However, it felt more like the calm before the storm with the full pads to be worn on Sunday, a chance for players, coaches, media and other spectators to see what the team really has as it continues its journey toward the regular season. Before practice, Jaguars coach Doug Pederson welcomed the Jacksonville Episcopal School football team, which was on hand for the day’s screening. The Jaguars, of course, have been using one of the team’s practice fields to do their own thing throughout training camp. Shortly after, Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell met with the media for the second time during camp, giving an update on what he’s seen from his players and the anticipation for the pads to continue on Sunday . He said he’s “pleased so far” with what the defense has been able to do, doing a good job with the team’s offense. On Thursday, Jacksonville’s defense stood out, particularly during red zone drills. They held quarterback Trevor Lawrence to few completions while getting an interception and a couple of pass breakups. “It was a good job. We’re out here with the offense and the offense is giving us different looks and we’re giving them different looks. All it does is the competition makes us better as a team,” Caldwell said of the team’s defensive performance in the red zone Thursday. “That’s what we’re here to do. Here to get better as a team, so we’re out here, we’re going to ask for a certain look from the offense. They will ask for a certain coverage or a certain look from us and we will give it to them. So we’re just trying to make each other better.” Here are the observations from today’s training:
The defense continues to shine
During Saturday’s session, the Jaguars played it a little differently. Instead of the starters facing the starters, the offensive starters faced the second-team defense and vice versa. This led to some interesting matchups, but again it ended with the defense looking the better of the two groups for much of the day. On many occasions, the Jaguars’ starting defense stifled the second team’s offense, giving them no room to run and almost never running the football. Although the second team’s defense was lackluster from the first team’s offense (as it should be), there were still a few standouts from the pack. On one particular occasion, third lineman Rashod Berry was able to make a huge play in the offensive backfield, stopping the momentum before it even started. Some of the key standouts from the early days of camp include defensive tackle Jay Tufele and cornerback Benji Franklin. Franklin has made several plays on the ball and managed to secure his second interception of the camp, a pick thrown by backup QB Jake Luton. Tufele, entering his second season, has been one of the team’s most consistent players on the DL, capable of causing penetration and stopping a run in its tracks. Starting safety Rayshawn Jenkins finished practice on a high note, giving the boom to backup RB Mekhi Sargent – a preview of what’s to come when the full pads come on Sunday.
Jawan Taylor, Foley Fatukasi among those who endured
The Jaguars have had some bumps and bruises during the first few days of camp, and that includes today with several players missing time. Right tackle Jawaan Taylor sat out practice for the second straight day, also missing Thursday’s practice, working with trainers on the sideline. Other players who missed time today include defensive tackle Foley Fatukasi, offensive lineman Jared Hocker, linebacker Devin Lloyd and James Robinson. Robinson, of course, is still working his way back to full speed, while Lloyd has no timetable for his return from injury. Fatuksai is one of the team’s most important assets in the middle of the defense. He’s been replaced by a mix of third-year DTs DaVon Hamilton and Malcom Brown. All linebackers will be rotated throughout camp and the season. With Taylor out, second-year tackle Walker Little has taken all the snaps at right tackle, a necessary job for a player who has yet to play on the right side in live action.
Lawrence posts a good outing
This was a bounce back day for Lawrence after he struggled to get anything going in the red zone on Thursday. On Saturday, Lawrence looked calm and poised, able to fire several throws under pressure, including a deep one to Marvin Jones Jr., who was able to get behind the defense for what likely would have been a long touchdown. Lawrence put the ball exactly where it needed to be. Lawrence would complete 13 of his 19 multi-drop passes on the day. The most glaring drop came from free agent signing Evan Engram, who threw what would have been an open touchdown in the team’s two-minute situation. Receiver Christian Kirk made some nice plays up the middle, making a solid catch with a ball thrown just behind him.
Travon Walker looks ready for pads
For days, the Jaguars defensive line couldn’t really do much, have to hold back a bit until the pads come up. Today, they were a little more active in the shoulder pads, which seems to have unlocked something in rookie OLB Travon Walker, the team’s first overall pick from this year’s draft. Walker stood out in a big way Saturday, able to make what would be several plays in the offensive backfield. At one point, Walker completely collapsed his side of the line of scrimmage, giving the team’s offensive line no room to work behind. Walker will be the player to watch on Sunday as the team gets full boards and starts the defensive / offensive line one-on-one. After practice, Fatukasi gave BigCatCountry his first impressions of the rookie OLB, describing him as a “sponge.” “Sponge. He soaks everything. He works his tail off. He asks the questions [of] the older kids,” he said. “And as long as he keeps that mindset, he’s going to be around for a while. He just has to keep applying himself, which I believe he will. But it’s a sponge. He is learning as much as he is [can]and implements it”. Jaguar OLB Travon Walker was out after practice today working out. I spoke with DT Foley Fatukasi after practice. Described Walker as a ‘sponge’, draws info: pic.twitter.com/dQuDYWf5mW — Demetrius Harvey (@Demetrius82) July 30, 2022 On Wednesday, Walker talked about the prospect of putting the pads back on. “I’m really ready to get into pads now because I haven’t had pads for so long, since the national championship, and finally really hit somebody and be as physical as I can be. I’m ready to get back into it,” he said. Well, if the last couple of days are any indication, Sunday should be a treat. Note: It looks like the Jaguars have their starting interior offensive line set, at least under center. Rookie center Luke Fortner has taken 100 percent of the team’s first-team reps, while Tyler Sutley has taken the vast majority of the first-team reps at left guard. Although third-year OL Ben Bartch has gotten some reps at the position, it doesn’t look like Shatley will lose much of his grip.
