James Robinson had some hard runs on Thursday night. His performance, unfortunately, wasn’t enough to give the Jacksonville Jaguars to their first win of the season. This loss makes it 19 straight games without a win for Duval. Although the Jaguars were in it the whole game, it’s a gut-wrenching loss.
The first half was dominant. Lawrence didn’t have any interceptions this week. But the Jags just couldn’t pull out a win. And to add insult to literal injury, D.J. Chark suffered a fractured ankle early in the game. He’ll miss significant time. The Jaguars fall to 0-4 to the Cincinnati Bengals in spite of Robinson’s two-touchdown performance.
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James Robinson Stron Performance Not Enough For Jacksonville Jaguars
James Robinson Scores two Touchdowns in Loss
There are no moral victories. The Jaguars have lost 19 straight games and it hurts. But it’s great to see your bellcow back have some success. Robinson had a season-high of 18 carries for 78 yards and two touchdowns. He fought hard. The undrafted sophomore back made a stretching dive for his second score of the night. That play summarizes his performance. Robinson gives continuous effort on his runs. He averaged 4.3 yards per carry on Thursday.
Although the Jaguars have not found a way to win yet, Robinson will be the reliable force to help push them over top when they finally do figure it out. Urban Meyer may not have been impressed with Robinson before the season started. The team drafted Travis Etienne 25th overall in the draft. But he, unfortunately, suffered a season-ending injury in the preseason. Robinson however, continues to prove his worth.
Trevor Lawrence Continues to Improve, Having a Solid Game
Lawrence had his best game yet on Thursday night. While he didn’t throw any touchdowns, Lawrence kept control of the ball. He had no turnovers. The young rookie finished the night going 17 of 24 for 204 yards and eight rushing attempts for 36 yards and a running score. He played a good clean game. Lawrence showed improvement by knowing when to throw the ball away. He didn’t force plays and that’s great for a young signal-caller.
Per NextGen stats, Trevor Lawrence was running 14.5 MPH when he completed the deep ball to Laviska Shenault. That's the fastest a QB was running when completing a pass of 40+ air yards over the last 5 seasons
— Michael DiRocco (@ESPNdirocco) October 1, 2021
Lawrence also showed flashes of why he was the number one pick. He threw a beautiful pass to Laviska Shenault while on the run. As you can see above, the man was moving fast when he made this throw. He’s a playmaker and it’s only a matter of time until he puts the league on notice. The Jags need to continue to grow this young team and add pieces around their guy. He’s going to be special.
The Jaguars Haven’t Learned how to Finish a Game Yet
Losing isn’t fun, especially when you lose the first four games of the season. While the Jags have shown improvement since week one, they’ve still got a long way to go. The team was up 14-0 at the end of the first half. Everything looked good. The Bengals didn’t have a rhythm on offense and the Jags were cooking. But the Bengals scored 24 points to Jacksonville’s seven in the second half. The defense wasn’t able to make any big plays or get off the field.
The Jaguars simply must learn to finish strong. They haven’t found a way to regain momentum after losing it when the other team hits them in the mouth. This part is on the coaches. Whether it’s play calling, clock management, or otherwise; the Jags coaching staff has to find a way to put the team in a position to succeed and close out a game.
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