The Jacksonville Jaguars’ final tune up before the 2023 regular season begins in September was another resounding success. The starting offense was firing on all cylinders, the defense held the Miami Dolphins in check, and the Jaguars finished August with an undefeated preseason record for just the second time in franchise history.
Now comes the hard part when the Jaguars will cut their roster down from 90 players to 53 before the 4 p.m. ET deadline on Tuesday.
With tough decisions coming regarding Jacksonville’s active roster and depth chart, here are the six players who stood out most Saturday against the Dolphins and two players who didn’t have their best night:
Stud: WR Calvin Ridley
Don’t care if it’s a catch or not… we’re tweeting it anyways.@CalvinRidley1 | #MIAvsJAX on CBS pic.twitter.com/gVTK2lxIuC
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) August 26, 2023
Trevor Lawrence and Calvin Ridley connected on a crisp, 11-yard out route on the offense’s first play of the game and then did it again on the opposite side of the field in the second quarter. But it was a 28-yard connection on a “Calvin down there somewhere” throw from Lawrence that had fans buzzing.
The Dolphins challenged the ruling, but it stood as a catch and the Jaguars scored on the next play.
Ridley hype has run rampant all offseason and Saturday only fueled the fire.
Stud: CB Tre Herndon III
Gregory Junior made a strong push throughout camp and preseason to supplant Tre Herndon III as the Jaguars’ slot cornerback. In only a handful of plays Saturday night, Herndon may have held him off.
The sixth-year cornerback was targeted just once in coverage and made a nice pass breakup in the red zone to force the Dolphins into a field goal. While he only played a few of snaps, Herndon earned the highest PFF grade of any Jaguars defensive player on the night.
Jaguars coaches have expressed their confidence in Herndon all offseason so he didn’t need to do much to hold down the spot. His play Saturday was probably enough.
Dud: LB Shaquille Quarterman
Shaquille Quarterman’s rough preseason ended with another night of struggling in coverage. The reserve linebacker has been battling for a roster spot with Ventrell Miller and Caleb Johnson, but earned the Jaguars’ lowest defensive grade from PFF.
He was targeted four times in coverage and allowed two receptions. But what was surprising was that Quarterman, typically a thumper of a linebacker, was credited with three missed tackles on the night.
An injury suffered by Miller may have left the door ajar for Quarterman, but don’t be surprised if the Jaguars look elsewhere for the fourth inside linebacker on their depth chart.
Stud - TE Luke Farrell
Luke Farrell has been an afterthought for much of the offseason with Evan Engram’s contract negotiations in the spotlight and second-round pick Brenton Strange added to the tight end room. Even second-year tight end Gerrit Prince has generated some chatter.
But Farrell steadily improved through his first two NFL seasons and — if Saturday was any indication — he looks ready to take another step forward in year three.
Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence connected Farrell twice on his first three throws against the Dolphins.
“I think he’s really smart in knowing coverages and zone coverage, knowing where to sit, where to post up,” Lawrence said after the game. “He just does a great job, and you saw some of that tonight, and did a nice job after the catch, too, was able to get vertical and get some extra yards.
Stud - LB Foye Oluokun
The NFL’s back-to-back tackling champion, Foye Oluokun, looked like a player ready to defend his title Saturday night.
Oluokun was only on the field for a couple series against the Dolphins, but made his presence known, darting into the backfield on one play to drop running back Raheem Mostert for a two-yard loss.
Miami also threw Oluokun’s way in coverage once and came away with an incompletion.
Dud - CB Christian Braswell
Sixth-round pick Christian Braswell has been one of the more impressive players among the logjam of young cornerbacks vying for a final spot in the Jaguars secondary. He may have lost some ground Saturday night, though.
The young defensive back earned the second lowest coverage grade from PFF and one of the team’s worst special teams grades, as well.
Braswell’s strong August may still earn him a spot on the 53-man roster, but others like Montaric Brown and Erick Hallett II made a stronger final push.
Stud - QB Trevor Lawrence
Perhaps you’ve heard of him.
Trevor Lawrence has been stellar through most of August and expectations are sky high for his third NFL season. However, Lawrence started a little shaky against the Dallas Cowboys two weeks ago, kicking off his preseason with an immediate interception.
That wasn’t the case against the Dolphins when Lawrence coolly and calmly picked apart the secondary on his only two drives of the night.
Stud - OT Cam Robinson
The Jaguars’ Week 1 starting left tackle will be Walker Little while Cam Robinson serves a four-game suspension to begin the season. But Little was held out for precautionary reasons Saturday after suffering a minor groin injury in practice.
So that meant Robinson, who struggled a week ago against the Detroit Lions, had to handle a team-high 51 snaps against the Dolphins.
“He really rebounded from the Detroit game,” Jaguars coach Doug Pederson said after the game. “I didn’t think he played his best in Detroit. He knew that, and he bounced back tonight.
“Obviously, a tough situation because it was a late – kind of a late decision to go with him as a starter, but he really embraced it. [I] thought he did a nice job, very consistent, and really the Cam of old that we all know he can be, he showed up tonight.”
