It's been a very quiet start to the season forJacksonville Jaguars'defensive tackle Arik Armstead.
Through two games, Armstead has been on the field for 47 pass-rush snaps and has yet to log a single quarterback pressure, according to Pro Football Focus.
Whether or not the Jaguars had enough pass-rush juice from the interior defensive line position to get after the quarterback was one of the big unknowns for this team entering the 2026 season. The expectation was that Armstead would play a key role in creating that disruption.
However, that has not been the case. Instead, Matt Dickerson and DaVon Hamilton, who have half the pass rush opportunities as Armstead, lead the Jaguars' defensive tackles in pressures with two each.
The name of the game is
getting after the quarterback, and doing that from the interior can do wonders for the rest of the defense. Quick pressure from inside is the best way to disrupt a play, and when that is happening consistently, every defender on the field benefits from it.
As expected, the bulk of the Jaguars' pass rush production has come from Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker, with this unit searching for more disruption elsewhere. With time in the pocket, quarterbacks can tee off on the Jaguars' secondary.
This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: Slow start to season for Jaguars defender proving costly for defense
