Tag: laviska shenault jr

Watch: Jaguars WR Laviska Shenault Jr. catches TD that bounced off Vikings defender

The Jaguars’ passing game has needed an injection of luck all season long. When Mike Glennon threw to Laviska Shenault, it happened.

The Jaguars have found it difficult to get anything going in the passing game for most of the season; it’s one reason they came into Week 13 ranked 23rd in passing DVOA. Sometimes, you need a bit of divine intervention to make things happen in an aerial sense, and Jacksonville actually had that happen with 12:33 left in the first quarter against the Vikings.

Quarterback Mike Glennon was trying to hit receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. from the Minnesota 28-yard line, and it appeared for a split second that cornerback Kris Boyd might come away with the ball. Instead, Gladney missed the incoming football, it bounced off his shoulder pad, and right into Shenault’s hands in the end zone. Boyd was beside himself, and safety Harrison Smith could only look on in disgust.

Is it better to be lucky than good? In the case of the Jaguars’ passing game, that is certainly the case here.

What happened to the Jaguars’ passing game on Thursday night? Here’s what Gardner Minshew said

The Dolphins were able to keep Gardner Minshew in check on Thursday night. Here’s what Minshew and others had to say about it.

Through the first two weeks of the 2020 season, there were few quarterbacks more efficient and effective than Gardner Minshew of the Jaguars — especially among second-year quarterbacks. Minshew was one of four 2019 draftees to start both games for his 2020 team, and he had a far better completion percentage (75.4%), yards per attempt (7.9), and passer rating (115.7) than Kyler Murray, Daniel Jones, and Dwayne Haskins. In fact, Minshew’s six touchdown passes in the first two weeks of the season matched the combined totals of those other three quarterbacks.

On Thursday night, Minshew was facing a Dolphins defense that had played a ton of man coverage in its first two weeks, and had suffered greatly for it. Last Sunday in a 31-28 loss to the Bills, Miami allowed Josh Allen to complete 15 of 24 passes for 299 yards and all four of his touchdowns against man coverage (per Sports Info Solutions). Meanwhile, Minshew had completed 18 of 27 passes for 226 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception against man coverage this season, so the Thursday night matchup appeared to be a real problem for the Dolphins.

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Not so. Minshew completed 30 of 42 passes for 275 yards on Thursday night, but for no touchdowns and one interception. It was just the third time in his career that Minshew had been held without a touchdown pass, and the first time since Week 9 of the 2019 season, a 26-3 loss to the Texans.

Minshew was facing a couple of issues in this game.

First of all, he was without D.J. Chark, his best receiver, due to chest and back injuries.

Second of all, the Dolphins took a look at their tight man coverage tendencies in the short week, and their coaches did what smart coaches do — they adapted. As he said after the game, Minshew was not seeing what he expected to see. Miami didn’t over-commit to Jacksonville’s receivers, and without the easy picks and crossers that are staple man-beaters against most defenses who play it, offensive coordinator Jay Gruden didn’t seem to have the same flexibility.

“They played a lot of soft zone coverage and weren’t going to let us take any shots,” Minshew said. “I thought our guys did a good job for the most part catching the ball and making what they could with it. But the Dolphins did a good job defensively tonight.”

There was one play Minshew desperately wanted back, because it could have at least given Jacksonville a little more juice. Down 28-7 with four seconds left in the third quarter, Minshew had second-and-6 at the Miami 28-yard line. The Dolphins were playing Cover-0 (man coverage with no deep safety), and Minshew checked out of the original call to instead throw a deep ball down the right sideline to receiver Chris Conley. The receiver was wide open, but Minshew couldn’t connect.

“It was a good check,” Conley said. “That wasn’t the play that was actually called. I guess Gardner noticed the three-press and was able to audible the play and give a nice little pump fake to the corner and keep the corner low, and run a go. We just missed each other, and that’s one we have be on the same page for. We have to connect.”

“Both of us saying, ‘My bad.'” Minshew recalled when asked what he and Conley said to each other after the incompletion. “We both wish there were things we could have back. So we’re going to move forward, look at the film, address it, and move on to Cincinnati.”

“I wish we would’ve hit the shot [against] Cover-0 right at the end of the third quarter,” head coach Doug Marrone concluded. “I thought it was a good decision by him to throw the ball there, I wish we would’ve hit that one. But really at the end of it, it’s just — you just felt like we weren’t playing in sync of how we want to play — with play action, run and mixing everything in there. We just felt like we were chasing it, and I just felt that way during the game.”

Minshew was thrown off his platform by Miami’s blitz, which didn’t help. After a false start that pushed the ball back to the 33-yard line. he attempted to improvise a deep throw to receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. with four Miami defenders around his target. A predictable result, and that was the ballgame.

But as Minshew said, it’s on to Cincinnati. Which another famous football philosopher once said… repeatedly.

Minshew, Shenault guide Jaguars offense to victory

If the early returns are any indication, Gardner Minshew and Laviska Shenault Jr. are going to be in for quite a season.

After a turbulent off-season, the Jacksonville Jaguars came out and started the season off right, earning a 27-20 victory over the Indianapolis Colts. Two of their young offensive stars, quarterback Gardner Minshew and rookie wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. shined in the victory. Minshew was almost perfect, completing 19 of 20 passes for 173 yards and three touchdowns, while Shenault was utilized all over the field and scored his first NFL touchdown.

Looking at how the Jaguars used their young wideout to help the entire Jacksonville offense is a window into their schematic future.

Take Jacksonville’s first touchdown of the 2020 NFL season. The Jaguars face a 2nd and goal on the six, and Shenault aligns on the left side of the offense. The rookie then comes in motion across the formation, and a defender trails him. Take note of the response from the Indianapolis secondary:

With the defender trailing, Minshew has an inkling that the Colts are in man coverage. There will be a twist in a moment, as we will see. Here’s what the Jaguars run on the play:

Shenault shows the defense a potential screen, while Chark releases vertically. That puts the cornerback in a bind. Remember, Minshew is thinking the Colts are in man coverage, given how they responded to Shenault’s motion. But there is a twist, as promised. Indianapolis drops into a red zone Cover 2 look. Instead of the man coverage Minshew was expecting, he gets a zone look.

However, this works just as well for the offense. Cornerback TJ Carrie is still stuck between a rock and a hard place. He has the flat to that side, so Sheanult works as a “low,” but with Chark releasing to the outside, he now is bracketed with a “high.” The cornerback squats for a moment in response to the potential screen to Shenault, and that is all Minshew needs:

The threat of Shenault creates the opportunity, and Minshew takes advantage.

A similar concept worked later in the second quarter, when Minshew was able to find Shenault on a vertical route. This time the Jaguars face a 1st and 10 in their own territory, and Shenault comes in motion before the play from left-to-right again:

This time, it is Kenny Moore who trails the rookie across the formation. Just before the snap, here is the state of play:

Here’s what Jacksonville runs:

They throw a lot of eye candy at the Colts’ defense, and in particular Moore, who is one of the best slot cornerbacks in the league. They show a split-zone design, with the running back aiming to the left, but Minshew fakes the handoff and slides to the right, with the tight end releasing to the flat. The boundary receiver takes off vertically, drawing the cornerback. Moore first sees the run action, and then the QB rolling to him with the tight end releasing to the flat. All of that action draws his attention, while Shenault sneaks out vertically. With the vertical route from the outside WR pulling the cornerback downfield, the rookie is wide open:

Easy throw, easy catch and Jacksonville is near midfield.

While he was with Colorado, Shenault aligned all over the field for the Buffaloes, including snaps at tight end, running back and yes, at quarterback. So it should come as no surprise that we saw a little of Shenault taking snaps out of a Wildcat formation against the Colts:

Minshew begins the play under center but then motions out towards the sideline, allowing Shenault to take the direct snap. He patiently picks his spot and cuts inside for a gain of five. Not the most exciting play, but one more thing opposing defenses will need to prepare for each time they face the Jaguars.

Then there is the touchdown from Minshew to Shenault, that looked almost like a connection between Tom Brady and Wes Welker. Shenault aligns in a stack-slot to the right and will run a crossing route, throttling down for a second before continuing over the middle:

You can see why this play is reminiscent of something veterans like Brady and Welker would connect on, and not two younger players like Minshew and Shenault. When the rookie WR throttles down, that draws the nearest defender towards him and causes that player to settle a bit. Then when Shenault accelerates, he is able to extend his separation and Minshew hits him in stride. QB and WR are certainly on the same page here, and that is also evident from the end zone camera. Pay close attention to Minshew’s feet:

One of the knock on Air Raid quarterbacks coming out of college – such as Minshew – is that their footwork is not precise enough to function in an NFL offense. This was a mischaracterization of Minshew, whose footwork was very effective in the pocket. He always keeps his feet in position to throw as he works through his reads, and this play is a prime example. Notice how he resets his feet towards the middle of the field just before releasing this throw? That is precisely the kind of footwork you want to see from a veteran passer. But here is Minshew doing it in just his second season.

Many thought the Jaguars were lining up for a shot at Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence with the moves they made this offseason. But if Minshew continues to perform like this, Jacksonville might be looking to address another position early in next year’s draft. With Shenault at his side, and the attention he is drawing already from opposing defenses, Minshew might just keep this current form going.

 

 

Saints offense adds Colorado’s Laviska Shenault Jr. in 2020 mock draft

The New Orleans Saints picked a dynamo in the latest 2020 NFL mock draft, landing versatile Colorado football prospect Laviska Shenault Jr.

The New Orleans Saints offense is paper-thin, and that’s never been more clear than in Sunday’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Despite 13 catches and 152 receiving yards from all-star wide receiver Michael Thomas, they were outplayed and outgunned, which was reflected in the final score of 26-9. The final play of the game was almost a metaphor, with Thomas reeling in a catch and fighting his way to the goal-line, only to be touched down a short away from a score.

Outside of Thomas, every other wide receiver on the team combined for one catch on five targets. Ted Ginn Jr. dropped all three passes sent his way, and Tre’Quan Smith struggled to adjust to off-target looks in his first game back from injury. Backups Krishawn Hogan and Deonte Harris were afterthoughts at best.

New Orleans has top-end talent in the receiving corps (just look at what Thomas can do, and tight end Jared Cook and running back Alvin Kamara are getting back up to speed after missing time with their own injuries). What they don’t have is much they can count on behind their star players. For decades the belief has been that Drew Brees can score touchdowns with anybody; Sunday’s loss proves that theory is outdated. Great as he has been, Brees can’t be expected to put the world on his shoulders anymore.

Fortunately, the Saints will have opportunities to improve in the offseason. The latest 2020 mock draft comes from Trevor Sikkema of The Draft Network, who sees the Saints’ need for more juice on offense and addressed it with one of the most versatile playmakers in college football: Colorado Buffaloes do-it-all athlete Laviska Shenault Jr. Here’s what Sikkema wrote to justify the selection:

It feels like wide receiver Michael Thomas is about to break every NFL record for the position. That’s certainly due to how talented Thomas is, but it also has to do with the fact that the Saints don’t have much outside of Thomas in the passing game.

Shenault joining forces with the creative mind of Sean Payton and a group that already consists of Thomas and Alvin Kamara would be incredible to watch.

Shenault lives up to that billing. He’s racked up 2,038 yards from scrimmage and scored 17 combined touchdowns (9 as a receiver, 7 as a runner) in his career with the Buffaloes, though he’s only been a big part of their offense the last two years. While his junior year numbers aren’t as impressive in volume as what he accomplished as a sophomore, his efficiency has increased (jumping up from 11.8 yards per catch to 13.8, and 6.8 yards per carry to 7.9 this season) as Colorado has learned to spread the ball around more evenly. That’s a combined 11.4 yards per touch from 2018 to 2019, or 103.6 yards from scrimmage per game in the same span.

Listed at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, Shenault’s versatility would play well off of what the Saints have done with Kamara and Taysom Hill. All three players are experienced at moving all over the field, playing from different alignments and exploiting athletic mismatches with the defense. Saints coach Sean Payton loves using different personnel packages to put opposing defenses in a bind, and it’s easy to see Shenault’s appeal in New Orleans’ system. If the junior prospect does declare early for the 2020 draft, he’d definitely be worth keeping on the Saints’ radar.

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