Michael Wortham complicates the Jaguars' 53-man cuts
An undrafted receiver turned the preseason finale into his own audition, Amari Burney got waived a day after his best play of camp, and the Jaguars close the exhibition slate 2-1 on a 19-0 shutout of the Buccaneers.
Wortham forces the Jaguars' hand on cutdown weekend
The 19-0 finale over Tampa Bay was supposed to settle who was already safe. Instead Michael Wortham turned it into his own highlight reel — seven catches on eight targets for 97 yards plus a return touchdown, the kind of line that gets John Shipley of SI.com building a whole column around Michael Wortham's Night.
Game Balls From Jaguars' Easy Preseason Win Over the Buccaneers: Michael Wortham's Night t.co/wDmU8Rr0Ey
Liam Coen was already talking about him before the ball was even snapped Friday, comparing the undrafted rookie to Parker Washington: "He's got a phenomenal forward lean about the way that he runs... there's some similar play styles there," the coach said, according to Black and Teal. That's a real name to be compared to for a guy nobody drafted, and it's why a receiver room this deep in Jacksonville is suddenly a harder room to finalize than it looked a week ago.
It cut the other way for Amari Burney. The linebacker had a sack in Friday's win and was waived by Saturday, per Jeff Fowler of ESPN — a reminder that a good final snap and a roster spot are not the same thing in this building this week.
Jaguars close the preseason with a shutout, and Little booms a 61-yarder
Jacksonville finishes the exhibition slate 2-1 in the preseason so far, closing it out by blanking the Buccaneers 19-0 on Friday — a bounce-back from the 34-17 loss to Carolina the week before, and a cleaner ending than the season-opening 24-20 win at New Orleans. None of it touches the record, which still reads 0-0 because nothing has counted yet, but as a look at who can play, it was the best 60 minutes of the month.
Buccaneers19-0
Panthers17-34
Saints24-20Cam Little supplied the signature moment. He made his only field-goal attempt, from 61 yards out, and didn't need a single extra point in the shutout — the club's own account called it "Easy Money." It was the only kick he needed all night, and it doubled as the loudest individual line from a game that was otherwise about who kept their jobs.
61 yards = Easy Money 🤑 #TBvsJAX t.co/1jlTUdClP2
It's still preseason math, so nobody's reading a shutout as a sign of where this defense will be in October. But entering final cuts on a stop-them-cold night, with your kicker hitting from 61, is about as good a note as a team can leave August on.
The Browns open the season at EverBank
Once the roster is actually final, the Jaguars get a Sunday afternoon vs. the Browns at EverBank Stadium to open the regular season — the first game that will count all year. Cleveland comes in 0-0 like everybody else, but its own preseason ledger reads 1-2, and the Browns just closed their exhibition slate with a 37-13 win over the Patriots.
Jacksonville opened as the favorite here, with the line set at -7.5, and the total was pinned at a low-scoring 40.5 — a number that tells you both sides expect this to be decided more by field position and mistakes than a shootout. However Wortham's roster spot shakes out over the next 48 hours, this is the game the whole preseason was building toward, and it's finally close enough to plan around.