When Doug Pederson took over as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars, he was tasked with turning around the culture of a team with four straight last place finishes in the AFC South.
It was a team that needed to learn how to win and that was on full display early in the 2022 season when the Jaguars repeatedly lost games they probably (and sometimes definitely) should’ve won.
It’s safe to say the Jaguars have figured it out.
“Ain’t no more coming to Jacksonville getting easy dubs,” Jaguars defensive lineman Roy Robertson-Harris told reporters after their 31-30 playoff win Saturday, via the Florida Times-Union. “We’re going to play ’til the end and you’re going to have to fight us.”
Or in the words of safety Rayshawn Jenkins, the Jaguars are cockroaches who can’t be killed.
A lack of respect for the Jaguars from players around the NFL isn’t a new phenomenon. Back in 2017, Michael Bennett of the Seattle Seahawks talked about how often games in the NFL come down to one point, “unless you’re playing the Jags or something, then it’s decided by 50.”
Jacksonville proved him wrong that year by making a run to the AFC Championship, but the franchise quickly fell back into disarray.
Regardless how the rest of the playoffs go for the Jaguars, something more sustainable seems to have been built in Jacksonville. And Robertson-Harris is right, the Jaguars are a pushover no more.
