2021 Dynasty/Fantasy Game Analysis Week 1: Texans 37, Jags 21
I mean…
This is unbelievable.
How are these two teams existing in the NFL?
The Texans are pretty bad and trying to lose. However, they ran into the one team exponentially worse…oddly, one trying to win -- but are so bad, so poorly coached they didn’t have one ounce of life in them, and they got bombed here. The Texans tried to give this to Jacksonville, but the Jags refused to take it…and went one better, really working hard to give them the game, and successfully doing so with terrible Trevor Lawrence turnovers.
I’m usually suspicious of reports like ‘Urban Meyer is already under fire in Jacksonville’, I mean it’s only been a week/one game into the season. But watching this game…watching the body language on the sidelines…watching the effort on the field…watching Urban’s body language on the sidelines – this team is D.O.A. already. I can believe Urban is one and done.
Will he be fired? No? That would be too much of an admittance of a grave error by the owner.
Here’s how he’ll get it out of it: https://youtu.be/NK9HXu9g5qA
Completely embarrassing display of football with a group of players exhibiting no life whatsoever. Urban Meyer is going to totally destroy any shred of credibility he has.
What does this say about Jim Harbaugh, who could never beat him in college? Another fraud head coach.
Does there exist an actual ‘good’, difference making head coach anywhere in the NFL? Help us Brandon Staley…you’re only hope.
Fantasy Player Notes…
-- Well, let’s get into it right away. Let’s talk Trevor Lawrence (28-51 for 332 yards, 3 TDs/3 INTs).
Speaking of embarrassing, the entire NFL analyst group…and NFL scouts, and anyone associated with thinking Trevor Lawrence was generational is not looking too good right now. I know…’it’s early’. Why isn’t it early for Mac Jones (as one example)…or Burrow-Herbert-Hurts last year? I know…Josh Allen took three years to develop – but he’s the one in a zillion case in the NFL with 2x the tools of Lawrence.
‘Bubble Boy’ was on complete display with Trevor. He has three types of throws…
1) Quick, no read bubble and tunnel screens. Which he executes well.
2) Pre-determined, no read fastballs medium and deep, hoping no one is in front of the throw…but unfortunately there were multiple times someone was. And Lawrence is so inaccurate downfield, as I said in January 2021…and every month since – some of his picks and near picks was him throwing 5+ yards away from any receiver, and right into the hands of the defense.
His accuracy downfield is as bad as I thought it was going to be.
3) Against prevent defenses down by 3+ scores, playing pitch-and-catch/7-on-7 like ball and having some success but still flirting with danger and off target way too much.
Maybe he’ll get better – but the guy I saw in college (against real opponents), the weak downfield thrower…it’s here year one. You have to hope he gets better by some miracle as he goes. He’ll get 3-4 years to do so because THEY think he’s special now.
Lawrence is like a tall, scarecrow-looking version of Johnny Manziel’s style of QB play – a bunch of quick passing near the line of scrimmage, and then blandly up for grabs down the field.
-- On the other side, Tyrod Taylor (21-33 for 291 yards, 2 TDs/0 INT) is pretty awful too…but he’s not as jittery in the pocket. Give him time and he might make a decent throw. He floated several balloons that almost got picked, as is his norm. When they face better defenses…he’s in big trouble.
-- To my eyes, looking at this game, the best RB on the Jaguars is Carlos Hyde (9-41-0, 2-14-0/2). Hyde ran with more juice, power, and elusiveness than James Robinson (5-25-0, 3-29-0/6). With Robinson dropping passes and looking sluggish behind a terrible O-Line…it’s not going to be a great FF output season for JRob., and with pouty, tantrum-throwing Urban at the helm…with his OSU guy Hyde there – not good signs for JRob.
-- The worst RB on the Texans is also their ‘workhorse’, and what the entire offense is built on – Mark Ingram (26-85-1, 0-0-0/1). I won’t waste time discussing how stupid this is – just know that it is and you’re going to get a lot of these 20+ carries for 60+ yard uninspiring games.
Meanwhile, David Johnson (3-10-0, 3-18-1/6) is the world's largest 3rd-down back in a team with a horrible passing QB. He still scored a TD and is strangely in the James White, Nyheim Hines, Gio Bernard discussion in PPR leagues.
-- Who was Trevor throwing to?
Well, D.J. Chark (3-86-1/12) saw 12 targets…but only caught 3 of them. Not a DJC issue, just Lawrence throwing passes without a cause and not many landing. But one deep one snuck in about a blink from being picked, but it hit and got a long score.
All I know is – I said Chark was in trouble in the preseason because Lawrence is not a good downfield passer. 3 catches on 12 targets later, I haven’t changed my mind.
Marvin Jones (5-77-1/9) is TL’s preferred medium throw, but it looked rough until the prevent defense started.
Laviska Shenault (7-50-0/10) is going to have this stat line every week. It’s not terrible…just he has little FF scoring upside. It’s all Bubble Boy work.
TE James O’Shaughnessy (6-48-0/8) oddly got 8 targets…and 6 catches. It was dink-and-dunk safe work, but it was something. The two disconnects were raw drops by O’S. He could have had an 8 catch day here.
-- Speaking of TEs, the best receiving TE in this game was Pharoh Brown (4-67-0/5)…and good pitch-and-catch option…and he had a helluva one-handed catch down the field on a nice Tyrod floater.
There’s minor deep sleeper appeal here, because this was a good game against a bad defense…and Brown is dealing with a concussion and may not play this week.
Snap Counts of Interest:
61 = Cooks
43 = Nico Collins
40 = Conley
17 = Amendola
36 = Ingram
22 = DJ
20 = Lindsay
59 = O’Shaughnessy
26 = Manhertz
59 = Ph Brown
47 = Akins
47 = JRob
25 = Hyde
20 = Roy Lopez
23 = Andre Cisco
29 = Tyson Campbell
