Jaguars defense gets its swagger back in win over the Colts
By David Levin
The Jacksonville Jaguars defense put on a clinic on Sunday, holding Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts scoreless at home.
Never was the adage defense wins championships so obvious than in the Jacksonville Jaguars 6-0 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. There may not have been any Super Bowl title on the line or the AFC South division crown, but the Jaguars proved once again that with a dominant defense that plays as a unit, anything is possible given the team’s impotent offense.
The Jaguars held Andrew Luck to 248 yards passing and no touchdowns – a far cry from his performance in the 29-26 victory over Jacksonville in Week 10 of the regular season. Luck, who has been one of the least sacked quarterbacks in the NFL this season, was dropped three times and harassed all day long.
"“It was great to just get them a win so they could celebrate as well. We’ve got to do it for the city, Yannick Ngakoue said when interviewed following the game.”"
This team needed the win as much as this city. Seven weeks of losing and not getting a win since Sept. 30 had to weigh on this organization. There is still work to be done, but at least the win eases some of the pressure. The locker room was a more jovial place following the shutoutt at TIAA Bank Field.
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"“The last time that we played the Colts we wanted to show that that was a fluke, so I feel like a shutout was the best win,” middle linebacker Myles Jack said via Jaguars.com. “We still had a bad taste in our mouths because we gave up 29 points in the first half, so we knew that was a fluke and we knew we weren’t playing to the best of our abilities.”"
Myles Jack and Telvin Smith played potentially their best games of the season.
The Jaguars defense has played better since their loss to the colts, possibly turning the page on what has been a failed season so far. With a 4-8 record, the playoffs are a virtual impossibility. Now, the defense and the team can play the role of spoiler and build for the 2019 season.
The run defense proved to be just as tough as the coverage in passing situations. The Colts found little success, running for 41 yards on 16 carries. Their longest run from scrimmage netted 11 yards.
"“They beat us last time, so I think we can’t say they have our number,” defensive tackle Malik Jackson said in the locker room. “I just think we understood the challenge at hand. We understood that we felt like we were the better team and we let one go last week. Like I said, they came out in that first half last game and scored every time they had the ball and in that second half they didn’t score a drop. We wanted to continue that going into here.”"
With Ngakoue and Calais Campbell spending a portion of the afternoon in the Colts backfield, it became easier for the secondary to lean on the Indianapolis wide receivers. The Colts punted six times on the day.
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Now, with the Tennessee Titans next on the schedule on Thirsday night, the focus on splitting the season series with their division rival is a very real possibility. Tennessee came into Jacksonville and won a defensive battle 9-6 in the third game of the season.