One of the more surprising early storylines in free agency is the amount of money Jacksonville has sunk into its defense. In the last 24 hours the team has added safety Barry Church and end Calais Campbell, and just then snagged cornerback A.J. Bouye. Big-money deals for all three.
While most of the talk the last month or so has centered around whether Blake Bortles is the long-term answer, the team was also pretty disappointing on defense a year ago. Especially in fantasy terms.
In NFL terms, which ranks defenses in terms of yards allowed, Jacksonville had a top-10 defense in 2016. Only five teams allowed fewer total yards, and the Jaguars were No. 3 against the pass. Sounds good.
But they were 18th against the run and 25th in points allowed; a bottom-10 defense in that regard. And they were a sorry unit in almost every measurable fantasy area. In a scoring system awarding 1 point for sacks, 2 points for takeaways and 6 points for touchdowns, Jacksonville had a bottom-3 fantasy defense.
The table below shows defensive totals and rankings sacks and takeaways. Jacksonville was near the bottom of the league in both areas. If they've evaluated their incoming free agents properly, they should make a big step forward in 2017.
SACKS AND TAKEAWAYS, 2016 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Defense | Sacks | Rk | Takes | Rk |
Arizona | 48 | 1 | 28 | 4-6 |
Atlanta | 34 | 16-18 | 22 | 16 |
Baltimore | 31 | 24-26 | 28 | 4-6 |
Buffalo | 39 | 8 | 18 | 23-25 |
Carolina | 47 | 2 | 27 | 7-9 |
Chicago | 37 | 12 | 11 | 32 |
Cincinnati | 33 | 19-23 | 20 | 18-21 |
Cleveland | 26 | 30-31 | 13 | 29-30 |
Dallas | 36 | 13 | 20 | 18-21 |
Denver | 42 | 3-4 | 27 | 7-9 |
Detroit | 26 | 30-31 | 14 | 28 |
Green Bay | 40 | 6-7 | 25 | 11-13 |
Houston | 31 | 24-26 | 17 | 26-27 |
Indianapolis | 33 | 19-23 | 17 | 26-27 |
Jacksonville | 33 | 19-23 | 13 | 29-30 |
Kansas City | 28 | 28 | 33 | 1 |
LA Rams | 31 | 24-26 | 18 | 23-25 |
Miami | 33 | 19-23 | 25 | 11-13 |
Minnesota | 41 | 5 | 27 | 7-9 |
New England | 34 | 16-18 | 23 | 14-15 |
New Orleans | 30 | 27 | 21 | 17 |
NY Giants | 35 | 14-15 | 25 | 11-13 |
NY Jets | 27 | 29 | 12 | 31 |
Oakland | 25 | 32 | 30 | 2 |
Philadelphia | 34 | 16-18 | 26 | 10 |
Pittsburgh | 38 | 9-11 | 23 | 14-15 |
San Diego | 35 | 14-15 | 28 | 4-6 |
San Francisco | 33 | 19-23 | 20 | 18-21 |
Seattle | 42 | 3-4 | 19 | 22 |
Tampa Bay | 38 | 9-11 | 29 | 3 |
Tennessee | 40 | 6-7 | 18 | 23-25 |
Washington | 38 | 9-11 | 20 | 18-21 |
--Andy Richardson