JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Things feel quite a bit different in Jacksonville this year.
The Jaguars were in a tailspin at this point in 2022, unable to close games and careening into a winless October.
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And now?
The Jaguars (5-2) have won four straight since their low point, a 37-17 loss to the Texans in Week 3. Things haven’t been easy in getting there, but it’s a far different feeling than it was a year ago for coach Doug Pederson and the Jaguars, who sit atop the AFC South standings heading into Sunday’s game at Pittsburgh (4-2).
At this point in 2022, Jacksonville was 3-4 and two games into what would be a five-game losing streak. The Jaguars went 0-5 during a forgettable October and limped into their bye week at 3-7. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence and Co. now have a shot to polish off a perfect October and hit their bye week with some serious momentum for the second half of the season. Pederson said that he expected Jacksonville to be at this point entering the break, and is looking to keep its momentum going.
“Yeah, quite honestly. You expect to be in this situation. We can still play better; I think there’s a lot left out on the field each weekend that we can learn from and improve. Especially the back half of the season,” Pederson said.
“It’s a credit to the players though, we’ve had our share of injury and guys have stepped up and played well in backup situations. We’re just anticipating some of our guys, whether it’s this week or after the bye, getting healthy and getting back on the field. Your expectation is to win every game and we haven’t, but pleased with we are right now.”
Jacksonville has won but it has dealt with uneven performances, especially on the offensive side of the ball. The offense has continued to be a weekly work in progress, dinged up by injuries, suspension and inconsistent play. Receiver Zay Jones has missed four games with a knee injury. Left tackle Cam Robinson was out the first four weeks due to a performance-enhancing drug suspension. His replacement, Walker Little, left 11 snaps into Week 5 with a knee injury.
On that side of the ball at least, Jacksonville has yet to play with a full array of No. 1s.
Lawrence has been good during his third season, but he hasn’t been at the level that he was during Jacksonville’s unexpected second-half run to the AFC South title last year. Lawrence hasn’t been as erratic as he was during the first half of the season in 2022 though, a sign of growth.
“I think this is a very mature team that we have and I think we understand what’s at stake this week and every week moving forward. Every game is critical, it’s crucial. Especially playing a team like Pittsburgh that’s a good team, AFC, all those things. You understand it’s a big game every week, but you definitely have to get back in the groove this week after having a couple of days off which was great for us to get a little healthier and all those things,” Lawrence said.
“Today, you got to have a sense of urgency and you have to get back going, make sure that your mind is right and that you’re ready to go play a physical, four-quarter game on Sunday. That’s everything we expect and we’re going to get there by Sunday.”
There have been signs that Jacksonville is finding its way on that side of the ball. The offensive line, a weak spot much of the year, didn’t give up a sack last week against the Saints. And that was significant because Lawrence was dealing with a knee injury. Running back Travis Etienne set a franchise record when he scored a pair of touchdowns against New Orleans, his third straight game with multiple scores. Lawrence said it’s been the growth of the offensive line which has led to better offensive showings the last two weeks, a 37-point outing against the Colts and the 31-point night against the Saints.
“Of course, they don’t always get the credit and they only get attention when it’s not going well because that’s the nature of the position they play which sucks,” he said. “They don’t get as much love when they’re playing well which they are right now, so it’s awesome to see those guys taking pride in it and coming together, gelling even more.”