Jaguars Journal
by Sam Kouvaris
August 22, 2010
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Post Dolphins Report
They kept saying the game was going to start, and finally, 1:45 late, they did kick it off at the newly named EverBank Field. They did let fans go back to their cars and surprisingly, there was a pretty good crowd still on hand to see the game start despite the rain and the lightning and the delay.
When they did kick it, Deji Karim showed again why Gene Smith drafted him. He took the opening kickoff and ran it back into Dolphins territory. After a seven-yard gain on first down with a David Garrard pass, Maurice Jones Drew lost six; Garrard missed him on a circle route and the Jaguars punted.
Another 3 and out for the first team offense.
Adam Podlesh punted it out at the three, Tyson Alualu and Aaron Kampman (there’s two new names we haven’t heard before!) combined on a sack, Rashad Jennings got his hand on a punt and the Jaguars were up 2-0. I’ve always said football fans in Jacksonville liked defense more than anything else and it’s interesting to see how loud the stadium gets when the Jaguars make big defensive plays.
You’ve got to expect rookie mistakes, so when Scotty McGee fumbled the return, you were just glad it was an exhibition game. Even Jack Del Rio got into the act early challenging the call (I guess he needs the practice too) and the Dolphins kept the ball. And the referee’s microphone stopped working.
It’s raining again.
But the ref’s mic is working.
And the Dolphins convert a 1st and 20 in three plays. Not enough pass rush and the Jaguars are getting pushed around up front.
Then something happened on the sidelines because the first team started to play like they keep telling us they’re capable of. Garrard and company worked their way down the field, converted three first downs and scored a touchdown on a nice two-yard pas to Mike Thomas.
Miami was able to respond on offense but the defense showed signs of being better. They still aren’t creating enough push up front on obvious passing downs and consequently they’re on the field longer than they want to be. They trailed 24-12 at halftime, giving up three scores to the Miami passing game.
We saw plenty of Luke McCown in the game after Garrard took a big hit and didn’t return. McCown is still a solid backup, and could be something completely different if he could be more consistent.
The Jaguars didn’t really try and run the ball, giving Maurice Jones Drew 4 carries for minus 2 yards.
As far as the eye test, they look like a better team, particularly if the Dolphins are the contender everybody thinks they’ll be in the AFC. Mike Sims Walker needs to stay healthy. Mike Thomas is somebody Garrard now trusts. David sees Marcedes Lewis as an option, something that hasn’t happened before. Garrard still isn’t as accurate as he could be, although his stats say 6 of 8. The ball needs to be more precise, and I hope that happens, as the regular season gets closer.
No question they were better than they’ve been. They improved between game one and two.
We’ll see who plays against Tampa Bay because still the team hasn’t taken the field with the guys they expect to be in the starting lineup on September 12.
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