Jaguars' goals for preseason opener: opportunities for younger players, organization for coaches

The Jacksonville Jaguars will play football on Thursday for the first time in 207 days.

Much has changed since then.

Coach Doug Pederson, with his consummate professionalism, has put the disastrous Urban Meyer experiment of last year in the ash heap of franchise history.

Players who survived that debacle with their sanity, and more importantly their desire to play for the Jaguars intact, seem to have been invigorated in the first days of training camp.

Ruled out: Trevor Lawrence, Travis Etienne won't play for Jaguars during Thursday's Hall of Fame game

Battling backs: Jaguars' Snoop Conner, Ryquell Armstead, Mekhi Sargent compete for third running back spot

Newcomers to the team, either through the draft or free agency, are taking their cue from the holdovers and seem just as eager to contribute in yet another rebuild of the franchise.

The result of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game against the Las Vegas Raiders (8 p.m., NBC) isn’t as important as the start of a process to get the NFL’s most beleaguered franchise of the past two seasons — and with the exception of the 2017 team that was 10 minutes from the Super Bowl, the past two decades — to some measure of respectability.

Granted, it will be a small step and some of the most important moving parts won't play. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence and running back Travis Etienne were ruled out (in Etienne's case, before it was revealed he had an undisclosed illness).

Other starters likely will be held out since the Jags will have three more preseason games left to get them in game shape.

Thursday will mainly be a chance for Pederson to evaluate the drafted rookies expected to contribute this season such as No. 1 overall pick Travon Walker, third-round center Luke Fortner and third-round linebacker Chad Muma, as well as see if undrafted free agents who have flashed in camp, such as cornerback Benjie Franklin and wide receiver Lujuan Winningham, can keep making plays when the lights come on.

“It’s still evaluation time, right?” Pederson said. “We’re still evaluating our roster and we’ve got a lot of young guys and a lot of battles that we want to really start seeing in game situations.”

Among the position battles to watch:

• The third running back spot behind Etienne and James Robinson (assuming Robinson continues his progress from an Achilles injury) is among rookie Snoop Conner and veterans Ryquell Armstead and Mekhi Sargent. Conner will start and has had a very good camp.

• The kicking battle between Ryan Santoso and Elliott Fry is ongoing. Both kicked well in Tuesday’s practice, each making all four of their attempts.

• Ben Bartch is running behind Tyler Shatley at right guard. Can he get his job back?

• Jawaan Taylor likely won’t play at right tackle because of a hamstring injury, so it will be another opportunity for Walker Little, who has played well in camp.

• The team penciled in first-round draft pick Devin Lloyd to start at inside linebacker but since his hamstring injury the day before camp opened, Muma and veteran Shaq Quarterman have waged a spirited battle for that spot.

• With Lawrence being held out and C.J. Beathard still not 100 percent because of a groin injury in OTAs, Jake Luton will start at quarterback. It’s not his first rodeo – he got three starts in 2020 and played well in close losses to Houston and Green Bay. But he’s hopeful he can stick on his second go-around with the Jaguars (Meyer cut him and he spent last season on Seattle’s roster).

“We’ve done a lot of good things and we’ll go out and put our best foot forward,” Luton said. “I want to move the ball around and get the ball in my guy’s hands … execute and score points.”

Also of importance against the Raiders: organization and communication under game conditions. It’s a new staff, a new way of doing things and while practices in OTAs, minicamps and training camp have looked smooth and polished, getting plays in, making substitutions and making decisions on the fly during a game is an accelerated process.

For example, offensive coordinator Press Taylor will be on the sideline for this game. He said that could change based on how operations flow.

“It’s just as important for us as it is for the players,” said Pederson, who will call the offensive plays. “Organization is everything. Where the coordinators are on game day … they’re down [on the field], they’re up [in the press box] … there’s got to be some great organization and great communication. Guys have to be in the right spot ... game day responsibilities, you know where their eyes are, making sure we have the right information between series and halftime.”

Taylor said there has to be a balance between the results of a preseason game and getting the entire process oiled for when the games really count Sept. 11 in Washington.

“It’s a game. They’re keeping score, so we’re going to treat it that way,” he said. “But at the same time, we have a process for what we intend to get in as an offense, how we want to work this thing. We’re not going to accelerate just because we have this game.”

Contact Garry Smits at gsmits@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Doug Pederson stresses organization, communication in Jaguars opener