The Jaguars’ rotation at cornerback is shaping Travis Hunter’s early-season workload, and head coach Liam Coen made it clear the rookie isn’t being singled out so much as he’s part of a larger plan in the secondary.
Hunter has logged just 66 defensive snaps this season, which works out to 58.41 percent of the defensive snaps. Coen said the way Jacksonville is cycling corners has influenced that usage, and he pointed to the depth at the position as a reason the team feels comfortable spreading the work around.
“We did it for the most part of the last season as well, before Travis got hurt. It’s something that we got to continue to do.
We have corners that we have confidence in. Those guys can all make plays for us.
They can all communicate for us. They’ve been in the system now,” Coen said, via John Shipley of SI.
“We got to play it better, for sure, but we also got to get to the quarterback to help those guys out as well in the back end. Definitely some communication and we’re a little bit softer than I would’ve liked us to be, especially in some situations.
But yeah, it’s a rotation. Pre-game, we have it all laid out.
The players know it. They all know the rotation.
It’s been clearly laid out to them what the expectations and standards are.”
In Houston, the conversation around Jaylin Noel has been a little different. The Texans wideout has taken a step forward as a return man, but the receiving production hasn’t matched what the team had in mind. Head coach DeMeco Ryans said Noel has given the Texans a boost in the return game and added that the offense can do more to help him settle into his role.
“We all have a lot to work on. Coaches, players, we all have a lot to work on.
It’s not good enough,” Ryans said, via the Texans Wire. “And I think it’s easy to sit back and kind of nitpick, ‘Hey, what didn’t go wrong?’
‘J-Noel’ got one big explosive on the pass, did another good job on the jet sweep. ‘J-Noel’ has done a great job.
He improved in the punt return area. He did a really good job of being decisive as a punt returner.
I thought ‘J-Noel’ took a huge step this past week and he got better for our football team and he put us in position to have some opportunities to go score. As we continue to build off of what he’s shown, we’ll continue to see how that role continues to thrive.”
Ryans also said the Texans’ receiver usage can vary from week to week depending on the flow of the game, and he made it clear the team wants to keep creating chances for Noel without forcing the issue.
“With our receivers, we have different packages of different guys with different play calls they are in. How those snap counts kind of come about, it depends on how the game is going, how the game is flowing. No one wants to see ‘J-Noel’ make more explosive plays than all of us, so just got to find a way to keep moving it around and find a way to make plays offensively no matter who it is that’s getting the football.”
In Tennessee, Titans head coach Robert Saleh had praise for Elic Ayomanor after the receiver stepped up in the team’s second regular-season game. Saleh singled out Ayomanor’s approach and the amount of work he puts into his craft.
“ You’d be hard-pressed to find a receiver in this league that works as hard as he does, trains as hard as he does,” Saleh said, via Titans Wire. “ He’s improving every single day.
I love his mindset, I love his work ethic, and how hard he works at his craft. “
In Other News...
Texans Coaching Problem Is Suddenly A Bigger C.J. Stroud Concern
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Jerry Schuplinskis presence on the staff adds another layer to that discussion, since he brings Super Bowl experience and a working knowledge of the offensive scheme. For Houston, the bigger concern is what all of this means for Strouds long-term outlook, including the way coaching quality could shape the next step in his career and even factor into decisions around his future contract. [Read more 🡒]
DeMeco Ryans Faces Early Texans Pressure After Another 0-2 Start
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Next up is a divisional meeting with the Colts, which gives Houston a chance to stop the slide before it gets any steeper. The Texans also are managing some injury concerns, including receiver Nico Collins, so the margin for error is already thin as they try to avoid falling into an 0-3 hole. [Read more 🡒]
Texans Offense Has An Early Problem Fans Thought Was Fixed
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C.J. Stroud has actually been the more effective option in those moments, averaging more than six yards per passing play in short-yardage spots. The contrast is striking because it puts the burden back on an offense that was expected to be more balanced and more dependable when the yardage gets tight, and it leaves the Texans with a problem they will have to keep working through if they want those drives to finish the way they should. [Read more 🡒]