12 Sports
Ponte Vedra Recorder ·September 17, 2015
Cautious Jags’ offense sputters in opening loss
Mike Bonts
Special to the Recorder
The Jaguars will look for their first
win of the young NFL season Sunday
when they host the Miami Dolphins.
Jacksonville is coming off a 20-9 loss to
Carolina.
An interception returned for a score,
dropped passes and a missed field goal
were some of the lowlights witnessed
by an opening day crowd of 60,733 at
EverBank Field.
“I thought that as an offense we
played very cautiously. We didn’t want to
make mistakes,” said Jaguars’ head coach
Gus Bradley in his Monday press conference. ”I didn’t think we adjusted well.
I don’t think we quickly recovered. We
talked about adversity is going to come
our way.”
• QB Blake Bortles was intercepted
by Carolina corner Josh Norman who
scored on the play. Bortles was 22 of 40
for 183 yards, with a touchdown, two
interceptions and sacked five times.
• Free agent rookie kicker Jason
Myers missed a 44-yard field goal and
became the first NFL kicker to miss an
extra point from the extended distance equivalent to a 33-yard field goal.
• Jaguars rookie wide receiver Rashad
Greene sustained a back contusion
against the Panthers, but the fifth-round
draft pick totaled 28 yards on seven
catches including a one-yard TD pass in
the second quarter.
• Receivers Allen Hurns, Allen Robinson and Greene dropped passes. Hurns
also fumbled but had five catches for 60
yards. No balls were thrown to the tight
ends.
“When they (tight ends) don’t catch
any balls that’s something to take a look
at. I know we had some plays, five or
six, really designed to go to Marcedes
and to utilize our tight ends. The read
took him away from it so it wasn’t that
they weren’t called, the read just took
him away from that particular play,”
Bradley said.
Jacksonville rookie T.J. Yeldon saw his
regular season first action. The running
back out of Alabama carried 12 times for
51 yards for an above-average 4.3 yards
per carry
“I thought he did a nice job. For him,
we felt like it was an opportunity where
you should see him become more and
more involved as the games go on,”
Bradley commented. For him to get as
many carries as he did in the yards I
think it was a good start for him and I
think he will gain confidence through it.”
Jacksonville linebacker Paul Posluszny
had a game-high nine tackles, including
eight solo, and had the Jaguars’ first interception. It was Posluszny’s 12th career
interception and first since 2013.
CAROLINA GAME NOTES
Panthers QB Cam Newton completed
Photos by Nancy Beecher / Special to the Recorder
ABOVE: Carolina QB Cam Newton was 18 of 31 for 175 yards with one TD and one interception. He also ran 13 times for 36 yards.
BELOW: Jaguars’ linebacker Paul Posluszny intercepted Carolina QB Cam Newton late in the quarter, one of the defensive highlights for Jacksonville.
18 of 31 passes for 175 yards and a
touchdown. He also ran for 35 yards….
The Jaguars have lost four consecutive
openers…. Carolina held Jacksonville
to 265 yards, 75 in the second half….
Former Florida State and Panthers’ kicker
Graham Gano, who has led the NFL in
touchback percentage the last three seasons, kicked four out of five through the
end zone…Bortles has now has thrown
five pick-sixes in 14 career starts…. On
S unday Posluszny appeared in his 100th
career game, all starts…The Jaguars got
a 40-yard kickoff return by rookie running back Corey Grant.
JAGS INJURY UPDATE
Wide receiver Marqise Lee was expected to return to practice on Wednesday for the first time since suffering a
hamstring injury in August. Lee did not
play in any of the preseason games and
missed the opener. Defensive tackle
Sen’Derrick Marks will also return to
practice on a limited basis. Running back
Toby Gerhart continues to progress with
his abdominal strain. He may return to
practice. Offensive lineman Luke Joeckel
left the Carolina game twice with a
sprained ankle injury.
UP NEXT
It’s the Miami Dolphins (1-0) Sunday for a 4:05 p.m. kickoff at EverBank
Field. QB Ryan Tannehill was 22-for-34
passing for 226 yards, one touchdown
and no interceptions in a 17-10 win over
Washington.