JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The worst season in Jaguars history is over.
Finally.
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The Jaguars wrapped up their 2020 season in familiar fashion on Sunday, with another loss, this one 28-14 to the Colts. Jacksonville finished its season 1-15 with all 15 of those losses coming consecutively.
It was the worst season in Jacksonville’s 26-year history, eclipsing a 2-14 effort under Mike Mularkey in 2012.
The Jaguars showed more fight than they’d shown in the past month, erasing a 20-0 deficit and pushing the Colts until late in the fourth in a must-win game for Indianapolis.
That’s when undrafted running back Jonathan Taylor capped a record day with a 45-yard touchdown run to put the finishing touches on a historically bad season by Jacksonville. Taylor rushed for 253 yards, the most ever allowed by the Jaguars.
It was the ninth loss of the season by 10 points or more, and the fourth straight game in which the Jaguars weren’t even competitive on the scoreboard. Jacksonville lost its final four games by 21, 26, 24 and 14.
Keelan Cole Sr. of the Jacksonville Jaguars is tackled by Darius Leonard of the Indianapolis Colts during the second quarter of the game at Lucas Oil Stadium on January 03, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
The Jaguars will lug that franchise-worst 15-game losing streak into 2021 in what fans can only hope is a much different looking team.
General manager is one spot open.
Head coach is expected to be another.
Jacksonville has nearly $80 million in salary cap space available, according to OverTheCap.com. More importantly, its bevy of picks in April’s NFL draft includes the No. 1 selection overall, a pick that’s expected to be used on a franchise quarterback.
Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence is the presumptive pick if he elects to leave early.
That’s just one piece, albeit the biggest one, that’s expected on a roster in dire need of a makeover in just about every positional grouping.
The regular season finale showcased just how much help that the Jaguars need.
Quarterback Mike Glennon, making his fifth start of the season, was erratic much of the first half before getting back on track after the break. But he couldn’t move the Jaguars with much consistency, was sacked six times and lost a fumble that set up a 1-yard Taylor touchdown run.
Todd Wash’s defense was strafed by the Colts ground game much of the day. Indianapolis had 127 rushing yards in the opening quarter, with Taylor routinely torching Jacksonville.
The Jaguars showed a bit of fight in a meaningless finale.
The Colts jumped out to a 20-0 lead with 2 minutes, 38 seconds to go before halftime on a 24-yard field goal by Rodrigo Blankenship. The Jaguars found their way back into the game, with Glennon throwing a pair of touchdown passes to Laviska Shenault, the latter an 8-yarder with 6:26 to play in the third quarter.
The Jaguars played without its best player, running back James Robinson, who missed his second consecutive game with an ankle injury. His rookie season ends with 1,070 rushing yards and seven touchdowns and will no doubt be a big part of Jacksonville’s rebuild.
Glennon finished 26 of 42 for 230 yards and both touchdowns to Shenault.