Boston Globe columnist takes shots at Jags' chances against Patriots

Columnist says 'I'm just not seeing it'

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – A Boston Globe columnist who made Jaguars fans angry earlier this week is not backing down from negative comments he made about Jacksonville's NFL team. In fact, when News4Jax spoke with Dan Shaughnessy, he took his negativity a step further.

In the column, Shaughnessy wrote that the Jags are next in line as hopeless opponents for the Patriots, that in January of 2018, it is the “tomato can express” for the Patriots to win the Super Bowl -- and even changed his Twitter profile picture to be a tomato can.

"I’m having trouble getting past the fact that they lost nine straight last year during a three and 13 season, and the Titans beat you twice this year," Shaughnessy told News4Jax. "I just don’t see Blake Bortles coming into Gillette and putting up a bunch of points. I’m just not seeing it. They are going to take away the run, they can do things that he can’t do, and it’s going to be bloody."

He pointed to the fact that the Jaguars and Bortles have never been on a stage like this as his No. 1 reason the Jags will lose.

"Your quarterback has no experience against Belichick. He just kills those guys. He always has. I mean, there is no precedent for a guy who hasn’t faced him coming in and winning. It just doesn’t happen," he said. "I would feel better about your chances if you had seen it before. But we will see how that plays out."

Even putting up 45 points on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers wasn’t enough. Shaughnessy found a way to turn even that game into a negative.

"It just made me think the Steelers are in more need of intervention than I thought. It’s inexcusable on their part to have that happen. And props to you guys. You got up on them 21-nothing, and that’s great. You have great players on the defensive side of the ball. But they did hang 42 on you, which is not a good omen," he said.

News4Jax has spoken to Jaguars fans not only here for Sunday's game in New England, but also back at home in Jacksonville before leaving. Many of them said the column is just another reason to hope the Jaguars are able to win Sunday and make Shaughnessy have to eat a little crow in his postgame column. They hope, if the Jags win, he'll give Jacksonville's team in teal a little bit of praise for being one of a very short list of teams to beat this era of Patriots in the playoffs.