Jacksonville pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the entire NFL season on Sunday when it defeated the AFC East-leading Buffalo Bills 9-6 to earn its first win on U.S. soil since Week 1 in 2020. While the Bills’ NFL-best defense proved to be formidable, the Jaguars shut down Buffalo’s offense, largely thanks to a dominant game from its own Josh Allen.
The Jags still sit at 2-6 on the season, but the victory demonstrated that this team is improving, especially on defense. Beating one of the hottest teams in football should give this young squad some confidence heading into the back half of the season, and it will hope to see even more improvement as rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence gets more comfortable.
Here’s what we can learn from Jacksonville’s snap counts in the big win.
Offense
Analysis
- With Cam Robinson injuring his back during pregame warmups, Walker Little got the start at left tackle and held his own against one of the best fronts in the game. He gave up a sack, but he never left the field in the win. That’s a good sign for the Jags, who drafted Little to potentially replace Robinson eventually.
- For the first time this season, Trevor Lawrence didn’t see every single offensive snap. After a scary moment in the second quarter when his leg was caught by Little, who was engaged in a block, Lawrence was clearly in pain and had to be helped to the locker room. He returned, but not before C.J. Beathard made a few impressive throws in his absence. Beathard’s action was limited, but it should give the team confidence in its backup.
- James Robinson was inactive in this one, and that led to Carlos Hyde seeing the vast majority of offensive snaps. He had 21 carries for 67 yards, while Dare Ogunbowale and Jamal Agnew each saw just one carry. The Jags hope to have Robinson back against Indianapolis next week, but Hyde played well in his absence.
- It’s clear how badly Jacksonville needs receiver help without DJ Chark Jr. available for the rest of the year. Laquon Treadwell, who was signed to the active roster this week, saw almost a third of the offensive snaps at receiver, the most outside of the top three. He was targeted once and didn’t make a catch, though. No wide receiver had more than 27 yards, which was Jamal Agnew‘s total.
- While Dan Arnold is becoming this team’s top tight end target (and perhaps Lawrence’s favorite target overall), Luke Farrell and Chris Manhertz were still on the field for almost half of all offensive snaps despite being targeted only once each. Manhertz caught the target for nine yards, while Farrell did not. Both are strong blocking tight ends, and when the Jags run the ball as heavily as they did on Sunday, you can expect them to see a lot of action.
Defense
Analysis
- No one in Jacksonville’s starting secondary group left the field, which given the depth, isn’t much of a surprise. What is interesting is the fact that Rudy Ford, a safety who has seen a lot of action in nickel packages this year, was on the field for all but one play. It resulted in what was likely the best game of his NFL career as he snagged his first interception. He should continue to see a major role moving forward.
- As impactful as Josh Allen was, it’s hard to believe he was on the field for fewer than 80% of defensive snaps. He had eight tackles, a sack, a pick, and a fumble recovery against the other Josh Allen. He’s been playing very well recently and has three sacks in the last two weeks. Jihad Ward once again saw a lot more reps on the other side than K’Lavon Chaisson, but neither made a mark on the stat sheet.
- Taven Bryan had the best game of his NFL career on Sunday, sacking Buffalo’s Allen twice. A first-round pick in 2018, Bryan’s career hasn’t exactly gone as planned for the Jags, and he’s had a largely forgettable season. But he dominated on Sunday, and the Jags will hope he can build off that performance moving forward.
- Dawuane Smoot continues to have a fantastic season. He had a sack against the Bills while also providing two quarterback hits and a forced fumble. As far as the rest of the defensive line goes, Adam Gotsis had a quarterback pressure in the win, while Roy Robertson-Harris and Malcom Brown each had two tackles.