Jaguars to Draw Inspiration From Last Year's Loss?

After a tough loss in Cleveland last year, can the Jacksonville Jaguars get their revenge against the Browns in Week 2?

Dec 10, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Evan Engram (17) makes a reception under coverage by Cleveland Browns safety Grant Delpit (22) during the second quarter at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images / Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

In many ways, the Jacksonville Jaguars' trip to Cleveland in 2023 helped start the beginning of the end.

The Jaguars were fresh off an emotional loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, but they were still sitting at 8-4 and with everything in front of him.

There was optimism internally the Jaguars' defense would be able to tee off against backup quarterback Joe Flacco and help an injured Trevor Lawrence cross the finish line.

None of that happened, though, and the Jaguars got a rude awakening of what the final few weeks of 2023 would look like. Despite only losing 31-27, the Jaguars looked out of sorts.

Flacco threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns, while Lawrence threw three interceptions.

With the Browns now coming south for a Week 2 rematch, the Jaguars know there is value in taking a trip to the past.

“You’ve got to look at it. Personnel, what we did offensively, defensively. Offensively we didn't take care of the ball very well in that football game," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said on Wednesday.

"We turned it over too many times and obviously, it still came down to a one-score game. There's some positives to take away from it, but I think the biggest takeaway too for us is just we had to protect the football, which again we didn't do on Sunday.”

While things change with every team every offseason, the Jaguars can take solace in knowing the crux of the Browns' team is the same. It will be Deshaun Watson at quarterback and not Flacco, and star tight end David Njoku won't play after two touchdown catches against the Jaguars last year.

But the defensive scheme remains the same, and as does most of the defensive roster.

"They just have really good players. They're well-coached. They know where to be, when to be there. They're physical. They're good at diagnosing plays, kind of beating you to spots. So, there are a bunch of challenges they present," Lawrence said on Wednesday.

"Some of the stuff obviously that last year we had the tape against them that we struggled with, we want to improve on. We had our opportunities as well though and didn't hit a lot of those plays, whether it's run-game or pass-game. So, we know there are some opportunities. Obviously, they're really good defense though, so there's going to be some challenges.”

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