NFL News & Analysis

NFL Week 3 PFF ReFocused: Jacksonville Jaguars 20, Tennessee Titans 7

Gardner Minshew made Thursday Night Football interesting (for once) and led his Jacksonville Jaguars to a 20-7 win over the Tennessee Titans.

PFF's ReFocused series features immediate takeaways from the two analysts who graded the game live. The two offer a detailed breakdown of the game's most notable performances before the grades and advanced stats are reviewed and finalized by Senior Analysts.

All of PFF's grades and advanced stats from this game and the other games played this week will be finalized and made available to ELITE subscribers within 24 hours of the final whistle. ELITE subscribers can view player grades, advanced statistics, positional snap counts and more in Premium Stats.

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Final Score

Jacksonville Jaguars 20, Tennessee Titans 7

Jacksonville Jaguars

Josh Allen recorded multiple pass-rush wins with power. The Jaguars' defensive line as a unit had Marcus Mariota under duress all night with stunts and plenty of solo wins.

Jalen Ramsey looked like himself in what could likely end up being his final game as a Jaguar, showing his usual tenacity and physical play which included a forced fumble after a catch from Corey Davis.

The Jaguars' offense started out with two first-quarter touchdowns, but then the game slowed down quite a bit due to penalties and precipitation. Gardner Minshew threw touchdowns in the first quarter with his second being a well-placed pass to D.J. Chark on a go route against Malcolm Butler. Dede Westbrook dropped a would-be touchdown pass from Minshew in the third quarter.

Leonard Fournette was largely ineffective on the ground until he ripped off a nice 69-yard run with only 4:38 left in the fourth quarter. Fournette was targeted on halfback screens and short passes, but he was also once split out wide and targeted on a wide receiver screen in an effort to get him in space.

Rookie Takeaways

As mentioned above, Josh Allen and Gardner Minshew both had strong outings to lead the Jags to their first win of the season.

Tennessee Titans

Marcus Mariota started slow and failed to get into much of a rhythm throughout the game. He took too long to get rid of the ball and failed to feel pressure on numerous occasions throughout the night. Down 13 points with 3:23 left in the fourth quarter after the defense stopped the Jaguars on fourth down, the Titans' offense shockingly began what would be their final drive with a run play followed by no sense of urgency to make the game interesting late.

Derrick Henry and the Titans' run game failed to get going on the ground. The entire offense came to a halt behind Mariota's poor play.

The Titans’ defense found themselves in a tough spot after an Adoree' Jackson muffed punt gave the Jaguars the ball at the seven-yard line. That error was compounded by a coverage bust on a James O’Shaughnessy touchdown pass on the next play.

The Titans' defense kept Leonard Fournette in check for 55 minutes of the game. The unit failed to bring a consistent pass-rush at Gardner Minshew. Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler both broke up passes.

Rookie Takeaways

AJ Bouye was in AJ Brown‘s pocket all game long. The rookie Ole Miss receiver struggled to create separation against Bouye all night long.

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