Mostly a dull-ish game until the very end when things ramped up because of a certain player we’ll talk about later.
Piggybacking on something RC has noted this preseason…the home teams have been playing their starters for a series and really feeding off the energy of the home crowd and Jacksonville was no different. They played with a lot more fire and want-to than the Steelers…but the Steelers are simply the better, more disciplined team at every level right now. That will change over the next 2-3 years as Jags GM James Gladstone continues to build up this team his way. They are already on the right track.
Player Notes…
-- Everyone wants to know how Travis Hunter looked in his debut…ehhh…it’s a mixed bag and unfortunately I think a few of my fears about him are proving true so far. BUT it is still early, and he’s got plenty of room to grow.
The good: Hunter looks very quick and shifty as a receiver. This is the first time I’ve watched him and thought he was clearly a better receiver than corner. The feet are top tier and he’s able to snap open at the line in a blink. His hands are automatic. He’s going to be a very good slot corner. He started the first series and was taken out of the game along with the other skill position starters.
He was off the field in 2-WR sets in favor of Dyami Brown. It’s nothing to worry about. 3-WR sets are the norm and he’s going to get plenty of routes and targets in this offense. He’s playing the Chris Godwin role for Liam Coen and that’s a good thing. That doesn’t mean he’ll match or come close to what Godwin did last year, but it’s the same role and Hunter will grow into it over time.
The bad: Hunter looks very small and skinny out there and it showed in his play especially at corner. There’s a reason he’s running 2nd team at CB. In coverage he looked smooth and capable. Needs to polish up his technique, but he’ll be fine long term. The problem was when he was forced to come up and try to make a tackle, Kaleb Johnson made him look like a little kid. Not good. He’s going to need to build up his body and work on his tackling before he gets a starting job on that side of the ball, and even then offenses are going to try and run the ball at him to wear him down over the course of the game and make him less effective as a receiver as he gets tired.
Wrapping it all up, anyone that thought Hunter was going to waltz into the league and be a top 10 WR and a top 10 corner from Day 1 is dreaming. He’s got some technique issues to iron out and he’s got to work on his body and get bigger and stronger. That said, I don’t see any reason in the world why he won’t do those things over time. There will be some bumps and bruises this year, but I imagine we’ll see a huge jump next year as he gets a full offseason to rest and really workout. He simply didn’t have time to do that with the whirlwind that was his spring.
He and BTJ can certainly coexist in this offense for fantasy stats. That’s not a concern at all.
RC NOTE: I thought Hunter worked very well at WR in this game...nice routes, smooth hands...he’s the Garrett Wilson everyone is looking for.
At corner: I only saw brief glimpses, but he was fine.
-- In non-Hunter news, an odd development considering some recent camp reporting…
Travis Etienne started the entire first series with the 1st team and left when the others left. Tank Bigsby came in after that and played for a while…clearly with the 2nd team offense. I thought Etienne looked fast and agile and was moving at a different speed than Bigsby who ran tough but didn’t look particularly explosive.
One possible explanation is that Coen prefers to have his RBs heavily involved in the pass game, and Etienne is clearly the superior choice for that.
Bhayshul Tuten came in third and ran the ball very tough up the middle, something he didn’t always show in college. He’s going to be in the mix sooner rather than later, and it might actually be Bigsby in danger of losing touches, not Etienne as previously thought. Something we need to keep an eye on.
RC NOTE: This rattles my whole thesis that was developing that Bigsby was going to be the starter...and Etienne was gonna be moved or run as a #2/pass game back. I’m taking my Bigsby enthusiasm down a few notches. If I could have any one of these guys in a redraft...it’s probably Tuten on the theory that he is the new regime’s ‘guy’.
-- Trevor Lawrence…looked pretty decent honestly. Granted he was facing the 2nd team Pitt defense, but he looked more comfortable than he ever has. I don’t know that he’ll take a massive step or anything this year, but Coen seems to be getting him to at least decent. We’ll know more in the next couple of games.
-- There’s not a whole lot to talk about on the Pittsburgh side. Their starters didn’t play. That’s good news for Jaylen Warren because rookie Kaleb Johnson was in early and often as I’m sure they wanted to get him some work. I wouldn’t count on Warren holding onto the job for very long though. Johnson looked very calm and ready to play. He’s going to be involved quickly
RC Note: I watched a YouTube cut-up of just Kaleb’s touches, and I walked away wildly UNimpressed. It could have been rookie jitters...or the reveal of some kind of problem.
Kaleb looks most comfortable, and thrived at Iowa 2024, running between the tackles...he’s good at that. But Kaleb looked uncomfortable and was not effective when he tried to kick a run to the outside...and he’s not that smooth in the passing game. I don’t think Kaleb is going to be a three-down back anytime soon for the Steelers.
I expect Jaylen Warren will start Week 1, get the most touches, and Warren is good and feisty; he’s not giving that job up so easily. This may be a very dull debut season for Kaleb.
-- Darnell Washington caught a nice TD early in the game and looked like an offensive lineman while doing it. He is absolutely massive…but also very slow. He’s going to be mostly a blocker, but if they can get him 1-on-1 there’s not many defenders that will be able to stop him from catching a moonball near the goal line.
-- The other notable Steeler player was UDFA rookie Ke’Shawn Williams (2-55-1/2). He had some very good kickoff returns and then a couple of good catches. He’s not big or fast, but he just plays hard…a very Tomlin kind of guy. I’ll bet he makes the team as a depth receiver and special teams player.
-- And finally the player that made the end of this game very exciting…Jaguars rookie QB Seth Henigan (11-14 for 78 yards). Wow. He went undrafted after a very successful and productive 4-year career at Memphis...and boy did he make a nice debut. Hands down he’s the best backup they have over Nick Mullens and John Wolford who both played scared.
Henigan did not. He came in with about 5 minutes left in the 4th, down 9, and drove the Jags down the field twice calmly and totally in control. They settled for a FG on the first drive to cut the deficit to 6 and ran out of time on the final drive after a WR couldn’t get out of bounds. His stat line looks decent but note the incompletions were all drops that hit the receivers right in their hands and cost him about 50 or 60 additional yards.
Henigan was totally unfazed by all this…coming in super late, down on the scoreboard, working with scrubs, and he looked like he’d be doing this his whole life, directing the offense, running the 2-minute drill, getting people lined up and firing darts, working his progressions and finding the checkdown if nobody was open. Highly, highly impressed here. They need to find a way to keep him because if he goes to the practice squad he’s liable to get poached if anyone is actually paying attention.
-- Defensive player notes…
Beanie Bishop is playing with the backups. That makes sense with Porter, Slay, and Ramsey starting. He’s just a very solid player.
Payton Wilson also played a good bit here…not a good sign. Is he behind Cole Holcomb?
Devin Lloyd started and Chad Muma is a backup.
Jags rookie LB Jack Kiser was ok. He was having some trouble getting off blocks. He needs some
