In his postgame press conference following the Jacksonville Jaguars’ tough loss to the Atlanta Falcons, head coach Doug Pederson was optimistic about his team’s outlook ahead of the regular season. He spoke to the media with a candor befitting a veteran coach, but like a true professional, he didn’t say any more than he needed to in his brief comments.
“I feel good. I feel good about the starters,” Pederson explained. “The way they’ve played the last couple of weeks and have really dominated while they were in there. These guys today got chances to solidify some of those backup spots that we’re looking for and really try and find some special teams’ guys that are willing to step up and play special teams and that’s what these games are all about. Who is willing to embrace that? Overall, I feel good about the starters and where they are and how they are focused and ready to get this thing going.”
The regular season will be a real challenge for Jacksonville as they try to improve on an absolute waste of a 2021 campaign. Pederson and his staff will bring a degree of stability to the team that they haven’t had in the past, but in the midst of a full-on rebuild, the playoffs are probably a stretch for this Jaguars team.
Still, though, for a team that has won just a handful of games in the past two seasons, even minor improvements to their overall viability in the AFC South will be a welcome sign for fans. If Jacksonville’s starting units play to their potential, the Jaguars could be a sneaky opponent for teams that are already willing to write them off because of their past mediocrity.
The regular season is just two weeks away, and Pederson is going to be hard at work between now and September to figure out which combination of players and scheme give Jacksonville the best chance to surprise as many folks as possible this year.
