Cam Newton hit Kelvin Benjamin for a nine-yard touchdown but Chris Ivory would answer with a score of his own, and the first half ended tied at 10.
The teams traded leads throughout the second half, until a Blake Bortles 2-point conversion attempt was intercepted and the Jaguars lost 24 to 23. With that, we give you our PFF exclusive takeaways from the contest for each team.
Top 5 grades:
LB Luke Kuechly, 87.8 overall grade
DI Kawann Short, 86.3 overall grade
CB Zack Sanchez, 85.9 overall grade
CB Jeff Richards, 83.0 overall grade
LB David Mayo, 79.4 overall grade
Performances of Note:
WR Kelvin Benjamin, 77.6 overall grade
Benjamin has looked impressive so far this preseason, and that was no different in this game. After being targeted four combined times in the past two preseason games, Benjamin saw four targets today, all of which he caught for 36 yards. Two of them gained first downs, while another was his opening-drive touchdown catch. Benjamin is now averaging an impressive 3.69 yards per route run this preseason.
LT Matt Kalil, 39.5 overall grade
One of Carolina's biggest issues last season was the struggling play of their offensive line. They went out and signed Kalil in free agency, hoping he could lock down the left tackle spot for them. This game was his a chance to prove that he was worth the money as he lined up against high-level Jaguars ED Calais Campbell. However, it was Campbell who got the better of Kalil in this one. Kalil allowed a hit and two quarterback hurries to Campbell, as well as a run stop. He finished with a team second-lowest run blocking grade of 36.5, and a team-low pass blocking grade of 41.7.
LB Luke Kuechly, 87.8 overall grade
After playing only six snaps in the preseason coming into the game, Kuechly played 29 on Thursday night and he was in midseason form. He got in on four stops, three of which came in the passing game. Kuechly’s range gives Carolina a plethora of blitzing options as he can cover incredible ground while finishing plays once he’s in position. A healthy Kuechly should be right in the mix for defensive player of the year, and he was on his game in this one.
CB Zack Sanchez, 85.9 overall grade
Sanchez was only targeted three times, but he picked up and interception and a pass breakup in his limited opportunities. He took advantage of Bortles’ wobbly pass into tight coverage by yanking it free for the interception on a post route and later broke up a pass on the goal line by laying out to get his hand on the ball and save the touchdown. Sanchez had some ugly moments last year on his 89 snaps, and this may be his best game as a pro despite playing only 27 snaps.
Top 5 grades:
ED Calais Campbell, 85.3 overall grade
S Barry Church, 84.6 overall grade
RT Jermey Parnell 84.6 overall grade
CB Stanley Jean-Baptiste 82.6 overall grade
DI Malik Jackson 81.2 overall grade
Performances of Note:
QB Battle: Chad Henne (65.7 overall grade) and Blake Bortles (70.8 overall grade)
Henne got the start for the Jaguars but the offense still had their struggles. He missed on a few throws he should have hit, but his best two throws of the day came on “go” routes down the left sideline, one for 37 yards to WR Allen Robinson and one dropped by WR Keelan Cole. Other than those two throws, checkdowns and sacks were the theme for the Henne-led offense. As for Bortles, it was an up-and-down outing as his indecisiveness led to a few passes with suboptimal ball location, including a forced interceptions and a poor decision to throw into double coverage on the pending game-tying two-point conversion try. He did finish 4-for-5 for 55 yards at the intermediate (10-19-yard) level with his best throw coming on a deep out to the slot with perfect placement.
LT Cam Robinson, 76.5 overall grade
With his most extended action of his career, Robinson showed some of the boom or bust type of play that he was known for at Alabama. In pass protection, he got beaten cleanly by DE Mario Addison for a sack while later surrendering a pressure to Addison on a spin move that may have been even uglier than the sack for Robinson. However, those were the only two pressures surrendered by Robinson on the night and he was effective in the run game against Carolina’s backups with multiple dominant blocks that drove his man well out of the gap.
ED Calais Campbell, 85.3 overall grade
Campbell was a big free agency signing for the Jaguars, and he sure looks to be paying off for them so far. Campbell dominated the 34 snaps he played in this game, managing to record three quarterback hits and two additional hurries on 19 pass rushes. That works out to a very-high pass rushing productivity score of 19.7 for the game. He also added a run stop for Jaguars defense that looked good in this game.
S Barry Church, 84.6 overall grade
Church was another of the Jaguars free agency pickups this offseason, and he showed today just why the Jaguars valued him so much. Church was all over the field with the starting defense, making stop after stop against the Panthers offense. He finished with a team-high six solo defensive stops, four of those coming in the run game. Considering he played just 11 run snaps, that's a 36.4% run stop percentage. He also saw four targets in coverage and allowed just two catches for a mere two yards.
PFF Game Ball: Luke Kuechly
*Grades subject to change pending review
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