JACKSONVILLE – A long week ended in festive fashion.
That was the plan for the Jaguars Friday night, and that's how it played out as a week that featured five consecutive padded practices ended on Florida Blue Family Night inside EverBank Field.
The Jaguars' practice Friday evening was their fifth in as many days in full pads. They worked for two hours under the lights at EverBank Field, running extended periods of 11-on-11, first-team-versus-first-team sessions.
Including a padded practice last Saturday, the Jaguars have practiced six of the last seven days in full pads.
"You hardly ever see me smiling," Jaguars Head Coach Doug Marrone said. "You hardly ever see me happy, but I thought it was a good week. It's a start. We still have a ways to go. We have to continue to keep working this way to become a more physical football team."
An estimated 20,257 fans attended the session that ended with post-practice fireworks as players signed autographs on the field.
"It's been grind for the players," Marrone said. "I keep saying we want to be a physical football team. We came out of it injury-free, which is important.
Quarterback Blake Bortles looked efficient during mid-practice 11-on-11 work, leading a long drive that featured a 20-yard pass to wide receiver Allen Robinson. Bortles also found Robinson on an intermediate pass late in practice and followed that with a 30-yard touchdown pass down the right sideline to wide receiver Marqise Lee.
"I thought he took what the defense was giving him," Marrone said. "I didn't think he forced any balls tonight. From a decision-making standpoint, I thought he did a nice job there. I also thought he was putting the ball where our receiver could catch it and keeping it away from the defender, so I think there were some good things.
"I never get too high or too low – just keep correcting and get better."
Third-team quarterback Brandon Allen also led a long early drive that featured long passes to wide receiver Amba Etta-Tawo and wide receiver Shane Wynn.
Players are off Saturday. They will practice in Jacksonville Sunday before leaving that afternoon for Foxborough, Massachusetts, where they will practice this week against the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots.
Here's a look at Friday night's practice:
STANDING OUT
*Running back Leonard Fournette stood out in Friday's practice – as he has done throughout most of training camp. The rookie No. 4 overall draft selection, who worked with the second-team offense on Friday, had a nice move on middle linebacker Myles Jack early in 11-on-11 work, then was leveled by a shoulder tackle from defensive tackle Sheldon Day. Fournette on the next play took a 10-yard pass from backup quarterback Chad Henne, and turned it into a 78-yard touchdown reception – though with live tackling it might have been a 15-yard gain or so.
*Bortles started practice with a perfect over-the-shoulder pass to Robinson in 7-on-7 drills. …
*Cornerback Brian Dixon had a pass defensed working with the second team. …
*Linebacker Telvin Smith had a nice pass defensed covering tight end Marcedes Lewis in red-zone drills, and defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. had a sack on Bortles on the ensuing play to stop the drive.
*Fowler also had a strip sack on Henne later in practice, and beat rookie left tackle Cam Robinson around the side for what could have been a sack early in 11-on-11 work. …
*Running back T.J. Yeldon had back-to-back solid runs off tackle in early 11-on-11 work, and running back Corey Grant had a nice run through the middle in 11-on-11. Yeldon also had a long run for a near-touchdown on an inside draw later in the practice. …
PLAY OF THE DAY
This came early in practice from Allen, who had a nice, 33-yard pass to Etta-Tawo, then followed it with a nice 27-yard pass to Wynn in 11-on-11 work. They may have been the two most impressive back-to-back throws of the night before Bortles found Robinson and Lee on back-to-back plays late in practice.
INJURY WATCH
Safety James Sample did not practice Friday, and safety Jarrod Wilson, linebacker Justin Horton, guard Earl Watford, end Calais Campbell, tight end Mychal Rivera and cornerback Tyler Patmon also appeared to be out of practice.
Cornerbacks Jalen Ramsey and Aaron Colvin and rookie fullback Marquez Williams remained on the physically unable to perform list. All three have been on PUP and out of practice since the beginning of camp last Thursday.
NOTABLE
*Josh Wells worked early Friday with the first team at left tackle, with Patrick Omameh at left guard, Brandon Linder at center, A.J. Cann at right guard and Jermey Parnell at right tackle. Robinson, a 2017 second-round draft selection expected to start at left tackle, worked with the second team behind Wells at left tackle early, then got reps with the first team later in practice. Jeremiah Poutasi got first-team reps at right tackle later in practice. …
*Running back Chris Ivory practiced with the first-team offense and Fournette worked with the second team. Ivory and Fournette are listed as co-starters with Yeldon on the team's unofficial depth chart. "Everything works itself out," Marrone said. "Right now we have three guys we feel are having a pretty good camp. When you have three players who it's tough to make a decision with, that's the best thing that can happen rather than saying, 'Holy cow, we don't have anyone; we have to put this guy in.''' …
*Doran Grant and Josh Johnson both worked with the first-team defense at cornerback. The pair and Patmon had been working with the ones in camp with Colvin and Ramsey out. …
