The Jacksonville Jaguars travel to play the Houston Texans in Week 4, their first division game of the season. The whole Jaguars team has to do some soul-searching before this matchup. Jacksonville was embarrassed by the Buffalo Bills on Monday night, and their first-half performance was one of the worst in the Jaguars’ history. Neither side of the ball played with any urgency or passion in primetime.
It was hard to find any positives in that game. The defense was always a step behind in man coverage, and could not produce any pressure on Josh Allen. The offense had little rhythm; and when they did have an open receiver, Trevor Lawrence threw a horrible interception.
Jaguars offense in the first half versus the Bills:
Trevor Lawrence: 10-22 59 yards 1 interception
Travis Etienne Jr: 4 carries 9 yards
Brian Thomas Jr: 3 receptions 23 yards #JAXvsBUF #DUUUVAL #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/5mq39FLOFg
— Keb (@ihatekeb) September 24, 2024
Yet even with the poor start to the season, if the Jaguars can get a win in Houston they would only be a game out of the division lead.
Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Houston Texans Game History
Sunday will be the 45th time the Jaguars and Texans have met. The Texans have dominated the series 29-15, but have lost two of the last three games to the Jaguars. Before that, the Texans had won nine straight in this matchup. In 2023, the series was split with both games being won by the road team.
Key Players for the Jaguars
The offense needs to find answers and more consistency. The offensive line continues to struggle and Cam Robinson has one of the worst pressure rates of any offensive lineman to start the season. When the Jaguars do get down in the red zone, penalties derail their drives. They cannot seem to get out of their way and everything seems so difficult on offense.
Last week, Travis Etienne ended up with 68 yards on 11 carries but there was not much success running the ball. Tank Bigsby did not get many touches against the Bills and they need him to deal with his shoulder injury to provide some tough running for the team.
Trevor Lawrence will need to continue to target Brian Thomas Jr. and Christian Kirk. They combined for 19 targets against the Bills. Some of that was in garbage time, but it was good to see them involved. The Jaguars need to target Thomas Jr. more because he is their biggest playmaker at receiver.
Tight end Evan Engram looks to be missing another game, so Brenton Strange will be important near the red zone once again after securing his first touchdown last week.
Lawrence to Brenton Strange for the @Jaguars TD
📺: #JAXvsBUF on ESPN
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/1fZSLZJ5jw— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2024
The aforementioned Robinson and Anton Harrison are limited this week because of knee injuries, so Walker Little could get more time. They face another big challenge against the Texans with Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr.
For the first time this season, the Jaguars’ defense looked lost and incapable of stopping an offense. It may sound like a broken record, but Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker have to put pressure on the quarterback.
Meanwhile, injuries have depleted the secondary. Rookie Jarrian Jones is still nursing an injury that occurred early in the Bills game. Meanwhile, Montaric Brown has been dealing with a chest injury this week. This would push Christian Braswell into a bigger role this week.
Braswell was elevated from the practice squad for the Bills game and struggled in coverage against the Bills. The Jaguars need to hope that Darnell Savage can return this week or the defense could be in for another long day.
The Jaguars lost linebacker Foyesade Oluokun to injury in the Monday Night game, and will miss a few weeks. That moves Chad Muma into a bigger role and he has to play more consistently. Muma diagnoses play well, but at times takes bad angles.
Devin Lloyd had a rough game in coverage against the Bills and has been limited in practice this week so Ventrell Miller may see even more time against the Texans. The team had high hopes for Antonio Johnson to pair at safety with Andre Cisco but he has been underwhelming so far. Johnson will need to be better to help stop the big plays through the passing game.
Key Players for the Texans
After starting out 2-0, the Texans ran into a tough Minnesota Vikings defense and suffered a 27-point loss on the road. The Texans are also dealing with injuries, as Joe Mixon will look to miss another game. The running game took a big hit last week without Mixon, only running for 38 yards against the Vikings. Cam Akers will be the main back and will look to have a better outing against the Jaguars.
At receiver, Tank Dell has not practiced this week and may miss this game. This would be huge news, because he torched the Jaguars last year. Meanwhile, Nico Collins is also dealing with some injuries; so this week could be a heavy Stefan Diggs game. The Jaguars secondary is so banged up that even with a depleted wide receiving corps, CJ Stroud should be able to pick the Jaguars apart.
The Texans have 13 sacks through three games thus far. Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter should have the opportunity to pad their sack totals this game.
In the secondary, Derek Stingley Jr is a lockdown corner that has allowed under 100 yards on 10 receptions. On the other side, rookie Kamari Lassiter has only allowed a 33 percent catch rate.
#Texans Rookie CB Kamari Lassiter has been targeted 12 times, allowing only four receptions for 56 yards and no touchdowns so far.
The locksmith. 🔐 pic.twitter.com/safHmtlSwi
— Nick Schwager (@NickSchwagerNFL) September 27, 2024
It will be a tough assignment for the Jaguars receivers to get open. Jalen Pitre is a safety that plays all over the field and is used to help in run support. Linebackers Azeez Al-Shaair and Henry To’oTo’o will also be important as they lead the Texans in stop percentage according to PFF.
Jacksonville Jaguars – Keys to Win the Game
After the Monday night debacle, the Jaguars have to start fast. It would be wise for them to take the ball first if they win the toss and put a statement on their opening drive. Playing on the road again, they must try to get the crowd out of the game.
The offense needs to get Lawrence easy passes to start the game to build rhythm and confidence. The Jaguars need Lawrence to get rid of the ball quickly. They need to run the ball effectively, so play action can open up the middle of the field. Most importantly, they must target Brian Thomas Jr. early and often. He is the big play threat on this offense and needs to see the ball a lot for them to have success.
The Jaguars defense is banged up, but the Texans offense should not be at full strength. They have to be able to stop the run without bringing safeties down without allowing big plays down the field. The Jaguars must make Stroud and the Texans go on long sustained drives.
The defense is not going to be able to shut down the Texans completely, but it will be important to make them settle for field goals instead of touchdowns. Lastly, the defense must get pressure; the secondary will not be able to hold up for long drop backs. It is time for Walker and Hines-Allen to show up in a game.
Can the Jaguars salvage their season? Is this going to be the end of the road for Doug Pederson?
Brandon Haye
Brandon grew up in Jacksonville, Florida and works as a health insurance data analyst. He has no children, but two fur babies - Squirt and Brownie. He and his wife, Katie, spend their time playing poker and enjoying time with their pups. Brandon is a huge Michigan Wolverine and Jacksonville Jaguars fan. He at one time was in 77 fantasy leagues and loves the game of football. Brandon started writing for The Leauge Winners in 2021.