Marrone, Jaguars Focusing On Game Against Atlanta

After a 14-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday, the Jacksonville Jaguars and head coach Doug Marrone now focus on playing the Atlanta Falcons on Saturday.

When Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone met with the media on Monday following his team’s 14-10 victory over Minnesota on Saturday, his message was like it always is – he wants to focus on this roster getting better.

Next up for Jacksonville is the Atlanta Falcons on Saturday night here in Jacksonville in the team’s third preseason game of the year. What Marrone stressed in his daily press conference is although Jacksonville won a tough-fought game against a Super Bowl contender, there is more to work on before the start of the regular season in three short weeks.

"“I’m just trying to do the best job I can today. Like I’ve said before, I don’t want to get pulled back there. There are lessons that you learn. You know how hard you worked. A lot of it is dealing with distractions and staying focused, being close as a team, trusting one another, but at the end of the day you still have to perform,” Marrone said when asked how difficult it is to consistently contend as a football team."

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The Jaguars defense played well against Minnesota, but there are some things on offense he and his staff know need adjusting. It starts with coaching and then it ends with players being able to apply what they learned through technique and changes in game plans.

"“The dynamics have switched, whether you have added one thing or another. I have these two balls that I use as a good example. They look the same. If you grabbed them you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference, but there is one element that is not in one of them. When you drop them, one bounces up and the other one hits the ground and stays [there]. The point is that if you are off just a little bit, it can truly change what happens.”"

Plenty has been done this offseason to keep the same pace as the team did last season at this time. It’s a formula players now know works. While there are still things the offense and defense may experiment with before the end of the preseason, the basis is in place for both sides of the ball to continue the same paths they have taken.

While the Falcons are the focus of this week, this is a team that is still not working on a “regular season” schedule just yet. There is still a “training camp” mentality until the end of the week when the players break camp. With that said, Marrone, the coaches, and the players still have goals to meet before the kickoff to the first game of the season at the New York Giants.

The Jaguars lost Brandon Linder during the game with a knee injury. Marrone said he is “sore” and did not practice on Monday. His status is still not known. Andrew Norwell and Jermey Parnell did not play in the game, so the team was shorthanded at kickoff. Having all three offensive linemen on Sunday is important given this is considered the “dress rehearsal” for the regular season.

Marrone said he still wants to build a foundation that helps this team win.

"“If you have it right and you are doing all the right things, all you are doing is giving yourself an opportunity to win games and that’s all we can do,” he said."

This week, the Jaguars get both Jalen Ramsey and Dante Fowler back, two players who were suspended for violating team rules last week. Marrone said he both were back and ready to go.