JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jaguars are ready to turn the page from a full training camp into preseason game mode.
How close — or how far away — the Jaguars are from leaving the forgettable finish of 2023 behind them remains to be seen, but head coach Doug Pederson has said often how many strides the team has made in camp.
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They’ve had nearly two full weeks of camp and now they’re ready to transition into what things will look like during weeks in the regular season. The Chiefs head to EverBank Stadium on Saturday night (7 p.m.) for the preseason opener as Pederson and the Jaguars inch closer to kickoff against the Dolphins on Sept. 8.
“Pleased with where we’re headed and the work we’ve got done. One of the things with training camp as a coach, you try to provide the competition,” Pederson said. “We’ve seen a lot of good competition out there. Plus, we’re putting guys in some positions to see what they can do. That’s part of the developmental process, so I’ve been pleased where we’re at right now.”
The Jaguars have navigated the normal issues of camp (heat, injuries, new faces and a new defensive system) well. Under new coordinator Ryan Nielsen, the Jaguars have to feel good about how things have gone on that side of the ball. Jacksonville seems better set up to thrive in Nielsen’s base defense (four down defensive linemen and three linebackers) than it did in Mike Caldwell’s system. That means instead of Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker as standup outside linebackers, they’ll be hands in the dirt edge rushers.
On offense, there’s still been no announcement of playcalling duties (Pederson or offensive coordinator Press Taylor), but Trevor Lawrence has bounced back after a ragged start in the first week of camp to far more consistent in the week since. Second-year back Tank Bigsby looks more confident and capable as Travis Etienne’s backup. Preseason games and joint practices next week with the Buccaneers will serve as an excellent litmus test to see just how much that work in camp translates into real-game improvement.
“Well, in the game, it’s real. Officials, under the lights, everything’s magnified. False start in practice, we correct it, but false start in the game, we back it up five yards,” Pederson said. “Stuff like that, it becomes real. So just those little things: details. But at the same time, it’s an opportunity for these guys to really showcase themselves and put their best foot forward.”
Monday’s practice inside the covered facility at Miller Electric Center skirted the elements of Hurricane Debby and was closed to fans due to the weather. They missed the most physical play of camp where Montaric Brown walloped receiver Gabe Davis from behind on a quick route and it turned into a sidelines-clearing brouhaha.
It was one of the most intense dust ups in Pederson’s time as coach. Receiver Christian Kirk was one of the first players off the sideline to go after Brown for the hard hit. Davis said he was thankful his fellow receivers had his back.
“As he should. As he should. I couldn’t defend myself, you know what I mean? It is what it is,” Davis said. “But yeah, I appreciate those guys going out there and doing what they did. It was it was funny. “Guys are getting a little chippy out there, and it’s just football. It is what it is, I’m fine.”
That feistiness tends to happen in some capacity in every camp. It’s a sign that players are ready to hit someone else after weeks of competing against one another. That first opportunity comes on Saturday night against the Chiefs.
“It’s nice that it’s game week now and we get to go out and play somebody in a different jersey, but that’s just football, man,” said second-year tight end Brenton Strange. “And like I said, we’re just competing. Trying to get better so that happens. We’re brothers. At the end of the day, we’re brothers.”
Pederson said that he’ll likely play the starters for a series or two against Kansas City. From there, backups and players battling for roster spots will take over. It might not be the most enjoyable experience for fans (few preseason events ever are), but it is vital to help the Jaguars stack their roster.
Undrafted players like receivers Joshua Cephus and Brevin Easton, offensive lineman Steven Jones, defensive back Josh Proctor and running back Jalen Jackson are among the unfamiliar names who have a shot at making the 53-man roster. Last year, receiver Elijah Cooks was the lone UDFA to make the roster after camp.
“So, you have three quarters, maybe three and a half, to really get a good look at a lot of the young players and see what you have there. Sometimes it doesn’t work out that way,” Pederson said. “Maybe guys play more special teams than they do offense-defense. But at the same time, you still want to give everybody a chance to get in this game and play.”