Week 8 at Seattle Seahawks
Marvin Jones stormed back on the scene in Week 6 following two slow performances with a 7-100-1 line against the Dolphins. Jones has been a volatile fantasy producer of late but has demonstrated the ability to turn in relevant performances in the right game script and matchup catching passes from Trevor Lawrence. He remains the clear top downfield target in Jacksonville with D.J. Chark done for the year and Laviska Shenault being used strictly underneath. Week 8 presents a great opportunity for Jones to turn in another solid performance against a Seattle secondary that is amongst the worst in the NFL. It's unfortunate Jones will not be able to benefit from the game script that Russell Wilson would bring if the Seahawks were healthy on offense, but he can be slotted into lineups as an upside WR3 given the plush matchup in Week 8.
Week 6 vs. Miami Dolphins
Marvin Jones' Week 5 was severely disappointing as he finished with only one catch for 25 yards on five targets despite D.J. Chark going on IR. Jones's Week 5 dud is a reminder that the Jacksonville offense is generally a mess and any player involved will be inconsistent for fantasy purposes outside of James Robinson. A Week 6 matchup with the Dolphins means potential shadow coverage on Jones from Xavien Howard. Despite a prominent role in the Jags passing game, Jones is a risky play and should probably be left on the bench in most leagues.
Week 5 vs. Tennessee Titans
Marvin Jones had easily his worst performance of the season in Week 4, catching only three passes for 24 scoreless yards. It was Jones's first game with fewer than five receptions and less than 50 receiving yards on the year. He will carry immediate bounce-back potential in light of the season-ending injury D.J. Chark suffered, which should boost Jones's target share even if it has a detrimental impact on the offense as a whole. Jones should maintain his current role and could add some more deep routes that Chark would normally run to his snap share as Laviska Shenault continues to operate closer to the line of scrimmage. A Week 5 matchup with the thoroughly mediocre Titans defense is nothing to be afraid of, making Jones an interesting flex option this week given that the Jags live in negative game script.
Week 4 at Cincinnati Bengals
Early returns for Marvin Jones with Trevor Lawrence are very promising for the veteran wideout. Jones leads the Jags in targets, catches, and receiving yards through three weeks, and has tacked on two touchdowns during that span. Jones looks poised to be a solid fantasy asset based on his high-volume role in an offense that will be throwing a ton out of necessity. In Week 4, Jones will take on a Bengals secondary that slots in around the league average in terms of fantasy points allowed to WRs. With a consistent role and unintimidating matchup on deck, Jones looks like a decent flex play in Week 4.
Week 3 vs. Arizona Cardinals
Marvin Jones's early returns with Trevor Lawrence have been promising. Jones has 20 targets over the first two games of the season, turning those looks into a 5-77-1 line in Week 1 and a 6-55-1 line in Week 2 against a tough Denver secondary. The Jacksonville offense hasn't been pretty to this point, but Jones appears to have developed an early rapport with Lawrence, particularly near the end zone. With Laviska Shenault banged up, Jones could be needed to shoulder an even larger load this week against the Cardinals' mediocre secondary. Fantasy managers can ride Jones as a WR3 until we see a reason to remove him from lineups.
Week 2 vs. Denver Broncos
Marvin Jones's Jaguars debut resulted in a 5-77-1 line on nine targets, tying Laviska Shenault for second on the team in targets behind D.J. Chark's 12. Jones's day would have looked a lot less encouraging had he not caught a short touchdown from Trevor Lawrence in garbage time. It appears that targets will be distributed fairly evenly between Shenault, Chark, and Jones, meaning Jones's fantasy value will likely be tied to finding the endzone most weeks. It will be much tougher to score a touchdown this week when the Jags host the Broncos and their formidable secondary. Try not to get sucked in by Jones's touchdown last week and keep him on fantasy benches for the tough matchup in Week 2.
Week 1 @ Houston Texans
Veteran Marvin Jones enters his 10th season in the NFL as a member of the Jags' muddled receiving group. Jones has always had a knack for finding the endzone. He has recorded nine receiving touchdowns in three of the past four seasons and caught 10 touchdowns in a single season back in 2013. Jones will likely need to maintain that type of red-zone production to offer fantasy value while he competes with the youthful Laviska Shenault and DJ Chark for targets from rookie Trevor Lawrence. The Houston secondary projects to be one of the worst in the NFL, meaning Jones can be started as a low-end flex option, but he is a risky play given the relatively unknown pecking order for targets in Jacksonville heading into Week 1.
Fantasy Upside
The Jaguars and Marvin Jones Jr. agreed to a two-year, $14.5 million deal, including $9.2 million fully guaranteed, in March. In Jacksonville, Jones will be reunited with former Lions offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, who holds the same position on coach Urban Meyer's staff. . The 31-year-old Jones flourished in his five seasons with the Lions after signing with the team as a free agent in 2016, following the retirement of Hall of Fame receiver Calvin Johnson. With the Lions, he had 289 catches for 4,296 yards and 36 touchdowns. He had his only 1,000-yard season in 2017, with 1,101 yards and an NFL-leading 18 yards per reception. As SI.com notes, Jones has been a high-volume touchdown receiver in his career, collecting 51 in 88 career starts. In fact, Jones is the only wide receiver with at least nine touchdown receptions in each of the past two years.
Fantasy Downside
Jones has benefitted from being paired with other top receivers in his career such as A.J. Green and Kenny Golladay. In Jacksonville, he'll work alongside promising youngsters D.J. Chark, Laviska Shenault Jr. and Collin Johnson. Chark and Shenault are promising up-and-comers, but they won't necessarily distract opposing defenses.
2021 Bottom Line
In an offense that will likely be throwing on the regular, Jones should be viewed as a value play with plenty of upside.
Week 17 vs. Minnesota Vikings
With three Detroit QBs playing last week versus Tampa, Marvin Jones turned in a disappointing stat line, recording only three grabs for 19 yards. It’s possible Matthew Stafford returns for the finale, which would give the veteran WR a boost. Jones finished with 43 yards and a score in the previous matchup against Minnesota this season.
Week 16 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Matthew Stafford played through sore ribs last week at Tennessee, combining with Chase Daniel to throw for over 300 yards. In the loss, Marvin Jones again led the Lions passing attack with a season-most 10 receptions for 112 yards and his seventh TD of ’20. Without Kenny Golladay for much of the year, Jones has by far been the team’s best receiver and has a good matchup on Saturday versus a struggling Bucs pass defense.
