Doug Pederson keeps fighting for his job with Jaguars' win vs. Titans

Nobody would have batted an eye if the Jacksonville Jaguars had lost to the Tennessee Titans in Week 17. But even without much to play for, they showed up and swept their division foes. While the win will move the team away from a top-3 pick in next year's draft, it will give them confidence going into the offseason. Moreover, it strengthens Doug Pederson's case to remain in the team beyond 2024.

With a win over the Titans, Jacksonville its division foes for only the second time in nearly 20 years. They achieved the feat in 2022, Pederson's first year at the helm. Before that, you would have to go back to the distant year of 2005 to find another instance of the Jags beating the Titans twice in a season.

What's impressive about the win is that the weather was a factor throughout the game but the Jags didn't let the rain affect them.

Mac Jones, as predicted, had arguably his best outing of the season, going 15-of-22 for 174 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Of course, the fourth-year quarterback delivered because his receivers came through.

Parker Washington and Brian Thomas Jr. combined for 122 yards and two touchdowns on 10 receptions. The former keeps making his case for a bigger role in 2022 and the latter tied Randy Moss for the most games with a touchdown by a rookie.

The defense also did its part, holding the Titans to 13 points and spoiling their comeback attempt in the fourth quarter. Josh Hines-Allen, Maason Smith, and Travon Walker all had sacks for Jacksonville. Similarly, linebacker Devin Lloyd logged an interception off a deflected pass.

Surprisingly, the Titans had more first downs (23) than Jacksonville (17), but it wasn't enough to win because the Jaguars played a relatively sound game.

The Jaguars must dismiss Doug Pederson even after sweeping the Titans

The Jacksonville Jaguars hurt their draft position with a win over the Tennessee Titans, but most definitely gives them and their fans a reason to smile in a season that didn't go according to plans. Moreover, it will make things interesting ahead of Black Monday.

The Jags are expected to fire Doug Pederson and Trent Baalke, but a win late in the season could show that the head coach hasn't lost the locker room and has kept the team focused in spite of all the losing. All things considered, that's a rather compelling argument.

On the other hand, you could make the case that beating the Titans is too little too late. If the Jaguars were that good, or at least competent, why did Pederson wait until the end of the season for this kind of performance? In his defense, Jacksonville lost several key players throughout the year, including Trevor Lawrence, Christian Kirk, and Evan Engram. Having said, that, the Jags weren't particularly good when all of them were healthy, so that argument may not fly.

Regardless of the decision owner Shad Khan ends up making, the Jacksonville Jaguars at least gave fans a reason for optimism when they beat the Tennessee Titans. In the finale, they'll get a chance to also sweep the Indianapolis Colts.

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