The Jacksonville Jaguars will be without Nick Foles for the foreseeable future after an injury in week 1. Where do they go from here?
It seemed to be the consensus among NFL experts, and football fans alike, that the Jacksonville Jaguars potential success in 2019 hinged on the shoulders of their new quarterback, Nick Foles.
Well, now one of those shoulders is broken and hope is now all but gone for a team that was hopeful to get back to their 2017 form.
Foles went down in the second quarter of their Week 1 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs with a broken clavicle and was placed on injured reserve early Monday morning. This is a brutal start to the season for the Jags and it’s made even worse after what we saw from their defense on Sunday.
The only real bright spot in that dismal performance was how well 2019 sixth-round pick Gardner Minshew played in relief duties. Minshew won the backup job with up-and-down play during the preseason and was the only other active quarterback on the roster before the team traded for Joshua Dobbs earlier today.
Minshew’s amble reps in those preseason games clearly helped him to familiarize himself with the offense, as he stepped in and put together a debut to remember.
Not only did he keep the team competitive on his way to leading four scoring drives in three quarters, but the former Washington State Cougar also set NFL records in the process.
According to Adam Schefter, Minshew’s 88% completion percentage was the highest ever for a quarterback making their NFL debut (minimum 15 attempts). Not to mention it was also the highest in Jaguars history among players with at least 25 attempts.
While it is certainly something Jacksonville Jaguars fans should be excited about, the rookie now has quite the job ahead of him. He will now be tasked with leading the offense until Foles is back and will have more pressure on him to succeed early than there should be for a sixth-round rookie.
If Jacksonville has any shot at keeping their postseason hopes alive, the skill position players really need to step up for the young gunslinger.
Minshew did seem to show a good connection with his wide receivers, as he was able to spread the ball out quite a bit while giving his playmakers opportunities to do just that.
Another key factor will be Leonard Fournette, who was already slated to be a big part of the John DeFillippo offense in 2019, but his success is now vital if the team has any shot at success this season.
While this is obviously a tough spot to be in so early in the season, this is an opportunity for the Jaguars to see what they have in Gardner Minshew and could provide the challenge that some players need to take the next step in their development.