PFF: Jacksonville Jaguars rookie DT DaVon Hamilton stood out in Week 7

Jacksonville Jaguars let a lead slip out of their hands in Week 7.

If we look at how the Jacksonville Jaguars fared in their Week 7 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, we are going to find plenty of negative, but also a few bright spots on both offense and defense. It’s true that they let a 29-22 lead turn into a 39-29 loss and while it stings, it’s worth noting that the ‘Jags’ were winning the game up until the third quarter and actually had a chance to leave ‘the City of Angels’ with a victory.

Had the defense taken a stand, we would be talking about the Jaguars’ second win of the season, but they didn’t, and the blame falls on more just than one player. It all starts with defensive coordinator Todd Wash, who needs to do a better job of putting his players in a position to succeed. The players have to do their part and execute, something they failed to do in the fourth quarter against the ‘Bolts’.

The defense surely missed linebacker Myles Jack, who was out with an ankle injury, and safety Jarrod Wilson, who has been dealing with a hamstring injury throughout the season. Nevertheless, the  Jaguars don’t have any excuses for letting a lead slip out of their hands.

Jacksonville Jaguars DT DaVon Hamilton held his ground against the Chargers.

While the Jaguars defensive line as a whole didn’t generate much pressure at the line of scrimmage and had just one sack, DaVon Hamilton was a force throughout the matchup. All in all, the Ohio State standout recorded eight total tackles and one of them was for a loss on 68 percent of the team’s snaps on defense after playing on 53 percent the week before.

Hamilton played so well that Pro Football Focus gave him an 86.6 overall grade in Week 7, the best one any ‘Jags’ player on defense recorded against the Chargers. In fact, he was PFF’s highest-graded rookie defender in Week 7 in just his second start ever. While he hasn’t registered his first sack in the NFL, he could do so if the Jaguars keep giving him playing time.

Moving forward, the Jaguars should keep Hamilton in the starting lineup. Even though the team needs to find ways to get production from the defense, they shouldn’t have to worry about one of their defensive tackle spots if the rookie keeps playing the way he did against the Chargers.