Philadelphia Eagles vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: Pro Football Focus Recap

At first glance, the Jacksonville Jaguars had a solid all-around performance against the Philadelphia Eagles Saturday night. Michael Vick made a few plays with his legs and managed to find some openings down the field in the first half, but the Jaguars defense kept him relatively in check. Chad Henne was up-and-down as expected but the offense at least managed two first half touchdowns. Let’s take a look at some of the Pro Football Focus grades to see which players impressed using advanced metrics.

Aug 24, 2013; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars running back Jordan Todman (30) runs for a first down during the second quarter of their game against the Philadelphia Eagles at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Phil Sears-USA TODAY Sports

Best Overall Offensive Grades:  Eugene Monroe (+3.6), Will Ta’ufo’ou (+2.0), Austin Pasztor (+1.6), Jordan Todman (+1.6)

Eugene Monroe is 3-for-3 so far in cracking the top PFF grades on offense. In fact Monroe is the highest rated tackle this preseason with a grade of (+6.7), leading Tyron Smith (+6.6) and D’Brickashaw Ferguson (+6.4) by narrow margins. His pass block grade (+4.1) has been the main driving force behind his high ranking. Will Ta’ufo’ou made the grade entirely on his run blocking (+1.5) and a short reception. Jordan Todman was impressive with limited carries and provided the highlight of the night on a 63 yard touchdown run. Todman should get deep consideration for a roster spot if Justin Forsett continues to stay out with an injury.

Best Overall Defensive Grades:  Jeremy Mincey (+2.6), Kyle Love (+1.4), Paul Posluszny (+1.3), and Sen’Derrick Marks (+1.1)

It’s nice to see Mincey getting some appreciation via non-conventional statistics considering how questionable his role on the team was a few months back. It appeared Mincey had no natural position in Gus Bradley’s defensive scheme but he’s found a niche as an interior pass rusher. His pass rush grade (+2.0) was by far the highest on the team despite only playing 15 snaps.  Kyle Love did his job as a run defender clogging up the middle and Sen’Derrick Marks continues to provide a penetrating rush from the tackle position. Posluszny graded out well overall but his pass coverage grade (-0.6) didn’t help him.

Most Disappointing Grades: Johnathan Cyprien (-2.7), Mike Harris (-1.8), Uche Nwaneri (-3.7), Cameron Bradfield (-3.5)

Johnathan Cyprien shows up at the bottom of the rankings for the second week in a row. He must be misdiagnosing a lot more often than I can tell from just watching it live but he hasn’t looked like the worst player on defense the last two weeks. Regardless he definitely has room for improvement and should get a lot better with more snaps. Mike Harris got killed in his coverage grade (-2.1) and has been in the red all three weeks. Uche got pushed back a few times with the first team offense and his pass blocking grade reflected his allowed sack and quarterback hurry. Bradfield couldn’t carry over last week’s solid performance, instead getting called for 2 penalties in 45 snaps.

Other notes:

• Despite registering a sack, Andre Branch still couldn’t manage a positive pass rush grade (-0.3) or overall grade (-1.2). He hasn’t instilled any confidence as a rotational pass rusher but he has a pretty good chance to make the roster after the Jaguars cut J.D. Griggs and Paul Hazel.
• Matt Scott finally got a positive grade (+0.5) with a completion percentage over 50%. He handled a little more than a third of the offensive snaps and that will almost certainly increase in the final preseason game.
• Mike Brewster played the most snaps by a significant margin (72) after Will Rackley left with a leg injury. He’ll get another look but don’t be surprised if the Jaguars play with some of the right guards – Drew Nowak and Pat McQuistan – on the left side.

– Daniel Lago

Yell at me on Twitter @dlago89