Last week I did a post which was perceived as guarded optimism by some and just flat out inconsistent negativity by others. Now I must reflect and ask myself…is 8-8 truly feasible?

By the numbers, it’s still possible. It is only feasible if the Jaguars stop playing like they did this past Sunday which by now seems to be highly unlikely.

Calvin Johnson abused Derek Cox all day long to the tune of 129 receiving yards. George Selvie notched a sack, but other than that Stafford seemed to be very comfortable in the pocket.

Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-US PRESSWIRE It really did not matter as the Lions ran all over the defense with Mikel Leshoure racking up 3 TDs. Joique Bell ran in the last one just to be really mean.

Justin Blackmon had his first touchdown grab of the season. It was good to see him get into the end zone. Cecil Shorts had a serviceable 56 yards receiving, and Laurent Robinson even had 6 grabs for 41 yards. Gabbert threw for 220 yards, and two touchdowns which occurred in the 4th quarter. They were pretty much garbage time cosmetic touchdowns that the opposing defense really doesn’t care to stop because their offense is destroying you…with Mikel Leshoure and Joique Bell. Our run game has disappeared which is a major concern. I was really hoping Jennings would look better than this.

Overall it was just another uninspired, stale performance where the game was never in question. There seemed to be zero urgency among the offense. Once again we had a very difficult time pushing the ball downfield. So what exactly needs to happen here?

This team needs to learn how to play with consistency. Consistency takes time to develop. After all, it’s only week 9 with just a little over half of the season having already been played.

Seeing so many games like this at home in 2012…it can become very tiring. You can grind out stats all day and try to make sense of it all, but in reality we’re simply not playing solid, consistent, fundamental football.

The season is pretty much over if the Jacksonville Jaguars keep this up. It might be high time to stop looking at wins and losses and start evaluating individual players and how they do on the field. Which players should stay? Which players should go?

Mandatory Credit: Thomas J. Russo-US PRESSWIRE

This Thursday night the Jags play host to red hot Andrew Luck and the upstart Indianapolis Colts. It would mean a lot to the fan base to sweep the rookie quarterback, and when it comes to division games all bets are off. The experts will surely be picking the Colts to completely demolish the Jaguars and with good reason.

It would be incredible to notch our first home win of the season on a national stage, upsetting the first overall pick in this year’s draft and sweeping our division foes. One can only hope that they play with more intensity than they did last week…because my “8-8″ theory is making me look pretty rotten.

-David R. Johns

LeShoure came into the Jags game with a bit more of a chip on his shoulder than super star Johnson.  LeShoure had only 305 yards coming into Sunday’s game.  His one touchdown on the season was tripled against the Jaguars as he found the endzone three times.  LeShoure wasn’t even a receiving threat and was still able to put up 70 yards and threaten the defense whenever he was on the field.

Whether you love watching the other team trounce your beloved favorite team or you just like watching super good play out of strong players LeShoure and Johnson delivered.  For those with either man on your fantasy team, congrats.  For those of us who watched them play how they wanted with very little resistance from the Jaguars Defense, I’m very sorry.

It’s a rough time for Jaguars fans, but it’s tough to deny that both players found ways to capitalize against a defense that had some momentum coming into the game.

- Luke N. Sims

Feel free to leave comments on here or visit us at Facebook or Twitter!

You can also find me on Twitter @LukeNSims

Mikel LeShoure had a very big day against the Jaguars.  He punished the team after two stronger defensive showings.  Source: Melina Vastola-US PRESSWIRE

The story of the day was the dominant play of the Lions offense.  Matthew Stafford looked red hot for the second straight game going 22/33 for 285 yards.  As a result, Calvin Johnson got back on track with a seven catch, 129 yard game.  Interestingly, all of Detroit’s touchdowns came on the ground.  Mikel LeShoure had three touchdown runs before halftime and Joique Bell added another.  Combined, the two backs had 143 yards.

The Lions defense also played a tough game without their starting safeties.  They limited the Jaguars offense throughout the game and held them to zero points until eight minutes left in the fourth quarter.  With only one sack, the secondary took advantage of missed catches by the Jaguars to force two Blaine Gabbert interceptions.

The Jaguars offense misfired despite a stronger statistical day from Gabbert.  Gabbert went 27/38 for 220 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.  Both interceptions were throws that should have been caught by Jaguars receivers and both touchdowns came in garbage time with the game well out of reach.  Cecil Shorts continued to be a productive target for Gabbert with three catches for a team-high 56 receiving yards.  Laurent Robinson also had an impact in his return after three weeks off with six catches for 41 yards.  Special teams returner Michael Spurlock and Justin Blackmon were the targets of Gabbert’s two touchdown passes.

The Jaguars defense could do little to stop the Lions’ offense as they recorded only one sack and failed to intercept Stafford.  The main highlight for the Jags was probably punter Bryan Anger’s three punts (of four) within the opponent’s 20 yard line.  Other than that it was a pretty brutal game for the home crowd to watch.

Being blown out at home yet again hurts the Jaguars much more than the close loss in Lambeau last week.

- Luke N. Sims

Feel free to leave comments on here or visit us at Facebook or Twitter!

You can also find me on Twitter @LukeNSims