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Sunday Night Football Takeaways

Jacksonville might be the new windy city

Kickers weren’t having the best day given the wind gusts that were swirling through at a rate of 25 miles per hour. I do think it did affect the quarterbacks in the first half, as there were very few deep shots taken. This also bodes well for going for it on fourth down when you’re in field goal range, just as the Jaguars did. I'm a fan of all things offense, so when I see a team going for it on fourth down, I get excited. Over the second half, it seemed that the wind died down, never to come back, much like the Jaguars' offense.

Quarterbacks (against Ravens: Unfavorable) | (against Jaguars: Favorable):

Trevor Lawrence knew he was going to have a long day against the Ravens, who have allowed the fewest passing touchdowns and lead the league in sacks. Lawrence fumbled the ball trying to make a move to make their 3rd-and-17 more manageable for Brandon McManus, who missed two field goals earlier in the game. Sadly, it wasn’t his only bonehead play of the half. He followed that up with a great pass with no timeouts, only to throw another pass inbounds afterward with just a few seconds left on the clock. Midway through the fourth quarter, with the game still within reach, he fumbled the ball yet again, trying to keep the play alive. That makes 10 fumbles on the season, tied for the seventh most by quarterbacks this season. While he did make some mistakes against a great defense, he also threw a 65-yard touchdown pass, the longest of his short career.

Lamar Jackson should have had a great passing. Early interception in the second quarter by Rayshawn Jenkins, who baited the play all the way. While it wasn’t a great day passing, he did get it done on the ground with almost 100 yards rushing, extending plays, and making good calls outside the interception.

Running backs (against Ravens: Unfavorable) | (against Jaguars: Neutral):

Keaton Mitchell was in for the first play of the game, Justice Hill in for the second play, and Gus Edwards in for the third play. That’s a great summation of this backfield. The Ravens have been rolling with the hot hand at running back, and as of late, that’s been Mitchell. His explosiveness is highlighted every single time he touches the ball. Edwards found the end zone, as he’s the primary back when it comes to runs inside the 10-yard line. Lamar has a bunch, Hill has a few, and Mitchell has zero carries inside the 10-yard line. Mitchell ended up hurting his knee to start the fourth quarter. He was helped off the field by medical staff, then carted to the locker room, where he was very quickly ruled out for the rest of the game. Sadly, it looks to be season-ending, according to John Harbaugh.

Travis Etienne didn’t wow me in this game, but my expectations were lowered due to the tough matchup. He still got all the work in the backfield, and he didn’t leave you high and dry.

Wide receivers (against Ravens: Neutral) | (against Jaguars: Favorable):

Considering the matchup, I was expecting a big day out of Zay Flowers or Odell Beckham Jr.. Odell recorded one target, while Flowers didn’t get a single target in the first half. They finished the game with one reception apiece. A little bit of a resurgence for first-round bust Rashod Bateman, getting a season-high six targets. They didn’t result in much, especially given a favorable matchup. Absolutely disappointing game for anyone counting on the Ravens’ wide receivers. Next week’s matchup against the 49ers means Lamar will have to pass to keep up, so they aren’t "fallers" to me.

I saw an interesting stat that Calvin Ridley has drawn the most defensive penalties. That makes sense when you’re as explosive a wide receiver as Ridley. Ridley had two end zone targets at the end of the game as the Jaguars tried to make a comeback drive. One was just barely broken up, and the other was called out-of-bounds as Ridley bobbled the ball. I thought he was in, and so did Doug Pederson as he challenged it but failed to get it overturned as it wasn’t clear and obvious. If he catches that, it saves his day. Zay Jones had a huge 36-yard catch that set the Jaguars up nicely at the goal line. He got a few deep shots but later departed from the game after pulling up with a leg injury. It’s unclear if it’s the same knee injury that kept him sidelined for multiple games earlier in the season. Rookie Parker Washington has seen a bit more attention since Christian Kirk’s injury. While Washington normally plays from the slot, if Jones is sidelined, that might be a huge uptick in snaps for the rookie. The 2021 Jaguars’ standout Jamal Agnew snagged the only touchdown for the Jaguars in this game on a wide-open 65-yard touchdown catch-and-run. Normally, I’d say he’s not someone worth adding as he primarily plays special teams, but depending on Jones injury, he might get more work. Washington should be added over Agnew regardless.

Tight ends (against Ravens: Neutral) | (against Jaguars: Favorable):

Charlie Kolar set them up for a goal line touchdown, but a penalty on the following play backed the Ravens up 15 yards, changing the script from a possible run play to a touchdown pass to Isaiah Likely. Later in the game, arguably the play of the game, we saw Likely go up and grab a massive 25-yard bomb from Lamar. The pass traveled even further as Lamar avoided a sack, rolled out right, and threw across the field to the big tight end. Another big game for Likely, who has filled in Mark Andrews’ shoes nicely. Evan Engram has been hot lately, even against bad matchups, but he didn’t come through this week.

Risers: Isaiah Likely, Gus Edwards, Justice Hill, Parker Washington

Fallers: Keaton Mitchell, Zay Jones

—Colt Williams

Williams is working towards a degree in economics and statistics at Sonoma State. A United States Air Force veteran, he’s been playing fantasy football since 2012. Follow him on Twitter @_ColtWilliams

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