Why it's important Jaguars got Chris Rodriguez Jr. going in Week 3

Trevor Lawrence taking a knee at the New England Patriots’ 1-yard line meant it should have been time for short-yardage/goal-line back Chris Rodriguez Jr. to re-enter the game for his second touchdown of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ eventual 35-6 win on Sept. 27.

But Rodriguez had another idea.

“How many TDs do you have?” Rodriguez asked teammate Bhayshul Tuten.

“One,” Tuten replied.

And with that, Rodriguez suggested to the Jaguars coaches to give Tuten the first opportunity to score.

“You’ve got one try,” they told Tuten.

Tuten scored the touchdown with assists from Lawrence (who lost track of the game clock) and Rodriguez (who was being a servant leader).

Tuten has emerged as the Jaguars’ lead running back, but a semi-important development from the Patriots

game and leading into their game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Oct. 4 is Rodriguez rushed eight times for 37 yards after a combined 36 yards on 12 carries in Weeks 1-2.

“I think he took some confidence from this past game (by) getting going, getting himself downhill and (then) getting a touchdown always helps,” coach Liam Coen said. “Hopefully we can keep building on that.”

Because of familiarity with Coen from their year together at Kentucky, my initial thought Rodriguez would be the first-play-of-the-season starter, but Tuten emerged to seize the spot.

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But don’t discount the importance of Rodriguez, particularly when the Jaguars are playing with a lead.

Rodriguez is 4-of-5 on third-down conversion rushes this year, the kind of hard yards when the box is stacked with extra defenders.

“That’s him, right?” Coen said. “That’s his style. The way he runs, it’s awesome and especially in those situations.”

In Weeks 1-2, Coen said: “I didn’t really think we gave him a ton of room in the first two weeks to get going. I thought we did a better job (against New England) of creating a little bit more room and momentum so that he could get going and get to the second level, which is when he gets shoulders square.”

About the NFL/Jaguars

1. Hamilton’s journey: My most loyal reader (Dad) wanted to know how defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton felt after his post-fumble recovery trip down the field to celebrate in the end zone. So I asked him. “Honestly, I was super tired,” Hamilton said of the nearly 60-yard trip. “I wasn’t expecting to do it, but then my teammates forced me to run so I was like, ‘OK.’ I wish they would have pointed me in the other direction so it was shorter. Awesome moment.”

2. Thomas’ bounce back: Jaguars receiver Brian Thomas Jr. was booked for two dropped passes against Denver and followed with a career-low one target (an eight-yard catch) against New England.

Does a veteran like receiver Jakobi Meyers have to give Thomas a pick-him-up message?

“He’ll be good; he can hoop,” Meyers said. “When you have talent like that, it can always work itself out. You can’t give anybody confidence. Going through this, shaking it off and getting better, that’s what’s going to make him confident. Keep his head down and keep working, which he has been doing, and he’ll be good.”

Before practice on Oct. 2, I asked Coen how Thomas has responded this week.

“I thought he had a great week,” Coen said. “(He) had a really good day (on Oct. 1). Trev and he connected on a number of passes. (I have) thought he has responded in a great way and continues to do so. We’re going to need him. We’re going to need all of these guys to obviously continue to make plays for us on the perimeter. We need him to continue to do that.”

3. Lawrence’s anticipatory throw: Meyers hadn’t seen the All-22 screen shot of his 10-yard touchdown when he’s barely in the frame as quarterback Trevor Lawrence let go of the football.

“I’m imaging what you saw and (that shows) how well he understands the system and defenses,” Meyers told me. “To be able to work a defense like that and know where we’re going to be and when we’re going to be there, that’s Trevor being Trevor.”

4. Etc.: Tight end Tanner Koziol played three offensive snaps in his NFL debut after being a healthy scratch in Weeks 1-2. “It was awesome,” he said. “Being out there with the guys, it was a really cool feeling. (The goal has been) getting better every day all-around and being a football nerd about it and then continue to do my job on special teams.” … After playing in Weeks 2-3, linebacker Jalen McLeod has one elevation remaining from the practice squad; after his third call up, he must be signed to the active roster to be available to play. … Kicker Cam Little on his 70-yard field goal attempt in Week 3 that had the distance but was just wide right: “I hit that purer than the 67- and 68-yard (made field goals against Tennessee and Las Vegas, respectively, last year). Even in warmups and on the PATs, I was hitting the ball really straight. I just have to account for a left-to-right wind when I’m kicking from long distance. I hit it straight down the middle and on the film, you see it started to drift right.” … The “first place schedule,” narrative only involves three games for the Jaguars and they have played two of them (loss at Denver and win at New England). They play at Chicago in Week 13.

Extra points

1. NHL predictions: Expanded by two to 84 games, the NHL regular season began on Sept. 29. Eastern Conference playoff teams — Florida, Tampa Bay, Montreal, Carolina, Washington, Boston, Buffalo and the New York Islanders. Western Conference playoff teams — Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota, Vegas, Edmonton, Anaheim, Utah and St. Louis. Stanley Cup Final — Florida over Dallas.

2. MLB predictions: American League — Tampa Bay over the New York Yankees in 4 and the Chicago White Sox over Cleveland in 5. National League — Milwaukee over San Diego in 4 and the Los Angeles Dodgers over Atlanta in 4.

Weekend selections

Jaguars (plus 2 1/2) at Cincinnati: The Bengals’ secondary is banged up, which will allow Lawrence to throw four touchdown passes. Jaguars 35-27.

Florida (minus 5) at Missouri: The Gators should be on Letdown Alert, but if watch one of coach Jon Sumrall’s team meetings, you should feel great about them avoiding said letdown. Florida 42-30.

Virginia (minus 2 1/2) at Florida State: Virginia sent Florida State reeling last year with an overtime win in Charlottesville. It will continue FSU’s slide in Tallahassee. Virginia 21-17.

L.A. Rams (minus 3) at Philadelphia: Long trip for the Rams after a Sunday night road loss and a short week for the Eagles after a Monday night road loss. If Case Keenum can poke holes in the Eagles defense, Matthew Stafford shouldn’t have an issue. Rams 27-23.

Dallas (plus 2 1/2) at Houston: Only one team (1992 Chargers) has made the playoffs after starting 0-4. The Texans get a season-saving win. Texans 29-24.

Records: Straight — 3-2 last week (16-9 season). Spread — 3-2 last week (7-18. The comeback to .500 is underway!).

Contact O’Halloran at [e-mail] or on X at @ryanohalloran. Listen to Ryan on 1010AM on Tuesdays (6:35 p.m. on “Into The Night"), Thursdays (1:15 on "XL Primetime") and Fridays ("First Coast Football Friday" 4-7 p.m.).

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Why it's important Jaguars got Chris Rodriguez Jr. going in Week 3