Jaguars Coaches Second-Guessing Themselves After 2-7 Start

The Jacksonville Jaguars' season has gone much differently than anticipated. They must be careful to not beat themselves up over their misfortune.

Oct 27, 2024; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson against the Green Bay Packers during the first quarter at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images / Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images

The Jacksonville Jaguars are 2-7 and one of the worst teams in the National Football League. Sunday’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles was one of the many games the Jaguars lost by less than a touchdown, an issue that has plagued them the whole season.

Losing close games has become the norm for the Jaguars this season; the same could be argued about the Jaguars last season. Head coach Doug Pederson acknowledged that losing so many close games takes a mental toll on players and coaches. 

“I mean, obviously, on a Monday, you can sit in here and watch the tape and a little bit calmer eyes and probably, ‘should’ve, could’ve, would’ve,’ right? You play that game with yourself all the time,” Pederson said. 

“Trust me, that's what beats you up as a coach, right? You go back and you replay it, and you're like, ‘Ah, we could have done that,’ or ‘We could have done this,’ or, ‘We could have got to that.’ 

Pederson noted that the game situation plays a significant role in the coaching staff's decisions on game days. This happened Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles when the Jaguars made a few questionable decisions.

“A lot of times, too, you're in the heat of the moment,” Pederson said. “At the end of the game, you're trying to score, but at the same time, you're trying to reduce the clock a little bit, right? Take time off the clock.”

“So, you look at those situations where, could you run the ball there? Certainly, certainly. But you also now, yeah, you're taking time off the clock, but now you're risking maybe a second-and-10, a second-and-12, right?”

Pederson explained how he handles the mental side of the game. Pederson clarified that there is a fine line between wanting to learn from close losses and overthinking as the Jaguars continue to pile up losses, many of which were by less than a touchdown.

“You play mental gymnastics all day,” Pederson said. “As a coach, you can’t—on a Monday, you can talk to your football team about situational football and situational awareness and say, ‘OK, we can't do that. 

“We can't do that as a football team, right, in those situations.’ And as coaches, you go, ‘We could have done this. We could have done that. We should have done this. We should have done that.’ 

“And that's the part that beats you up all the time as you—the longer you're in this business, the longer you coach it, the longer you play it. I think every coach goes through it. Every player is going to go through it. You know, it's not exact. It's not perfect. Guys battle extremely.”

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