Tag: D.J. Chark

Watch: Highlights from D.J. Chark’s 2020 Pro Bowl season

When the 2019 season started, it was clear someone needed to emerge as the Jacksonville Jaguars’ No. 1 receiver and D.J. Chark Jr. stepped to the plate and became that guy. Once the season ended, he managed to accumulate a career high of 73 catches, …

When the 2019 season started, it was clear someone needed to emerge as the Jacksonville Jaguars’ No. 1 receiver and D.J. Chark Jr. stepped to the plate and became that guy. Once the season ended, he managed to accumulate a career high of 73 catches, 1,008 receiving yards, and eight touchdowns which was good to land him in the Pro Bowl a few months ago.

Chark, 23, was a player many fans wanted to see improve himself after a rookie season in which he only recorded 14 catches and 174 receiving yards. He struggled in a variety of ways from penalties, to drops, to fumbles, and injuries. However, he didn’t let that damage his confidence and made a case to be the most improved player in the league in 2019.

Heading forward it will be interesting to see what new offensive coordinator Jay Gruden can do with Chark after watching the success he had with a young A.J. Green. Quarterback Gardner Minshew II will especially need Chark to avoid a slump in 2020 as the young quarterback will be looking to make his case as the Jags’ franchise quarterback.

Winners and Losers from Jaguars vs. Raiders

The Jaguars finally seemed to have found themselves against the Raiders, ending a five game drought. Here are some winners and losers.

The Jacksonville Jaguars finally seemed to have found themselves against the Oakland Raiders, ending a five-game drought. The team played with energy and had a fire in their eye that fans had not seen since the New York Jets game, way back in Week 8.

Here are some of the winners and losers from the Jags’ Week 15, 20-16 victory over the Raiders:

Winners

Yannick Ngakoue

Pay Yan! Yannick Ngakoue put up his best performance of the season against the Raiders, terrorizing the Oakland offense on his way to two sacks, five tackles and four tackles for loss. With a possible extension looming over his head, Ngakoue certainly gave the Jaguars front office a game to watch.

Ngakoue was dominant and looked like a man on a mission. He was hindered by a hamstring injury early in the season but has been getting better as the season has gone on. With just two games remaining, let’s hope he can keep it up and get that well-deserved extension that Ngakoue and fans have been dreaming about.

Gardner Minshew

Minshew Mania is BACK! Gardner Minshew started off the second half slow, scoring just three points in the first half. Fans were thinking “here we go again,” however, the young signal-caller had his own idea. Minshew was electric in the second half and he and Chris Conley connected for some critical, game winning plays to close out a comeback victory.

It seems as though the Nick Foles experiment was over before it ever really started. Minshew gives this team the best shot to win games and has earned the right to have a shot at being this franchise’s long-term answer at the quarterback position. Time will only tell if he’s the answer though.

Chris Conley

The Jaguars were missing arguably their best offensive playmaker and Minshew’s favorite target, DJ Chark Jr., to an ankle injury, and needed a player to step up. Chris Conley did that and more as the young receiver hauled in four balls for 49 yards. Two of those balls ended up being the catches that gave the team the win, as Minshew and Conley led the team back from a 13 point deficit.

If Chark continues to be out with his ankle injury, expect Conley to be the one to continue to step up and make plays for this offense.

Losers

The players behind the Jags’ 8 penalties

In a game where the Jags just ended a long and tough losing streak, it’s hard to envision many losers. However, in Jaguars fashion, penalties once again plagued the team. The Jaguars are the most penalized team in the NFL with 123 penalties worth over 1,100 yards in damage. For a team struggling to get things going, this certainly is no way to help their cause.

Once again against the Raiders, the penalties haunted the team as the Jags committed eight penalties for 87 yards. This is an area that has been a problem for a while and has yet to be minimized in any way as the Jaguars currently have three of the top-11 penalty offenders in the NFL.

Redzone offense

The Jacksonville red zone offense was once again dismal as the team was forced to again go to kicker Josh Lambo for six points. The team has had a problem with this all season long and still struggle to find the end zone. Running back, Leonard Fournette, a bruising goal-line type back, has just three touchdowns on the season, a telling tale.

In terms of yards per game, the Jaguars fare pretty well, ranking 16th in the league with just over 351 yards per game. However, the team is scoring just 17.7 points a game, so what gives? The team has been awful in the red zone. The Jaguars offense is scoring touchdowns on just 38% on their red zone attempts, a scary stat. That is good for 29th in the league. It’s been a season long difficulty and was no better against Oakland.

Leonard Fournette discusses frustrating losses after college success

Following the 45-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, Fournette expressed his frustration with the team’s performances of late.

In a Week 14 battle against the 4-8 Los Angeles Chargers, the Jacksonville Jaguars suffered what might have been their most embarrassing loss in franchise history, giving up 45 points. The loss gave the Jaguars their fifth straight loss of 17 points or more and both players and fans have become frustrated with the team’s performance this season.

Despite a disappointing season, however, two Louisiana State alums on the team have certainly played some of their best ball. Receiver D.J. Chark has taken the league by storm, bringing in 67 balls for 956 yards and eight touchdowns.

Against the Chargers, Chark again was the Jaguars’ best offensive player. The second-year wide out caught nine balls for 75 yards, continuing to prove he belongs as the Jaguars No. 1 target. Unfortunately, the game brought more bad news as it was reported that Chark left the stadium in a walking boot.

Teammate Leonard Fournette’s season has been just as impressive as Chark’s. In the first quarter, Fournette broke the 1,000-yard rushing mark on the season and is now just one yard shy of his season record. Fournette is currently third in the NFL in yards from scrimmage, just four yards shy of 1,500 on the season.

While Fournette has probably had his best season yet, Jacksonville has struggled mightily, maybe now more than ever. Following the game, Fournette expressed his frustration with the team’s performances of late and went into details about his own fight with the losses.

 

One thing is clear, it is time for some form of change whether that is staff, personnel, or play-calling. Jacksonville is in dire need of change and a leader. The team looks undetermined and is giving up yardage in bulk on busted overages and easy completions for the opposing quarterbacks.

We will see what the Jaguars’ future holds in the coming weeks, but for now, the fans must endure another losing season on the banks of the St. Johns River. Maybe they can put up a better fight against the Oakland Raiders next week on a trip to the West Coast, but ultimately time will tell.

4 Jaguars the Chargers must game-plan for in Week 14

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lays out four players on the Jaguars that the Chargers must hone in on in order to come out victorious.

The Los Angeles Chargers take on the Jacksonville Jaguars this Sunday at 1:05 p.m. PT.

Here are four players on the Jaguars that the Bolts must hone in on in order to come out victorious.

RB Leonard Fournette

The Chargers have done an excellent job at slowing down the run in recent weeks, allowing 97.3 rushing yards per game in their past three games. But it won’t be an easy one this weekend as they face one of the league’s top running backs.

Fournette leads the AFC in total yards, ranks seventh in carries and in yards rushing. Capable of making big plays happen at any given moment, Fournette has six 20-plus-yard rushing plays and is averaging 4.5 yards per carry.

WR D.J. Chark

Like Fournette, Chark is adept at making big plays happen, but through the air. He is is tied for fourth in the league in 20-plus-yard receiving plays. The former LSU product has eight touchdowns, which ranks No. 4 in the league and he ranks 16th in receiving yards (881).

DL Calais Campbell

The Chargers will have their work cut out for them in the trenches. Leading the pack is Campbell, the four-time Pro Bowler. He currently has 19 quarterback hits, 11 quarterback knockdowns, as well as 27 pressures.

Lined up across from guards Dan Feeney and Michael Schofield, Campbell is going to provide a tough test for them. The two have done a decent job at keeping pressure away from the inside, but this will be one of their more challenging matchups yet.

EDGE Josh Allen

Not only will the interior part of the offensive line have to be at their best, the team’s offensive tackles will as they have the Jaguars first-round selection from this past draft, who has been terrorizing them on a weekly basis.

Allen has stepped in his first season and has made an impact. He is the team’s sacks leader with nine and also leads in pressures with 36 and in tackles for loss with 10.

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4 key things to know about Chargers vs. Jaguars

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lays out four things to know about the Chargers opponent, the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Los Angeles Chargers (4-8) are set to travel to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars (4-8) this Sunday, Dec. 9.

Here are four key things to know about the Week 14 bout.

Quarterback carousel

The Bolts will face rookie Gardner Minshew this weekend. Nick Foles, who signed a big contract last offseason, broke his clavicle in the season opener, which left the Jags no choice but to put the former Washington State product in while Foles was on the injured reserve.

After tossing 11 touchdowns and three interceptions, Jacksonville resorted back to Foles as the team’s starter once he became healthy. In the four games back with him under center, their offense became stagnant, with the majority of their points coming in garbage time.

Their offensive problems led them to making the decision to go back to Minshew as the starter to add the much-needed spark. Despite the solid numbers posted, the rookie has flaws. Minshew has lost a league-high seven fumbles due to him holding onto the football for a long period of time, scrambling and getting hit.

Former LSU stars carrying the offense

After struggling to run the football last season, this has become a strong suit of the offense. Running back Leonard Fournette has 989 rushing yards and three touchdowns, as well as 65 receptions for 444 yards.

Meanwhile, his former roommate at LSU has brought firepower to a thin receiving group. Wide receiver DJ Chark has posted 58 catches for 881 yards and eight touchdowns on the season.

Can get after the quarterback

It wasn’t long ago when the Jaguars had one of the best defenses in the league, but that has taken a toll, especially after the loss of cornerback Jalen Ramsey, who is now playing for the Rams.

But Jacksonville still has its strengths on that side of the ball, and that is rushing the passer. The team currently has 38 sacks on the season, which is sixth-best in the NFL. The Jaguars’ first-round pick of the 2019 NFL draft, Josh Allen, has provided a huge boost to the unit. Allen has nine sacks, which is a franchise record.

Can’t stop the run

If the Chargers want to win this game on the offensive side, they need to run the ball with running back Melvin Gordon. The Jaguars only allowed 74 rushing yards last weekend to the Buccaneers, but prior to that matchup, they allowed 200 or more yards rushing in three consecutive outings.

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