The Jacksonville Jaguars are looking to bounce back from their Week 1 defeat to the Houston Texans and avoid starting the season on a losing streak. For that to happen, the Jags will have to play significantly better in Week 2. It won’t be easy when you take into account that they welcoming the Denver Broncos, who beat the New York Giants in the season opener. Heading into the game, the Jags are a 6.0-point underdog.
Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater looked like the real deal, throwing for two touchdown passes and no interceptions. Also, outside linebacker Von Miller was his dominant self in his return to the field after missing the 2020 season with a tendon injury. In order to understand the Jags’ Week 2 foe better, the B&T staff reached out to Predominantly Orange contributor Graham Tiedtke for some insight.
Here are the five questions B&T asked Mr. Tiedtke about Sunday’s game.
1. Will quarterback Teddy Bridgewater once again have an efficient game or was his performance last week a fluke?
PO: Teddy Bridgewater showed multiple skills against the New York Giants that could play a factor against the Jaguars. Despite the severe knee injury he suffered during practice back in 2016, he was able to show off a little bit of his athleticism.
There were a couple of inaccurate throws down the field that he wishes he had back. I anticipate this game to come down to a lot of running, but also sprinkling in a mix of play-action passes to tight end Noah Fant or the speedy K.J. Hamler, who could see more targets with Jerry Jeudy inactive (ankle).
It is absolutely possible that Jacksonville’s defense shuts Bridgewater down, with the emergence of linebacker Myles Jack and defensive end Josh Allen. All in all, I would not call Week 1’s performance by the 2014 first-round pick a fluke.
Bridgewater and former second-round pick Drew Lock competed until the very last minute to determine the starting quarterback of the Broncos. That should not go unnoticed. It was a great, healthy competition that made both guys better—at this point, more importantly, Bridgewater.
1. Besides Von Miller, what other defender in the Broncos’ front seven should the Jaguars worry about?
PO: It’s hard to pick just one, so I’ll bend the unwritten rule here. The Broncos have gotten some nice production out of defensive linemen Shelby Harris and McTelvin Agim over the last couple of weeks. In fact, Harris has done well for the team over the last couple of years. He’s famous for being a phenomenal ball-swatter. Inside linebacker Alexander Johnson recorded 124 total tackles for the Broncos in 2020.
One guy who the Jaguars may not know a whole lot about is rookie linebacker Jonathon Cooper out of Ohio State. Cooper elevated to Bradley Chubb’s backup and with Chubb missing Week 1, Cooper got some playing time. At the end of the day, the Broncos edge rushers as a whole unit should worry the Jags.
3. How would you assess the development of the Broncos 2021 first-round pick, cornerback Patrick Surtain?
Patrick Surtain logged the least amount of defensive snaps for the Denver Broncos in Week 1, tying linebacker Andre Mintze with just 16. The team’s cornerback group is strong, so Surtain was not always needed. It also had to do with the game flow and scheme the Broncos ran. It just didn’t allow the rookie to get on the field a whole lot.
Surtain missed a tackle on Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard, who went 37 yards for the score. While it was not technically his assignment to cover Shepard, it was his responsibility to make the tackle, which he just was unable to do.
In the preseason, Surtain did intercept a pass against the Minnesota Vikings that went to the house for six points. He is the real deal. There will be bumps in the road, but I’m confident in his abilities. The Alabama product is going to see plenty of action against Jacksonville as Ronald Darby was placed on injured reserve and will miss at least three weeks with a hamstring injury.
The Jacksonville Jaguars had better watch out for Tim Patrick.
4. Which Bronco should get more attention from the national media but doesn’t?
Wide receiver Tim Patrick. It’s easy to forget a player who may not receive as many targets due to a crowded wide receiver group. However, Patrick played extensively during the 2020 season because of Courtland Sutton’s season-ending injury.
The Utah product caught four passes for 39 yards and a touchdown against the Giants. Last season, he appeared in 15 games and caught 51 passes for 742 yards and six touchdowns. He has made some pretty phenomenal catches in his career, and a big part of that is his ability to use his 6-foot-4, 212-pound frame to out-jump defensive backs.
With solid quarterback play, Patrick could outplay last year’s stat totals and should help the Denver Broncos win more than their total from last year — five.
5. Here comes the most important question, what’s your prediction for the game?
It would not surprise me if the Bronco’s passing game struggles with Myles Jack and Josh Allen chasing after Teddy Bridgewater. Denver’s pass protection needs to be at its best but could have some problems if right guard Graham Glasgow (rapid heartbeat) is out. If that’s the case, second-year player Netane Muti would get the start.
I do think that with this being Patrick Surtain’s first game, he may struggle a little bit if quarterback Trevor Lawrence plays well. Passing the ball 50 times like he did in Week 1 probably won’t be a recipe for success for Jacksonville.
If the Broncos are going to win, they will have to win the time of possession and capitalize in the red zone. I think that they’ll be able to record an interception or two and multiple sacks. If the Jaguars rebound from the 160 yards on the ground they gave up to the Texans, it’ll be a long day for the Broncos.
The Broncos went 3-for-3 on fourth down conversions versus New York. If they have the chance to do that again, they should. I think that the Jaguars will come away with more passing yards than the Broncos but Denver wins the rushing category and time of possession. It still may come down to the wire and end up 31-23.
In case you missed it, here are five more questions the B&T staff discussed with Graham Tiedtke ahead of Week 2.