Jacksonville Jaguars Play Hard, Give Game Away 27-13

Don’t let the final score fool you, this game was all Jacksonville Jaguars in every part of the game except turnovers for the first three quarters. The defense finally broke down in the end, allowing the Miami Dolphins to cap the game with offensive competency, putting together their first actual drives late in the third quarter and into the fourth.

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The story from this game is unfortunately about Blake Bortles handing the Miami Dolphins 14 points on a platter and giving them the opportunity for another three. A blocked field goal, another negated by penalty, and the turnovers and you suddenly have a game that was going all Jaguars turn into a near rout despite a mediocre offensive showing from the Dolphins. Bortles’ two pick sixes in particular left points on the table for the Jaguars and gave immediate points to a Dolphins team that couldn’t mount an offensive drive until late.

Denard Robinson’s second 100 yard rushing game in a row (the first that’s happened for the Jags since 2011) is overshadowed by the poor offensive showing overall, stalling the Jaguars in the second half despite strong drives in the first. Offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch should be commended for a strong first half but his second half play calling was highly suspect, moving toward passing with plenty of time left on the clock despite the running game easily proving more dominant and less mistake-ridden. Rather than continuing to ride Robinson, Fisch opted for passes with Bortles when he was obviously struggling. While it’s important for Bortles to develop, the extra snaps hurt the Jaguars when they could have clawed back from the earlier, disappointing turnovers. The Jaguars couldn’t get a touchdown until there was just 2:19 left on the clock.

The Miami Dolphins should also be recognized for rebounding despite a terrible first half on offense. At halftime the Jaguars had 11 first downs compared to just three for the Dolphins. The Dolphins responded later and finished the day with 17 and 17 more points in the second half.

Ultimately in the NFL, however, all that matters at the end of the day is the score. No matter how it comes about, the score is the definitive marker.

The Jacksonville Jaguars defense played admirably and the offense clicked in the run game. In the end, however, mistakes were the undoing of the young team, allowing the Miami Dolphins to come out on top.