11 instant reactions from the Jaguars' statement win vs. the Colts

Following their bye, the Jacksonville Jaguars were a 7.5-point favorite against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 8, and rightly so. Indy had lost three in a row and traded All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner days before the divisional bout.

When you factor in that the Colts had last won a game at EverBank Stadium back in 2014, it's easy to see why the Jags were expected to come out on top. However, nobody would have imagined just how dominant they were going to be. Heck, Trevor Lawrence left the game in the fourth quarter because the outcome of the game had already been decided.

In spite of dealing with injuries, Jacksonville managed to fend off the Colts without much trouble, easily winning 42-7. Sure, it would've been great if the Jags had pitched a shutout, but that shouldn't take anything away from their convincing showing. And with this in mind, here are 11 instant reactions from the Week 8 victory.

11 instant reactions from the Jaguars' win vs. the Colts in Week 8

1. The Jaguars defense got off to a strong start, forcing Indy to punt after a three-and-out. They didn't stop take the foot off the gas pedal until the outcome of the game was already decided in the fourth quarter.

2. Eric Murray left the game with a hand injury after kickoff. With him out of the mix, Rayuan Lane III and Kayvvon Merriweather were the starting safeties. Given that Antonio Johnson was ruled out with an ankle injury, rookie Jalen Huskey was active, so Jacksonville had enough depth to finish the game.

2. Brian Thomas Jr. came through for the Jaguars, scoring a receiving touchdown on Jacksonville's first offensive possession. The 2024 first-round pick has been the subject of trade rumors but is showing he's still a valuable contributor on offense.

3. Tight end Brenton Strange caught wind of Mark Bowman's heroics for USC and didn't want to stay behind, so he reeled in a 46-yard catch that included a stiff arm.

4. Travon Walker and Foye Oluokun had a sack each. Arik Armstead and Josh Hines-Allen combined for 1.0 more. The Jacksonville pass rush consistently pressured Daniel Jones, preventing him from finding a rhythm. Sure, Indy just traded All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson, so Jones' protection was far from great. That said, the Jags had one of their best games from a pass-rush standpoint in a while.

5. Trevor Lawrence had a few misfires but generally played well, routinely taking deep shots. His interception before halftime most definitely hurt. However, the Jaguars defense took over and made sure that Lawrence's mistake didn't come back to hurt them (more on that later).

6. With Ezra Cleveland leaving the game, Wyatt Milum was thrust into action. Cleveland was listed as questionable but didn't return, which made sense when you take into account that Milum was able to hold the fort.

7. The injury bug wasn't kind to the Jaguars. Aside from Eric Murray, they lost DaVon Hamilton during a failed Indianapolis trick play. He immediately grabbed his knee in pain as soon as he hit the ground and was eventually carted off the field.

8. During the trick play, Bryan Thomas Jr. had a fumble recovery that gave the Jags the ball back. They made the most of it, with Trevor Lawrence finding Nate Boerkircher for a 31-yard touchdown bomb that put the Jaguars ahead 14-0.

Boerkircher now has two touchdowns for the season, quickly proving that he's far from a one-trick pony.

9. After Trevor Lawrence's interception before halftime, it looked like Indianapolis was going to march down the field to at least get three points on the scoreboard. However, Rayuan Lane was having none of it and intercepted a pass that went through tight end Ty Warren's hands and returned it for a touchdown to put the Jaguars up 28-0.

Lane's pick six put an end to whatever momentum the Colts might have had before the first half ended.

Branson Combs also registered his first career interception off a Daniel Jones undethrow. He wasn't able to take it to the house, but it was an impressive play nonetheless.

10. Rain was expected for the game, but the Jags enjoyed nice weather. That said, it did pour, at least injury-wise. Travon Walker left the game in the third quarter. Maybe it was just a bad stretch, but regardless of the reason, the Jags dealt with way more injuries than they could have envisioned.

11. One silver lining in the light of injuries was that Chris Rodriguez broke off a 29-yard run for a touchdown in the third quarter to put the Jaguars up 35-0.

It was the team's second big run of the game. Expect Rodriguez to continue to be a big part of the offense after toting the rock six times for 41 yards. That said, Bhayshul Tuten also had his best game of the season, amassing 104 rushing yards with a touchdown on just 16 carries. On top of that, the sophomore out of Virginia Tech had two catches for 55 yards with a touchdown.

Running back has suddenly become a strength for the Jags.

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