3 Keys For the Jaguars' Offense Against Mike Vrabel and the Titans' Blitzes

The Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0) are looking to build off their upset win over the Indianapolis Colts with an upset win over the Tennessee Titans in Nashville this upcoming Sunday. 

The Jags took the first match in 2019 but lost 42-20 in the late-season game in Nashville as the Titans eventually went on to the AFC Championship Game. Jacksonville quarterback Gardner Minshew II knows that the Titans (1-0) are riding the momentum from that run and their 2020 opening win against the Denver Broncos.

"The second time we played them, they were just very hot. They got on a roll, they were playing really good, playing with a lot of confidence, doing that same stuff we talked about. And they were playing really good and I think they’re expecting to carry that over and they’re going to be a very good team.”

For the Jaguars offensive to find success against that “very good team,” it will take these three offensive keys.

Keep An Eye On Kevin Byard

The Titans safety has been in the NFL’s Top 10 in interceptions the past three seasons (with eight, four and five respectably). He catches everything—including his new son, whom he delivered at home last month. He didn’t nab any takeaways from the Jaguars in 2019, but he’s much more than a ball hawk. Byard had nine tackles in the Titans win against the Bronco’s, along with a defended pass and a forced fumble. 

His takeaway numbers and physicality downhill are both things Minshew—who had only one incompletion versus the Colts—is keeping an eye on come Sunday.

“He’s so good, man,” Minshew told reporters of Byard.

"He’s…one of the best safeties in the league. He can play well in the box, he can play well deep, he mixes up looks, he’s savvy and he has a nose for the ball. So, you definitely have to have an idea of where he is. He’s a good player and he’s a challenge that we’re looking forward to.”

Byard has the potential to take away the deep throw for Minshew. Luckily for Jacksonville, Minshew and the receivers found most of their success against the Colts in the center of the field. Minshew only had one pass on the day longer than 20 yards. Crossing routes and short catch-and-go's ate up chunk yardage en route to a win. 

Adjust Scheme But Not Identity

According to Minshew, the Titans are similarly built this year as last.

“A lot of veteran guys that can disguise looks, move things around on you, very disciplined. And I think there’s a lot of the same that you saw Week 1.”

But if the Titans are much the same, so too will the Jaguars be…from Week 1. At least, that’s the plan.

The entirety of the Jaguars running back production this past Sunday came from rookie James Robinson. The bowling ball back had 62 yards during the win over the Colts—61 yards in the first half and one in the second half. Along with rushes from Minshew and one wildcat snap to receiver Laviska Shenault, the Jaguars finished with 91 rushing yards. The first half boasted 85 of those yards, meaning consistency throughout the game will be crucial.

The Titans held the Bronco’s to 107 rushing yards on Monday night.

“They can rush four or five, six, sometimes they rush three, sometimes they rush two, and they do a good job of knowing your protections, eating up your back and keeping them out and then playing a lot of zone behind it,” says Gruden, continuing, “they can crawl up on you, play a lot of man to man, with different ways to help the man coverage, with different pluggers, it can be the safety coming down, it can be a linebacker, it can be defensive ends dropping. So, they do a great job with their different coverages and different ways they get them.

Push from the offensive line will be an emphasis this week as the Jaguars commit to the identity they want for their offense: a run-first team.

This will be increasingly more difficult now that the Titans have added edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney. The three-time Pro-Bowler had three tackles (one for loss) and a quarterback hurry against the Broncos. Clowney most shows up in places outside the box score, however. He draws double teams and makes teams pay when they put a single blocker on him. If the Jags want to find their footing in the run, it will have to be away from Jadeveon Clowney. 

“For the most part, if we want to be a successful team here, it should start with the run. And James [Robinson] is going to be a big part of that because everything will open up off of that,” Offensive Coordinator Jay Gruden told reporters on Wednesday.

“We’re able to complete some naked bootlegs, we’re able to do some play actions—which were very beneficial to us. So, in order for those plays to work, you’ve got to stay on track on first, second down and the running game is critical for us. So, different scheme defensively, but we have the same approach. We’ve got to try and run the ball, establish a run, establish our physical identity for us to be successful.”

Off of the run, the play actions, the bootlegs and more, the Jaguars were able to add 173 yards and all three touchdowns through the air. 

Don’t Lose Sleep Over the Blitzes and Disguises

Jay Gruden admits he didn’t sleep much after pulling up the Titans tape.

“I got about one hour of sleep yesterday watching all these blitzes from last year.”

"I’ve slept a little bit better than him. You know, we’re going to put the work in, but I’m going to need my sleep, too,” jokes Minshew.

The Titans’ blitz packages hit home with sacks 43 times in 2019. All of those cut-ups plus the hurries, pressures and general discordance as it appears to the offense is enough to lead Gruden to call Titans Head Coach Mike Vrabel one of the game’s best.

“I think he’s one of the better defensive coaches in the NFL. He does a great job when they get to third down with different looks, different people in different spots.”

The Titans defense held opponents to 36% conversion rate on third-down in 2019. That held steady in their Week 1 win against the Broncos. Denver was only able to convert 33% of the money down. The Jags offense, by comparison, converted 50% of their 3rd downs against the Colts.

For the Jags to win that battle against another divisional opponent this coming Sunday, they’ll have to quickly and efficiently sort through the disguises Vrabel is sure to bring.

“They do a good job of mixing things up,” explains Minshew. “Coach [Mike] Vrabel does a very good job coaching those guys on the back end. They’ve got some veteran guys that are very savvy and they can change looks; [Kevin] Byard and then the two corners, [Malcolm] Butler and [Johnathan] Joseph. They’re all guys that have played a lot of ball and they can move around and do different things. And they’re definitely a challenge and one I think we’re excited for.”

Adds Gruden, “very, very tough to deal with on third down; first and second down, they have some nuisance type blitzes that are tough. But [Vrabel’s] a great coach, man, and he proved it last year going late in the playoffs and [he’s] done a good job.”

The Jacksonville Jaguars kickoff against the Tennessee Titans in Nashville on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET on CBS.