Jags offensive struggles continue

The lack of offensive production was the main reason Jacksonville lost for the sixth time this season and is only 2-6 at the midway point of the 2011 NFL season. The defense gave up no first downs in the first half and only 7 points in defeating Baltimore last Monday night. They allowed a touchdown and 80 yards on Houston’s opening drive this week.

Matt Schaub scored the touchdown on a QB draw for Houston. Kevin Walter had receptions of 25 and 8 yards on the drive. The game was a defensive battle the remainder of the first half. After Houston scored on their opening drive, they were forced to punt 4 times and had a turnover.

The turnover was forced by Jaguars linebacker Clint Session. Session blindsided Texans quarterback Matt Schaub and the ball was scooped up at Houston’s 45 yard line by Matt Roth. Roth pitched the ball back to Terrance Knighton and Knighton threw a lateral back to Clint Session. Session was brought down inside the Texans 8 yard line.

The defensive turnover was Jacksonville’s best offensive play all day. The Jaguars capitalized on their good fortune and scored two plays later. Blaine Gabbert connected with Jason Hill on a 5 yard completion and the game was tied at 7-7 with 5:41 remaining in the first half.

Houston had a chance to break the deadlock with :09 left in the half. Place kicker Neil Rackers missed badly wide right on a 46 yard field goal attempt. The Jaguars only had 75 yards in the air and no big runs from Maurice-Jones Drew, but were still tied at halftime.

Unfortunately, Jacksonville’s offense got worse in the 2^nd half. The Jaguars defense fought hard, but couldn’t contain Houston all day. The Jaguars elected to accept a penalty and punt again deep inside their own territory.

The decision would be costly. The Texans returned Nick Harris punt to Jacksonville’s 44 yard line. They used completions to Kevin Walter and Owen Daniels to drive inside Jacksonville’s 20 yard line.

On 3^rd and goal from Jacksonville’s 7 yard line they scored again. A pass from Matt Schaub to Joel Dressen appeared like it would be intercepted. However, the ball went right through Jaguars cornerback Dwight Lowery into Texans tight end Dressen’s hands for a touchdown.

The Jaguars offense continued to struggle. Blaine Gabbert threw his second interception of the game late in the 3^rd quarter at Jacksonville’s 40 yard line. Jason Allen made the pick for the Texans. Houston capitalized again on great starting field position and scored another touchdown 5 plays later. Arian Foster scored on a 4 yard run to increase Houston’s lead to 14.

The game appeared lost at this point for a team with a anemic offense. The Jaguars defense would create another turnover that would put Jacksonville back in the game. Ben Tate was heading for a huge run when Dawan Landry stripped the ball on the way down and Dwight Lowery picked up the ball and returned it to Houston’s 41 yard line.

There was a blocking penalty against Houston on the fumble return and the ball wound up at Houston’s 26 yard line. The Jaguars scored on a Maurice Jones-Drew 3 yard run. The drive was kept alive on a nice catch and run by Mike Thomas on a 4^th and 4 from the 7 yard line.

At 21-14, the Jaguars defense couldn’t muster up a stop. The Texans would go 59 yards on the next possession and Neil Rackers would convert a 39 yard field goal to make the final score 24-14.

This was another game that Jacksonville couldn’t establish and sustained drives. They scored both of their touchdowns on a short field after turnovers. They now have a bye and the AFC South is getting away from them in a hurry. The Texans improved to 5-3 and our three games ahead of Jacksonville.

Jack Del Rio stated “urgency had to have, find a way to win it, one back going into the bye, don’t win it, three back.” The Jaguars head coach also said “can’t celebrate when you allow opening drive for a touchdown, can’t celebrate when you let interception go by for a touchdown” in response to the team’s defensive performance. He also said “have to play better offensively, but need defense to carry us while we try and figure this thing out offensively.”

The Jaguars are on a bye this upcoming week. I thought the best quote of the day and most emphatic came from Jaguars defensive lineman Aaron Kampman after the lose. “This is really no time to rest.”

Game notes: Blaine Gabbert was only 10/30 for 97 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. He had a abysmal 26.7 quarterback rating. Maurice Jones-Drew was held to 63 yards on 18 carries with one touchdown. Marcedes Lewis had 4 receptions for 45 yards. Dawan Landry led Jacksonville in tackles with 11. Brian Cushing and Jason Allen each had a interception for the Texans. Matt Schaub was 16/30 for 225 yards with a 88.9 quarterback rating with one touchdown. Arian Foster rushed for 112 yards on 33 carries and a touchdown. Kevin Walter had 5 receptions for 70 yards to lead Houston in receiving.

Injury update: Blaine Gabbert left the game briefly with bruised ribs, but did return at quarterback and should be okay after the bye. William Rackley left the game briefly at right offensive tackle with a undisclosed injury. He should also be able to play after the Jaguars bye.

Upcoming schedule: The Jaguars are off this week and return to the field Sunday, November, 13^th at Indianapolis. The game is at 1p.m. and will be broadcast on your local CBS affiliate.

Final analysis: Another disappointing offensive performance. I am very concerned with the development of rookie quarterback Blaine Gabbert. He is not accurate enough at this point and doesn’t appear to be improving from game to game. The team simply doesn’t score enough points. I know I sound like a broken record every week in this segment of my blog. The defense came in 6^th ranked in the NFL and the free agent additions have improved this unit immensely. Dawan Landry, Dwight Lowery and Clint Session each affected a turnover in this game. However, this will hardly go unnoticed with the worse passing offense in the NFL. A coaching change must come, but probably won’t happen until the end of this season. At 2-6, the rest of this season is about player development at this point.