For just the second time in franchise history, the Jacksonville Jaguars finished a preseason slate undefeated.
With a 31-18 win against the Miami Dolphins on Saturday, the 2023 Jaguars joined the 1997 Jaguars, who finished their exhibition games 4-0 before an 11-5 regular season.
Jacksonville picked up 78 yards on 12 plays on its first offensive possession Saturday night, but came away with no points after rookie running back Tank Bigsby fumbled near the goal line. The Jaguars offense kept rolling on its second possession, though, driving 80 yards and into the end zone in 12 plays.
A pair of interceptions hauled in by Jaguars rookies Erick Hallett II and Yasir Abdullah set up a couple more scores for Jacksonville and a blowout victory.
The game was eventually called with 8:32 left in the fourth quarter after Dolphins receiver Daewood Davis suffered an injury and was carted off the field.
Here’s how it all went down in the Jaguars’ preseason finale:
Jaguars MVP of the game: The starting offensive line
Everything the Jacksonville offense did on its first two drives worked perfectly. A loaded skill position group that added Calvin Ridley and Tank Bigsby certainly helps, but the real heroes were the big guys up front who bulldozed the Dolphins defensive line off the ball.
Trevor Lawrence stayed pretty clean, was never sacked, and picked apart the Miami secondary. Travis Etienne Jr. and Bigsby combined for 76 yards on 14 carries (5.4 yards per attempt).
Dolphins MVP of the game: WR River Cracraft
Cracraft led all Dolphins receivers with five receptions for 52 yards. His eight targets were three more than any other player in the game, as Miami quarterbacks continuously looked for No. 85.
Jaguars play of the game: Trevor Lawrence to Calvin Ridley for 28 yards
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
With a pass rusher in his face, Lawrence went with the always smart toss-it-in-Ridley’s-general-direction strategy. The Jaguars’ new star receiver didn’t let him down, making a great adjustment on the ball to catch it as he was falling out of bounds. After a review, officials ruled it a catch.
There were bigger plays made later in the game by Tim Jones and Seth Williams, but no play had Jaguars fans buzzing more than Ridley’s grab.
It was over when JaMycal Hasty bulldozed into the end zone for an 8-yard touchdown
.@MycHasty with a motorcade out front!#MIAvsJAX on CBS pic.twitter.com/DjiIlhKQZ1
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) August 27, 2023
The fourth touchdown of the evening for the Jaguars extended the team’s lead back to 19 points, which was plenty comfortable against a third-string offense.
Stat that says it all: 158 yards in two drives for Jaguars starting offense
Head coach Doug Pederson probably won’t be happy about his team starting yet another game with a turnover, but that was a small blemish on an otherwise perfect night for the Jacksonville starters.
What’s next: The Jaguars will cut their roster down to 53 players before the 4 p.m. deadline on Tuesday. After that, it’s a road trip to start the regular season against the Indianapolis Colts on Sept. 10.
