Jaguars LB Foyesade Oluokun: ‘We’re all fighter in this room’

Losing tastes like dog dirt and linebacker Foyesade Oluokun isn’t pleased that the Jacksonville Jaguars weren’t able to beat the Houston Texans in Week 5. However, he says that there should be now and sense of urgency around the Jags’ locker room.

Oluokun was one of Jacksonville’s bright spots in their 13-6 loss to Houston. The veteran finished the game with eight total tackles, two passes defensed, and a sack. On the other hand, he acknowledges that he made a few mistakes that ended up affecting his team.

“It’s a team loss whenever you lose, Oluokun said via 1010 XL. “A team loss, I know missed some tackles. I’m really mad about it… but get back, focus on practice, and get better. I think we’re a talented team”.

Oluokun went on to say that the team has no choice but to turn things around now that their back is against the wall.

“You lose is better because now it’s like your back’s against the wall, what are you doing? We’re all fighters in this organization, we’re all fighters in this room, so when you lose, you heighten awareness. We want to get this thing right as soon as possible because it’s still early season but we want to get in the right position going into the later parts of the season. We got the men in the room to do it for sure” Oluokun said. Here’s his exchange with the media following the loss.

The Jaguars must operate with heightened awareness following the loss

A sixth-round pick by the Atlanta Falcons in the 2018 draft, Oluokun signed a three-year $45 million deal with the Jags in free agency and quickly established himself as a locker room leader. This led him to be named team captain by his teammates before the start of the regular season.

Oluokun logged 16 tackles against the Philadelphia Eagles but he also missed five. He bounce-back nicely against the Texans but it wasn’t enough to earn a win. Trevor Lawrence’s play hurt the team but so did outside linebacker Travon Walker’s roughing-the-passer penalty that was crucial in Houston’s touchdown drive.

While Walker’s mistake ended up being costly, Oluokun says he nor his teammates will hold it against him.

“He knows what he did, and he’s a good kid”, Oluokun said. “So he knows what he did and nothing to harp on… I’m not gonna beat him down for it like we all hold each other accountable. I’m not going to be mad at him for playing hard. I want to take the edge off him and just play smarter in that situation. I can’t hold him back like that”.

Oluokun is doing precisely what any good leader would do. He doesn’t gain anything by scolding Walker. As he said, they all must hold each other accountable but this should be a learning experience for everyone in the Jaguars’ locker room.

The Jags learned earlier this year how it feels to win in back-to-back weeks. They now know what it feels like to lose in consecutive games. As Oluokun alluded, this team has enough talent on both sides of the ball (and special teams) to turn things around. It’s up to them to wake up and operate with heightened awareness.