nickel cornerback Jarrian Jones, and he specializes in run defense (90.3 PFF grade), not coverage (62.6).

Key matchup: Lions pass offense vs. Jaguars secondary

After throwing five interceptions on national television, I know Goff will want to rebound, and in a big way. Lucky for him, the Jaguars secondary will be one of the worst he will have seen so far. Jacksonville will have their hands full with the Lions passing attack, with weapons at every level. They will have wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams leading the charge, tight end Sam LaPorta (if healthy) taking on some secondary coverage, and running backs Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery also have favorable matchups.

Vegas line for Sunday: Lions favored by 13.5