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Devin Lloyd, Jacksonville Jaguars defense, have pursuit of the football on their minds
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- Devin Lloyd, Jacksonville Jaguars defense, have pursuit of the football on their minds
According to Devin Lloyd , the players on the Jacksonville Jaguars' defense just might get to sleep each night by counting footballs, not sheep.
"Everyone has the ball on their minds," said the fourth-year linebacker who has emerged as the team's MVP on that side of the ball through the quarter-pole of the season. "We're thinking about it all the time."
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The Jaguars are especially focused on that precious 15-ounce piece of leather during a 60-minute NFL football game, within the 100- by 53-yard grass rectangle on which they play their trade.
That's where the Jaguars' defense has fought and scrapped and come away with the football a league-leading 13 times in four games this season, with four more coming in their 26-21 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Sept. 28 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
The significance of those four turnovers, two interceptions by Lloyd and fumble recoveries by safety Andrew Wingard and linebacker Foye Oluokun — in addition to being the difference in the game — is that the Jags (3-1) have now surpassed last year's entire season total of nine.
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They also illustrate the mentality instilled by defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile .
Turnovers led to 17 points for Jaguars' offense
Three of the four turnovers were cashed in for points and the last one cashed the 49ers out:
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Wingard's fumble recovery on the first play of the second quarter, forced when linebacker Dennis Gardeck punched the ball from the grasp of former Jaguars tight end Luke Farrell , was followed on the next play by Travis Etienne's 48-yard touchdown run.
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Lloyd's first interception, deflected off the hands of Christian McCaffrey later in the second period, paved the way for Trevor Lawrence's 4-yard TD pass to tight end Hunter Long .
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Lloyd's second pick and his third of the season led to a Cam Little field goal.
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And the final turnover, Oluokun's fumble recovery with 2:47 left in the game, enabled the Jaguars to run the clock out with one first down.
The fumble was forced by former 49er Arik Armstead when he strip-sacked Brock Purdy (if Armstead hadn't gotten to Purdy, Lloyd was right there to make sure it would at least have been a sack), a sweet moment for the NFL's 2024 Man of the Year.
"I didn't want to make it bigger than it was," Armstead said of returning to the team for which he played nine years. "I wanted to live in the moment and see what happens. It turned out to be a pretty special day, one I won't forget. I've got a lot of memories in this building and I made another one today."
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Jaguars coach Liam Coen loved the storybook ending for Armstead.
"For him to help us get a win, with a play like that, a game-changing play with huge implications, that was awesome," he said.
Turnovers a result of team play
The turnovers also were collaborative efforts, as has been the case with most of them this season.
When Armstead strip-sacked Purdy, he not only had Lloyd right there with him, but nose guard DaVon Hamilton got penetration. Essentially, they called a meeting at the quarterback.
Edge rusher Emmanuel Ogbah was hot in pursuit of Purdy when he threw his first pick to Lloyd.
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Defensive tackle Maason Smith went high to tip Purdy's pass that led to Lloyd's second interception.
And on the Farrell fumble, Purdy was rushed hard by Armstead and Travon Walker , forcing him to pump the ball once and step up in the pocket. His facemask was then full of Dawuane Smoot before he had to get rid of the ball.
Lloyd said Campanile's philosophy boils down to sheer hard work and racing to the football.
"We always talk about running to the ball, and the opportunities will be there when you get to it," Lloyd said. "This was a great team win. It was complementary ball, everyone playing together throughout the whole game. We're playing really good, the whole team is. We're playing off each other."
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars' Devin Lloyd, Arik Armstead lead another turnover-filled feast
