Jaguars Coach Marrone: “We start, obviously, today.”

Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone spoke to the media on Monday, the first day of the regular season for his football team.

For Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone, Monday was back to business not only for himself but also his team. There are seven days that separate the Jaguars from their first regular season game of the season against the New York Giants.

In typical Marrone fashion, he preached there is still plenty to do in preparation for a team that like the Jaguars, has plenty to prove this season.

"“The good news is I know the injury report will start coming out Wednesday, but we’ll have all 53 players practicing, which is always a good start. We have a lot of work ahead of us this week,” Marrone said."

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The Jaguars come into this season as the hunted, not the hunter. They cannot expect to surprise anyone, especially a team with a veteran like Eli Manning under center. Executive Vice-President of Football Operations Tom Coughlin knows all too well about the Giants signal caller, having coached him to two Super Bowl titles.

Now, Coughlin watches from upstairs as Marrone and Blake Bortles try to mimic or surpass a season that saw Jacksonville win 10 games in 2017. When asked about the connection between Coughlin and his former team, Marrone said this week is like any other week where the team and organization are committed to getting better and winning football games.

"“It’s been normal this week. The same stuff that we did last year against all of our opponents are really the same things that we’re doing this year. We don’t have any insight,” he explained."

Coughlin is not the only coach on the Jaguars staff with experience in the Big Apple. Both offensive line coach Pat Flaherty and secondary coach Perry Fewell coached under Coughlin on the Giants staff.

"“They’ve been out of there for a while [Flaherty and Fewell] and the schematics have changed and things are different,” Marrone added. “Like how we pick the team, we just try to see what we have on tape and do the best job we can.”"

The Jaguars will be the first team in the regular season to get a look at Saquon Barkley. Jacksonville finished 21st in run defense last season. It’s a number that improved once the team traded for defensive tackle Marcell Dareus. The rookie is a special talent, according to Marrone and someone the defense must be aware of every time he is on the field in New Jersey.

"“There’s a lot of great players. He’s one of them. He’s a guy that, obviously, has all the qualities to be an outstanding player in this league for a long time, so we’ll have a challenge to try to stop him as well as a lot of other players. They have a good football team,” he said."

While the Jaguars prepare to stop the running game in New York, the matchup between Odell Beckham, Jr. and Jalen Ramsey is something everyone is aware of. It’s also an early test for Jacksonville’s secondary on a fast track.

"“He is obviously a great player and is part of 11 for them,” said Marrone. “Like I said before when you go out on the field, you’re trying to stop the 11 players on the opposing team. If you focus too much on one then someone else is going to wind up beating you.”"

In addition to talking about Jacksonville’s opponent this week, he also announced the team selected its captains for the upcoming season. On defense, Telvin Smith and Calais Campbell got the nod. On special teams, Lerentee McCray was selected. On offense Bortles, Brandon Linder and Leonard Fournette were voted by their teammates.