The Jacksonville Jaguars ran for 243 yards, only threw two incomplete passes, and didn’t turn the ball over until there were zeroes on the clock in the fourth quarter. Yet, the Jaguars still found a way to lose 34-27 to an Indianapolis Colts team they beat 24-0 four weeks ago.
Colts quarterback Matt Ryan racked up 389 yards and three touchdowns against a Jaguars defense that couldn’t get off the field.
The Jaguars fell to 2-4 on the year with their third consecutive loss and are now 1.5 games behind the Tennessee Titans in the AFC South, which had the Jaguars sitting at the top just two weeks ago.
Here are the players who stood out, both positively and negatively, for the Jaguars in the Week 6 loss:
Dud - CB Shaquill Griffin
The Colts picked on Griffin throughout the game Sunday. The cherry on top of his terrible day was the 32-yard game-winning touchdown Alec Pierce caught over him with 17 seconds left.
Griffin picked up two defensive pass interference calls and couldn’t do much to stop anyone lined up across from him. According to Pro Football Focus, Griffin allowed nine receptions for 131 yards on the day.
The Jaguars added Griffin on a three-year, $40 million deal during the 2021 offseason and, for the most part, he’s been a relatively reliable cornerback for the team. But if he has more games like that, the Jaguars will certainly cash in on the $13.5 million in cap savings they can get by cutting him after the 2022 season.
Stud - RB Travis Etienne
For the second straight game, Etienne had over 100 yards from scrimmage, but just 10 rushing attempts.
Etienne broke loose for a 48-yard gain on the Jaguars’ third play of the game and later had gains of 22 and 27 yards. While James Robinson is much more reliable at getting five yards instead of zero, Etienne is clearly the home run threat of the Jaguars offense even if he hasn’t cashed in a touchdown yet.
Finding a way to get Etienne the ball more than a dozen times when he’s averaging nine yards per touch can’t keep being a weekly problem Jaguars coaches can’t solve.
Dud - OLB Travon Walker
Early in the game, Walker drew a holding penalty on Colts right tackle Braden Smith when he dipped underneath him and had a clear path to Matt Ryan. That was just about all Walker did on Sunday.
The No. 1 overall pick didn’t do much to disrupt the Colts’ “sitting duck” at quarterback and he drew a costly roughing the passer penalty that negated a third down stop and extended an Indianapolis drive that eventually ended with a game-tying touchdown.
There’s no question that the physical talent is there for Walker, but after a strong start to the year, it’s clear that development is still needed for the rookie.
Stud - QB Trevor Lawrence
It looked like Sunday had the potential to be another rough game for Lawrence when he cost the Jaguars on the first possession of the game by running into a sack and a 14-yard loss that knocked the team out of field goal range.
But Lawrence shook off that mistake and put together an ultra-efficient game the rest of the way, completing all but two of his 22 passes for 165 yards and a touchdown. Lawrence also added 23 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.
Most importantly, Lawrence led the Jaguars down the field on a 10-minute drive in the fourth quarter that ended with a go-ahead touchdown to Christian Kirk with less than three minutes left.
Unlike the Jaguars’ other losses, this one can’t be put on the shoulders of No. 16.
Dud - DC Mike Caldwell
It’s the first time I’ve put a coach on here, although maybe it shouldn’t be considering how often the Jaguars have failed to stick to running the ball.
Against the Colts, the offense got the job done. It finished with 379 yards and scored a go-ahead touchdown on a 10-minute drive that ended with less than three minutes left in the game. Then the defense allowed Indianapolis to drive the field in about two and a half minutes.
The Colts ran crossers through the middle of the field from start to finish and the Jaguars defense never adjusted to take it away. Ultimately, Jacksonville’s inability to adapt the game plan to stop Indianapolis is on Caldwell.
