Jacksonville’s defense may be a statistical outlier because the key metrics don’t reflect how good it has been this season.
The Jaguars are 15th in points allowed, 21st in yards allowed and 26th in sacks, which is no match for one of the best units in the NFL. But Jacksonville crunched the numbers — and sometimes carried the team — thanks to a league-leading 15.
These Jags are hawks. “It just brings out the things we’ve been talking about, our vision,” said safety Andre Cisco, who is tied for the team lead with three interceptions. “It just happens on the field. And for us, it’s expected, so it doesn’t even seem that bad when it happens.”
The Jaguars (4-2), riding a nine-game winning streak during their three-game hitting streak, will look to continue Thursday night at New Orleans (3-3). And with quarterback Trevor Lawrence nursing a sprained left knee, the defense may have to do more against the Saints.
“When the quarterback doesn’t play … we make it a game to win,” linebacker Foye Oluokun said. “That’s probably the next step we can take defensively.”
Jacksonville, off to its best start since 2007, says its defense is improving. While general manager Trent Baalke and coach Doug Pederson barely managed that side of the ball in the offseason, they expected the young unit to grow.
Josh Allen is in the final year of his rookie contract and has seven of the team’s 12 sacks. Fellow Travon Walker, the overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, leads a run stop that ranks first in the AFC and third in the league.
Roy Robertson-Harris and Foley Fatukasi were solid inside, second-year pro Devin Lloyd improved at inside linebacker and the talented linebacker benefited from late leads that force opponents into predictable passing situations. And it leads to a league-high eight interceptions — one in each of cornerback Darious Williams’ last three games — that could be more. Safety Rayshawn Jenkins went down with a penalty in Sunday’s 37-20 win against Indianapolis, and Lloyd waived two more potential picks because he has a partial cast on his right arm.
“There’s still room to grow,” Allen said. “We’re not where we need to be, but we’re definitely moving in the right direction.”
Much of Jacksonville’s success comes from the return of 11 starters on defense who are in their second year in the same system. Coordinator Mike Caldwell simply knows his players and what they do best. There is little confusion before and during them, and even less infighting as the plays unfold.
“It’s really cool for us that this happened,” Oluokun said. – We had confidence all the time. I think it’s just being comfortable with what we have there now.”
More help is on the way from the defense as well.
While cornerback Tyson Campbell (hamstring) is expected to miss Thursday’s game, linebacker Takla DaVon Hamilton is nearing a return from a back infection that sidelined him for nearly two months and left him on intravenous antibiotics for six weeks. And veteran pass rusher Dawuane Smoot made his season debut against the Colts and played 32 snaps off the bench.
“He’s going to get better week by week until he gets his feet together,” Pederson said. “He did well though. He did well.”
The same can be said for Jacksonville’s defense, which has allowed 21 or fewer points in five of six games. The exception was last month’s 37-17 home win in Houston, which overturned Jacksonville’s 1-9 record in London last week. “We knew it was a fluke. We knew it was just a slow day for us,” Cisco said. “But it was definitely a wake-up call. Early in the year, that’s what you want. Take that away and we’ve moved on from there.”
