Four cents: No need to keep doubting, the Jaguars are for real

This was a weird kind of week leading up to the game. Here are my Four Cents from Sunday’s 20-10 win over the Steelers.

Steelers can’t back up talk

There was a lot of buzz on the Steelers side leading up to the game. Fans took it personally when Trevor Lawrence described the terrible towel as “little yellow towels.” I have a news flash for Steelers fans — it is a little yellow towel.

And then George Pickens said the Jaguars had a “hope defense.” If you are going to talk the talk you better be ready to back it up. Pickens had one catch. Sure seems like he was hoping to have a better day. Have you ever heard the phrase don’t poke the bear? Well from now on, it is don’t poke the Jaguars. The Jaguars defense didn’t need any extra motivation, but he just added fuel to their fire. 

Foye Olukun called the team gritty not pretty. And when I asked Andre Cisco to describe what that means he said “We have a bunch of guys from backgrounds of like being slept on.”

Defense rises to the test

Just about every guy on the Jaguars defense has made a career of proving people wrong. So, giving that group any extra motivation is a bad idea for the other team. The Jaguars defense has been so slept on that they were being slept on here in Jacksonville. I’m as guilty as anyone.

Before the season, I fully expected the Jaguars offense to lead the way for this team. All of the hype was about how good the offense was going to be. Defensive players were asked during training camp about competing against such a dangerous offense. Those subtle slights even from the local media just kept giving this group more and more motivation.

I have said it before and I feel like I keep saying it every week. The Jaguars are a defensive-football team. That isn’t a shot at the offense. That is just how well the Jaguars defense is playing and they have carried the Jaguars to a 6-2 record, a record that after eight weeks has them tied for the best record in the AFC.

Time to buy in

For those that were scared to buy into this team before the season, now is the time to buy in. This team is a Super Bowl contender. And this isn’t one of those can history repeat itself because Doug Pederson won a Super Bowl in his second year in Philly-type of thing. 

This is it is time for the NFL to wake up and time for Jaguars fans to ditch some of that cautious optimism. I get it, you have been hurt before but this go around could be different. Look around the NFL, no team is ever perfect but this team is sure playing good football. And I know I can hear somebody at home saying ‘Oh but the offense hasn’t been scoring enough points, how will they beat the Chiefs or the Bengals?’

Let me ask you a legit question. The team is 6-2. So with that info, do what you will. But if the Jaguars offense was playing better and the defense was playing poorly, what group would you have more confidence in being able to figure it out eventually? For me, it is an easy answer — the offense. The talent is still there on the Jaguars offense. There have been injuries on the Jaguars O-line, don’t press the panic button on Tank Bigsby. And Zay Jones will hopefully be healthy after the bye week. The Jaguars offense has played sloppy and had turnovers in the red zone week after week, and they are still a top 10 offense for points scoreed per game. The sky isn’t falling. The offense is fine. They will figure it out.

Will Jaguars make a deal?

The other biggest concern I hear out there is the Jaguars need to trade for a pass rusher. This is a more legit concern. Outside of Josh Allen, the Jaguars don’t have much in the pass rush department. Will they make a move at the deadline? It will be interesting to see.

Josh Uche from the Patriots seems like the perfect fit that would really help to push the defense into elite territory. But the defense has been getting the job done with the players they have in house. So, I’d say until proven otherwise they will be just fine with what they have.

Also keep in mind we haven’t seen all of what they have just yet. Sunday was DaVon Hamilton’s first game of the year and he makes a difference. Plus, Dawuane Smoot is only in his third game back. Honestly, the defense has played good but they may not have hit their peak yet either. The Jaguars have a tough home stretch of the year to really prove they are a contender but if you haven’t hopped on the hype train yet, you better do it now before it is to late.