The Jacksonville Jaguars are first place in the AFC South and things are suddenly looking up for the franchise after a 24-0 domination of the Indianapolis Colts.
Trevor Lawrence is looking clean and efficient, the combination of Josh Allen and Travon Walker are wreaking havoc, and the new-look receiving corps featuring Christian Kirk is running wild.
Despite the Week 2 explosion from the Jaguars, most experts aren’t ready to believe the breakout is real. All the columns surveyed by JaguarsWire have Jacksonville in the bottom half of their rankings, and most still had the team in the bottom 10.
Here’s where pundits rank the Jaguars after the first two weeks of the 2022 season:
Touchdown Wire (Mark Lane)
Jaguars ranking: 26 (last week 29)
The Jaguars were edged by Washington, but they turned TIAA Bank Field into the Bermuda Triangle for the Indianapolis Colts. Jacksonville’s 24-0 victory was a convincing win, but they still have much to prove.
USA Today (Nate Davis)
Jaguars ranking: 22 (last week 25)
Pitching the season’s first shutout notched Jacksonville the AFC South’s only victory to date, hence sole ownership of first place.
NFL.com (Dan Hanzus)
Jaguars ranking: 28 (last week 31)
Now that’s the version of Trevor Lawrence the Jaguars are looking for. Last year’s No. 1 overall pick played smart and efficient football in his second start of the season, avoiding the mistakes of last week’s loss in Washington and letting the Jacksonville defense do the rest in a 24-0 win over the sagging Colts. Lawrence had completions to seven different receivers, including two passing scores to Christian Kirk. Credit Doug Pederson for cooking up a sound game plan that gave Lawrence good looks and open receivers as Jacksonville built up a 17-0 lead at the half. Embarrassing a supposedly superior division rival should be all the evidence the Jags need that the AFC South is there for the taking.
ESPN (Michael DiRocco)
Jaguars ranking: 24 (last week 31)
The Jaguars did a good job Sunday against the Colts by getting Etienne involved in screens, but he needs more touches. Get him in space and let him use his speed to try to generate big plays. He hasn’t been used as heavily in the first two games — just 18 touches — as many anticipated. Coach Doug Pederson is working to spread the ball around. A lot of it is matchup-oriented, so Etienne will likely have more work in some games than others, but averaging just nine touches per game seems low.
Pro Football Talk (Mike Florio)
Jaguars ranking: 18 (last week 31)
First place in the AFC South? First place in the AFC South.
CBS Sports (Pete Prisco)
Jaguars ranking: 22 (last week 28)
The defense really impressed in shutting out the Colts. This team is going to be a problem for a lot of teams, but they do face a tough test this week at the Chargers.
Yahoo Sports (Frank Schwab)
Jaguars ranking: 25 (last week 30)
OK, Trevor Lawrence. That’s better. Lawrence missed too many throws in Week 1 and it seemed like an extension of his rookie season. Then in Week 2 he made several big throws, including many off-platform, in a very good win for the Jags. It helps to have Christian Kirk, who is still overpaid but a big addition in the offense.
