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The Jacksonville Jaguars are struggling with some basic fundamentals of football.
The key one for the defense: tackling. Wrapping up the ball carrier and bringing him down.
It’s one of the first things we’re taught to do whether playing in a league or playing a pickup game in the neighborhood. It’s hammered into players from the minute you sign up to play. NFL teams are no different. When coaches talk about focusing on fundamentals, tackling is often a part of it.
Heading into 2015, the Jaguars need to work on that fundamental. Tackling all season was visibly atrocious.
As if to confirm what we saw, Pro Football Focus took a look at the best tackling efficiency by team. The numbers simply confirmed what we already knew: the Jags can’t tackle.
Here’s a look at the numbers for every team per PFF:
Rank | Team | Snaps | Missed Tackles | Missed Tackles/Snap |
1 | Cleveland Browns | 1188 | 102 | 0.086 |
2 | San Francisco 49ers | 1072 | 94 | 0.088 |
3 | Chicago Bears | 1065 | 97 | 0.091 |
4 | Philadelphia Eagles | 1207 | 111 | 0.092 |
5 | Houston Texans | 1150 | 110 | 0.096 |
6 | Denver Broncos | 1100 | 107 | 0.097 |
7 | Minnesota Vikings | 1109 | 108 | 0.097 |
8 | N.Y. Jets | 1044 | 102 | 0.098 |
9 | Buffalo Bills | 1124 | 110 | 0.098 |
10 | Tennessee Titans | 1169 | 116 | 0.099 |
11 | San Diego Chargers | 1074 | 108 | 0.101 |
12 | Miami Dolphins | 1071 | 110 | 0.103 |
13 | Carolina Panthers | 1056 | 110 | 0.104 |
14 | New England Patriots | 1111 | 116 | 0.104 |
15 | Cincinnati Bengals | 1146 | 120 | 0.105 |
16 | Baltimore Ravens | 1117 | 117 | 0.105 |
17 | Seattle Seahawks | 1002 | 105 | 0.105 |
18 | Indianapolis Colts | 1069 | 113 | 0.106 |
19 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 1010 | 107 | 0.106 |
20 | Green Bay Packers | 1114 | 120 | 0.108 |
21 | Washington Redskins | 1060 | 116 | 0.109 |
22 | Kansas City Chiefs | 1086 | 120 | 0.110 |
23 | Arizona Cardinals | 1085 | 122 | 0.112 |
24 | N.Y. Giants | 1076 | 123 | 0.114 |
25 | Detroit Lions | 1072 | 124 | 0.116 |
26 | Atlanta Falcons | 1106 | 132 | 0.119 |
27 | St. Louis Rams | 1077 | 130 | 0.121 |
28 | Dallas Cowboys | 1054 | 129 | 0.122 |
29 | Oakland Raiders | 1157 | 144 | 0.124 |
30 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 1147 | 144 | 0.126 |
31 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 1139 | 152 | 0.133 |
32 | New Orleans Saints | 1092 | 148 | 0.136 |
Stuck in at 31st overall, right between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders is a terrible spot for the Jaguars to be.
Head coach Gus Bradley, a defensive mind, needs to worry about how to improve the Jaguars’ tackling efficiency. Part of that will be finding the right people to replace turnstiles like Josh Evans. Another part of it will be emphasis from Bradley and defensive coordinator Bob Babich. The Jaguars are a young team and being out of position and failing to tackle are part of that. But as we enter year three, the Jaguars need to start putting it together.
The biggest culprit of the Jaguars’ 144 missed tackles are safeties Josh Evans (21) and Johnathan Cyprien (21), linebackers J.T. Thomas (14) and Telvin Smith (13), and defensive back Will Blackmon (8).
You just can’t win games without proper tackling.