JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A maturing Blake Bortles and a young, improving defense were supposed to put the Jacksonville Jaguars back in the AFC South title chase.
That preseason prediction didn’t come close to being right, and now that reality has set in, the Jaguars will use Sunday's season finale to establish draft position and maybe find a few answers before embarking on another uncertain offseason.
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Jacksonville (3-12) already made one decision about its future - firing coach Gus Bradley and replacing him with former Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone. After making the change, the Jaguars ended a franchise-record nine-game losing streak.
But the same, basic problems still exist.
Even after Bortles played his best game of the season last week, he still has the AFC's third-worst quarterback ranking. The rushing offense has been largely stagnant. And while the defense has been relatively stout statistically, only six NFL teams have allowed more points than the Jags' 376.
So the future plans of coaches and players could hinge on just how serious everyone takes Sundays' game - and everyone knows it.
"I think it's more important to make sure that the competitiveness in all of us is there when we go out on that field," Marrone said. "As long as there's a scoreboard, everyone is going to be looking to come out on top of the scoreboard."
While the Jaguars have struggled in the series against the Indianapolis Colts, they have had the upper hand lately. Jacksonville has won two straight over the Colts and a third consecutive win would give the Jags their first season sweep since 2011 when the Colts finished 2-14. A win also would give Jacksonville three wins against division foes, perhaps an indication it can compete for a division title next season.