The Jacksonville Jaguars have a handful of roster holes but certainly have more than enough talent to go toe-to-toe with the best teams in the NFL, at least in theory. In practice, though, they're one of the worst clubs in the league, and that's because they lack an edge and discipline. Head coach Doug Pederson is aware of it and talked about it following the 19-14 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 16.
Pederson met with the local media after the game and said that physicality and effort aren't the reason the Jags have been losing games, pointing out that mistakes are the biggest thing holding them back this season.
"It's not for the lack of effort and physicality and all that the guys do play hard, but the mistakes,
penalties, things that just kind of held us back all season," Pederson said in his media availability session. "It's just coaches players, the frustrating part,
and until we get that corrected, there's gonna be a lot of lot of long days. We gotta get it fixed."
Later in the exchange, Pederson says that there could be some self-doubt when mistakes pile up and add all the losing becomes taxing at one point.
"When a bad play happens, or a penalty and sets you back a little bit, I think there's maybe a little bit where we are in our season.
I'm sure that creeps in. Guys are human. They're going to feel that. They're going to feel that emotion. That emotion. It's the mental toughness, right? It's the grind, it's the grit and determination. And the guys show it, and they have shown it, but
we just haven't been able to overcome some of those setbacks," Pederson said.
Pederson isn't wrong. By all accounts, the Jags have played hard and managed to keep up with some of the best teams in the league. However, they've failed to come through when it's time to deliver. And as the head coach pointed out, it isn't a lack of talent.
Even after losing Trevor Lawrence, Christian Kirk, Evan Engram, and Gabe Davis for the season, the Jags have more than enough playmakers on both sides of the ball to win games. The issue is that they don't have the mental toughness when things get difficult. That's on Pederson, who hasn't made the team grind the way and therefore lacks the grit that's evaded them this season.
Doug Pederson has proven he cannot fix the Jacksonville Jaguars
Earlier this year, Doug Pederson raised eyebrows when he said the Jacksonville Jaguars were in dire need of a culture change. What was egregious about his statement was that he was talking about it as if he had no control over it. Something similar happened in his exchange with the press corps after the loss to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Whatever quality the Jags are missing (grit, grind, mental toughness), Pederson has failed to inculcate them. What's worse is that he's aware of it, and that's precisely why he needs to go. Why would you want to keep around a coach who cannot fix whatever issues your team has?
The bottom line is that Doug Pederson's seat got even hotter after the loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. Time and time again, he's proven he's not fit to keep his job, and the Jacksonville Jaguars must take action into matters.