Doug Pederson's latest remarks won't get Jaguars fans excited about 2024 finish

The Jacksonville Jaguars were reportedly going to undergo significant changes if they were embarrassed against the Chicago Bears in Week 11. They were humiliated, but the Bye came and went, and head coach Doug Pederson stayed put. Having enough time to rest, he says the Jags regrouped during the week off but he won't be revealing what kind of tweaks he made. The truth is that his remarks don't inspire much confidence.

Pederson said before the Bye that he could consider making changes. When pressed about it in his exchange with the local media ahead of Week 13, he said that he did make some adjustments but refused to elaborate further.

"Nothing that I'll share at this time," Pederson told the press corps Monday. "I personally think that just to be a little bit more clear on that, it's sort of, I say that, to say this, that a lot of these are in-house, and then these are things that we focus on as a staff and as a team. And I just don't think they need to be in the open right now."

However you look at it, that's not a great look. Pederson could've given fans a reason for optimism, but his lack of transparency makes you wonder if he did indeed make any changes. Think about it, he could have talked about tweaks in the scheme or giving more playing time to younger players. However, his attempt at accountability came up short.

Maybe if the Jaguars were winning, Pederson wouldn't be questioned as much, but they aren't. It makes you wonder why he tries to be so secretive about things that on the surface don't seem like a big deal.

For instance, the head coach refused to announce whether he or offensive coordinator Press Taylor would be calling plays in 2024. It wasn't until he was pressed about it a handful of games into the season that he revealed it was his protegee. Here's Pederson's full exchange with the local media.

Jaguars fans shouldn't get hyped up based on Doug Pederson's discouraging remarks

You would think that Doug Pederson would sound re-energized coming off the Bye, but he sounds like someone who's just going through the motions and just wants to be done with the season. To his credit, he's steering away from pointing fingers throughout the year, but other than that, fans of the Jacksonville Jaguars shouldn't expect too much in the upcoming weeks.

Granted, the Jags would have a shot at making the playoffs if they run the table, but based on how they've played, and listening to Pederson's latest remarks, do you think they'll realistically pull it off?

Now, Pederson's secretive approach won't be in doubt if Jacksonville does make a playoff push, but if it comes up short, he'll be under scrutiny. One thing working in his favor is that Trevor Lawrence is back at practice, and he'll be throwing.

Lawrence is dealing with a shoulder sprain that forced him to sit out the two games prior to the Bye. During his absence, Mac Jones showed just how dreadful the Jags are without him. If No. 16 is healthy enough to go against the Houston Texans in Week 13, maybe Jacksonville does stand a chance, a slim one, but a chance nonetheless.

Either way, the last thing Jaguars fans want is to get their hopes too high only to be disappointed. Then again, if the team keeps losing, perhaps Doug Pederson will get the boot, and that would give them a glimmer of optimism in what's otherwise been an underwhelming season.

More Jaguars analysis here: