Jacksonville had what appeared to be a winnable game on Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers, but Kyle Shanahan’s team had other plans. The 49ers rolled to a 30-10 win, dropping Jacksonville to 2-8 in what has been a frustrating first season for Urban Meyer and quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
The Jags have had some close calls against good teams, but aside from a 9-6 win over Buffalo and a win in London over a Miami team that is also struggling, those opportunities haven’t resulted in wins. Now, after yet another loss, the team has dropped a spot in the latest USA TODAY Sports NFL power rankings from Nate Davis, falling from No. 28 to No. 29.
They’ve got five takeaways this season, three fewer than any other team.
That is certainly a telling stat, and even with the defense playing better, it has struggled to force turnovers. Two of those five came in the win over Buffalo, with three stretching over the remaining nine games. However, the biggest problem right now for the Jags is offense.
Lawrence has actually become a lot more efficient as the season has gone on, but the lack of weapons around him has severely limited his production. With James Robinson battling injuries, this unit doesn’t have much to rely on.
There are winnable games down the stretch, like this weekend’s game against a struggling Atlanta team, but it’s hard to imagine things get considerably better in Jacksonville this season.