3 stats that explain the Jaguars’ humiliating loss to the 49ers in Week 11

2. Penalties once again cost the Jaguars against the 49ers.

Even the most disciplined teams commit penalties every now and then but the Jaguars are getting flagged at an alarming rate. Against the Indianapolis Colts, they had eight penalties, seven of them by the offense, and things didn’t get much better in Week 11, getting flagged the same amount of times. The difference was that the defense was responsible for nearly half of them.

Safety Rayshawn Jenkins might have been the worst offender. He had a holding penalty in the 49ers’ first drive and later got ejected in the next one after losing his temper and punching wide receiver Jauan Jennings.

Head coach Urban Meyer said he would talk to Jenkins after the game, and Trevor Lawrence said the veteran safety showed support to his teammates despite the fact he was disqualified. Right tackle Jawaan Taylor was once again flagged twice for holding although one was declined. Between those two, they had 50 percent of the Jags’ penalties but players such as wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. and tight end Dan Arnold also contributed.

At the risk of sounding pessimistic, the Jaguars won’t be able to win many games if they don’t cut down on penalties. They aren’t talented enough yet to overcome them, so they need to play a more disciplined brand of football for the remainder of the season. If they can keep their number of flags down to a manageable three or four per game, their chances of winning will increase a bit.