Throughout the regular season, the Jacksonville Jaguars have been inconsistent and undisciplined. On top of that, it looks like they've lacked stamina in recent weeks. If fatigue is truly an issue, there's only one man to blame: Doug Pederson.
One day after the 52-6 humiliation against the Chicago Bears, head coach Doug Pederson said that the team was tired, pointing out that they spent two weeks in London and hadn't yet enjoyed their BYE.
"They've been on the field a lot in the last four games there, I think it was right around 80 snaps on average, give or take a few plays," Pederson said when asked about whether the team was experiencing fatigue. "That's a lot in a row, consecutively, to be playing 11 straight games, two weeks in London. And look, I'm not making excuses for anything. I'm just kind of trying to paint a picture."
Pederson continued, "You add on top of that, we're not winning, we're not we're not executing, we're not winning games. So I think all of that from a team perspective, not just the defense, but a team perspective, the guys are tired. You guys are mentally and physically fatigued. This is a good time to step away take a break and recharge for the last six games."
Under Pederson, the Jaguars have had their BYE late in the season by design. He asks the schedule makers to push his team week off as late into the season as possible. This makes sense when you take into account that getting time off early in the year could be counterproductive. On the other hand, Jacksonville could have used a break after spending two weeks in England.
Then again, it's worth noting that the Jags also played two games in London last year and still managed to start 8-3, so fatigue hasn't been the sole reason they've only mustered two wins in 2022, but it's certainly played a role.
Doug Pederson's schedule strategy is one of the reasons the Jaguars must let him go
Head coach Doug Pederson has been rumored to be on the hot seat in light of the team's recent struggles. However, the Jacksonville Jaguars have yet to move on from him even though a report surfaced that they could if they were blown out against the Chicago Bears.
Perhaps the Jags will end up keeping Pederson in 2024. But if that's the case, they must move on from him in the offseason. After all, what he's doing is not working. To his credit, players haven't given up despite the fact that the head coach Doug Pederson lost the locker room.
Similarly, the head coach deserves credit for not pointing fingers at anyone. Having said that, Jacksonville has gone 3-14 dating back to Week 13 of the 2023 season, and ultimately, that's what matters. As a matter of fact, Pederson acknowledged that he could get his walking papers, noting that he would only focus on what he can control.
In the end, there are several reasons the Jaguars must move on from Doug Pederson. Not taking into account how tired the team would be at this point of the season is one of them.