Jaguars post-week 5 stock report: Linebacker group's arrow continue to point down

Sunday's 34-27 loss to the Carolina Panthers (3-2) on the road really said a lot about some of the players on this Jacksonville Jaguars (2-3) team. 

Some guys proved themselves to be viable and important pieces to the Jaguars puzzle. Others, however, might of been better off left in Charlotte. Here are some players with their stock on the rise, and some that are on the decline.

STOCK UP: Gardner Minshew

Minshew improves week in and week out - statistically he put together a career day against the Panthers. He completed 59% of his passes, tossed over 370 yards and had two touchdown passes. There were times it seemed like he tried to do too much, however, such as the final play sequence. He danced around in the pocket and failed to deliver an accurate ball. He also fumbled twice. 

Despite the mistakes, the team still rallied around the rookie quarterback. Which isn’t something the Jaguars have had in a long time. Is another rookie of the week award on the horizon for Minshew?

STOCK DOWN: Quincy Williams

From one rookie to another - this time a disappointment. Williams only tallied a total of three tackles, and he had more missed tackles than made tackles on Sunday. 

Constantly it seemed like Williams was out of position, and he was also shaken off with relative ease by Christian McCaffery. The linebackers as a whole didn’t play the best brand of football during this game.

STOCK UP: DJ Chark 

Chark has been the best offensive player for the Jaguars since the start of the season. He had a career-high in yards with 164, which is only ten fewer yards than he had all last season, and he also added on two touchdowns. Chark has been a reliable pass catcher all season long, which has been vital to Minshew’s development. It seems like every time a ball hits Chark’s hands he comes down with it. 

There was no better example than the catch he had in the third quarter on the sideline. The pass was ruled incomplete on the field, but Marrone challenged it and got it overturned. He managed to catch the ball and tap both feet in-bounds, which is incredibly impressive for a 6’4" receiver. 

He’s on pace for over 1500 yards and 15 touchdowns this season, and his progression has been fun to watch. Kennan McCardell is one of the best coaches on the Jaguars coaching staff.

STOCK DOWN: Myles Jack

The Jaguars front office decided to extend Jack over Jalen Ramsey and Yannick Ngkaoue before the season started, and so far it’s not paying off for the Jaguars. Jack was the first one to admit he didn’t have a good day on the field on Sunday. Putting the loss on himself as the leader of the defense. As a leader, you love to see Jack recognizes that he needs to improve, but he needs to put his words into action next week.

STOCK UP: Logan Cooke 

Cooke had some booming punts during this game, he’s been money all season long. He had his highest punting average so far this year with 48.3. He also had a season-long with a booming 60-yard punt. He also pinned three punts inside the 20-yard line. 

STOCK DOWN: Andrew Norwell 

Norwell was a revolving door for the Jaguars during this game, along with most of the offensive line. Minshew was forced to make a lot of plays outside of the pocket, some of which were good, some of which were bad, which is to be expected when he doesn’t have much time to throw the ball. 

Norwell stuck out the most in this game and not in a good way. The Jaguars handed the bag to Norwell during the 2017 offseason and he’s failed to meet expectations since his signing, and on Sunday he was the culprit on a forced fumble returned for a touchdown. You know things are getting bad when it feels like AJ Cann and Will Richardson might be your best bet as the starting two guards.