4 Jacksonville Jaguars who will keep fostering a positive culture in 2023

No. 1 Jaguars member who will foster a positive culture: Doug Pederson, HC

There are many reasons Jacksonville is one of the hottest teams in the league ahead of the 2023 season but Doug Pederson is without a doubt the biggest reason for their success last year. Urban Meyer left the Jags in worse shape than when he took over and the organization came close to hiring Byron Leftwich to clean his mess. Ultimately, a disagreement related to the front office led to Leftwich withdrawing his name from consideration and the Jaguars went with Pederson.

Looking back, the Jaguars should feel great about passing on Leftwich as Pederson quickly showed he was the right man for the job. You will often hear that football is more than knowing Xs and Os, which is why so many good coordinators fail once they're given the reins.

Instead of trying to install his system or imposing his presence, Pederson recognized that he was going to need to gain his player's trust if he wanted the Jags to heal. After all, Meyer had fostered an environment of fear and mistrust during his short stint.

Players responded quickly and bought into what Pederson was selling. Because without trust, he wasn't going to be able to put them in a position to succeed. The bottom line is that Pederson gets it. He knows there's not a one-size-fits-all way to talk to his players and needs to approach all of them in a different way.

Pederson can be strict and demanding with a few. He needs to take it easy with others but each time, he knows what buttons he needs to press and that's why he will once again get the Jaguars to exceed expectations in 2023.

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