The Jacksonville Jaguars are now on a streak of 11 consecutive quarters without forcing a turnover after beginning the year with nine takeaways in their first 13 quarters played.
The lack of big plays on defense has taken its toll on the team, forcing the Jaguars offense to consistently drive the length of the field for points, and keeping the defense on the field for extended periods. For the fourth team this season, the Jaguars lost a game by one score.
Jacksonville’s Week 7 opponent, the New York Giants, haven’t had the same issue. The Giants have five wins by a combined 21 points and were out-gained by the Baltimore Ravens by 168 yards in a 24-20 win Sunday.
“They’re making the plays when they need to and it’s been effective and they’re winning the games because of it,” Jaguars coach Doug Pederson told reporters of the Giants. “We just have to get our team to understand that, at some point, we need somebody to make a play. And that was kind of my message to the team this morning. We just got to be able to do that a little bit better.”
In Week 5, it was the offense that failed to convert opportunities in the red zone and wasted a 422-yard performance by scoring only six points. In Week 6, the Jaguars defense couldn’t get off the field and allowed the Colts to rack up 434 yards and 34 points.
