Why Doug Pederson Is Hopeful the Texans Loss Will Create a Spark for the Jaguars

The home losing streak when facing the Houston Texans continued Sunday as the Jaguars lost to their division rivals for the 6th straight year, falling 37-17. 

The team got off on the wrong foot almost immediately as the Jaguars’ first half drives ended in both missed and blocked field goals, punts, and a fumble. The second half was no doubt an improvement, but the 17-point second half push simply wasn’t enough, falling to 1-2 on the season.

Meeting with his team the next morning, Jaguars’ head coach Doug Pederson spoke to the team and emphasized the team’s approach going forward.

The team’s center Luke Fortner detailed Pederson’s message, “Not a very good one. He came in and he was honest, he told us that we’re not where we want to be, we have a long way to go, and collectively, we’re going to have to work every single day and every single week to get to that point.”

The team’s struggles on third down continued against the Texans. Trevor Lawrence and the offense converted just 5-of-13 third down attempts and failed to convert their lone fourth down attempt as well. The offense simply isn’t playing as a cohesive unit, evidenced by their league-leading nine drops.

When asked about the third down woes, Fortner had this to say, “I think you come back and reevaluate the process and look at the details of little things we’ve been doing. Like I said, we had great plays here and there, but in critical situations we struggled. Whether it’s made more of a focus on that or more of a focus on the little details. That’s something we’ve got to look at and evaluate this week, and for the weeks continuing on.”

It was not just an offensive problem, however, as all three phases seemed to struggle at differing times Sunday. Defensively, two miscommunications in the secondary cost dearly and on special teams, the two field goal attempts and a kickoff return highlighted, or rather lowlighted, an awful day for the unit.

Pederson spoke of the team’s concerns on multiple facets of the game, “You focus on the highlights, but you definitely coach it all. That’s why days like today are so important with the guys in the building to be able to show the mistakes and make the corrections today before we hit the practice field again on Wednesday. You have to show the good, the bad and the ugly to the players. My job is to paint the picture. This is where we are, this is not who we want to be, and this is where we’re going. All that stuff is still right in front of us.”

Despite the embarrassing loss, the Jaguars sit tied for second in the division, behind the 2-1 Indianapolis Colts. This week the team heads to London for a British double-header, first facing the Atlanta Falcons before the Buffalo Bills visit next week.

When asked if this defeat will provide a spark, similar to that of the Detroit Lions last season, Pederson replied, “I think so, I hope so. I know that this is not who we are as a team, a lot of pride in the locker room and the coaching staff. 

"We understand that this is what’s on tape, this is what we’re putting out there. Atlanta and Buffalo and all of our opponents the rest of the season, this is what they’re seeing. We feel and know that we’re a better team, like I said, I think guys are just trying to make plays instead of just allowing the play to organically happen.

It’s important to remember that we are just three games into the season and that the team has certainly shown a lot of promise and talent early on this season. That said, each week we get farther into the NFL schedule and time is ever-fleeting. This coming week is as important as ever. Jacksonville simply can’t afford to welcome the Buffalo Bills across the pond with a 1-3 record. This is a “get right” week for the Jaguars.