Monday certainly didn’t go according to plan for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Against a double-digit underdog with an inexperienced backup quarterback in the starting lineup, the Jaguars were supposed to roll against the Cincinnati Bengals. Instead, a suddenly porous defense couldn’t get a stop and injuries piled up for key players, including quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
Prior to his ankle injury, Lawrence was putting together one of his best performances of the year. But it wasn’t enough to erase some uncharacteristically poor showings on the other side of the ball.
At Pro Football Focus, they graded every player in the Jaguars’ 34-31 loss to the Bengals. Here’s who stood out most, including some very surprising standouts on the Jaguars defense:
5 highest grades on offense
- QB Trevor Lawrence: 80.9
- TE Evan Engram: 77.5
- WR Zay Jones: 75.3
- TE Luke Farrell: 73.1
- WR Parker Washington: 68.7
It’s no surprise that Lawrence is at the top of the list. The third-year quarterback was fantastic before his injury, finishing the night with two passing touchdowns, one rushing touchdown, and a season-high 125.4 passer rating.
5 lowest grades on offense
- G Brandon Scherff: 37.0
- C Luke Fortner: 51.8
- G Ezra Cleveland: 54.5
- WR Tim Jones: 55.1
- RB D’Ernest Johnson: 57.6
It’s not hard to see why there was no running room in between the tackles for Travis Etienne or D’Ernest Johnson.
5 highest grades on defense
- OLB K’Lavon Chaisson: 86.0
- CB Gregory Junior: 82.2
- S Antonio Johnson: 78.1
- S Rayshawn Jenkins: 70.8
- OLB Josh Allen: 67.5
It’s hard to imagine a more surprising top four. Chaisson recorded one pressure, the young defensive backs looked lost for much of the night, and Jenkins appeared to struggle to make tackles. PFF evidently saw it differently.
5 lowest grades on defense
- CB Tyson Campbell: 36.2
- DL Roy Robertson-Harris: 41.6
- NT Folorunso Fatukasi: 51.1
- LB Devin Lloyd: 51.9
- DL DaVon Hamilton: 54.7
The rough night for Campbell was hard to miss. In his first game back from injury, the cornerback was credited with allowing five receptions for 135 yards, including a 76-yard touchdown.
5 other notables
- OT Walker Little: 67.4
- OLB Travon Walker: 65.4
- LB Foye Oluokun: 65.3
- OT Anton Harrison: 62.7
- QB C.J. Beathard: 59.1
Back at his natural position, Little played well for the Jaguars. PFF was also impressed with Walker, who they credited with four pressures and his best pass rushing grade of the year so far.
