Perhaps the most notable moment of T.J. Yeldon's Jaguars debut Friday night was the former Alabama standout getting absolutely crushed on a goal-line dive and subsequently fumbling the ball.
While his short-game effort wasn't pretty, upon review, it was ruled a touchdown, which gave Yeldon some sort of solace, and taught him his first lesson in the league.
"Never to jump again," he said, via the team's website. "It was a 'Welcome to the NFL' [moment]. I got a touchdown. It was ugly, but I still got a touchdown."
Yeldon finished the Jaguars' 22-17 loss to the Lions with eight rushes for just 10 yards and that lone touchdown. He also caught one ball which he stretched 12 yards into a first down. The numbers at face value don't impress, but Yeldon showed burst on his short catch and displayed some "huevos" on his unfortunate leap.
Jaguars coach Gus Bradley said after the game, "He learned a lesson about ball security... on that short on the goal line, he's going to meet someone. I think it was a good start for him although the stats didn't show it."
At this point in the preseason, Yeldon should be focused on getting reps and getting acclimated to the professional game; he doesn't need his Ameer Abdullah moment now to ensure a successful rookie year.
If Blake Bortles continues his hot play into the regular season, Yeldon will see some space open up and have great opportunities to make people miss on the line of scrimmage and in the open field. But for now, the Jaguars are thankful that Yeldon wasn't physically -- or emotionally -- scarred following his goal-line fail.
