20 Football Preview 2015
Ponte Vedra Recorder ·August 27, 2015
Jaguars coming
off preseason
loss to Giants
Mike Bonts
Special to the Recorder
Jacksonville quarterback
Blake Bortles led the Jaguars
to three field goals on three
drives in a 22-12 preseason
loss to the Giants in New
York Saturday night. Bortles
was 8 of 16 passes for 98
yards.
“Obviously you want six in
the red zone instead of three,”
Bortles said. “We shot ourselves in the foot a couple of
times with missed opportunities, but overall the guys did
well.”
Jason Myers converted field
goals from 51 and 49 yards,
and added a 55-yarder. Josh
Scobee capped the first drive
for the Jaguars (1-1) with a
52-yarder.
Eli Manning finished 4 of
14 for 46 yards in three series
for New York.
Giants’ (1-1) backup QB
Ryan Nassib completed 19 of
35 for 217 yards, including
an 8-yard touchdown pass
to Dwayne Harris in the final
quarter. Wide receiver James
Jones caught five passes for
83 yards.
New York’s defense set up
one of Josh Brown’s five field
goals with a sack and forced
fumble by former Jacksonville linebacker J.T. Thomas.
Thomas finished with five
tackles.
Jaguars’ middle linebacker
Jeremiah George had a gamehigh eight tackles.
The Jaguars announced
Sunday that rookie running back T.J. Yeldon, a
second-round draft pick from
Alabama, will make his preseason debut Friday against
Detroit at EverBank Field. He
missed the first two preseason
games because of a sprained
finger on his left hand.
“If it was a critical time or
game, he could have played
last week,” said Jaguars coach
Gus Bradley. “This week, we
feel better about his opportunity. I would see him getting
some reps with the 1s and 2s,
mostly 1s, though.”
Veteran defensive end Chris
Clemons, the club’s leader in
creating sack-fumbles, and
rookie safety James Sample
also are expected to return
agai nst the Lions. Clemons
sat out the first two weeks of
training camp while dealing
with personal issues. Sample
has been sidelined since
breaking his right forearm
during organized team activities in June.
Injury update
Receiver Arrelious Benn,
who broke his collarbone
Saturday night against the Giants. He had surgery Tuesday. Cornerback Demetrius
McCray sustained a right knee
contusion. He will continue
to be evaluated and undergo
an MRI.
Centers of attention
Gus Bradley hasn’t announces a starter at center,
but a decision between Luke
Bowanko and Stefen Wisniewski is expected soon.
Bowanko started the first preseason game and Wisniewski
started against the Giants. The
two have alternated throughout camp.
Cut days looming
Prior to Sept. 1, NFL clubs
must reduce their rosters to
a maximum of 75 players on
the active list. The Jaguars
must reduce their rosters to
a maximum of 53 players
by Sept. 5. Also on Sept. 5,
simultaneous with roster cuts,
clubs that have players listed
as active/physically unable
to perform (PUP) or active/
non-football injury or illness
must place those players in a
special category.
Defensive bright spots
Despite finishing 3-13 In
2014, the Jaguars defense
registered 12 sack-fumbles.
Sacking the QB is sacked, resulting in a fumble, the most
JAGUARS continues on Page 32
Photo by Rick Wilson / Jacksonville Jaguars
Jaguars’ QB Blake Bortles led the Jaguars to three field goals in a 22-12 loss to the New York Giants on Saturday night.
Bortles hit 8 of 16 passes for 98 yards.