Jaguars believe rookie RB Tank Bigsby can learn from 'failure' vs. Colts

Rookie running back Tank Bigsby scored a touchdown for the Jacksonville Jaguars in the season opener. However, he was also responsible for a couple blunders that helped the Indianapolis Colts hang around longer than they should've. The Jags ultimately won 31-21 but the margin could've been bigger if not for Bigsby's miscues. The good news is that the team's trust in the first-year players hasn't wavered. In fact, head coach Doug Pederson believes he'll be better because of his mistakes.

Pederson met with the local media Monday and said that players will somethings learn through failure when discussing Bigsby's performance in his regular-season debut.

"You trust them, you put them out there. That's how they learn, right?" Pederson said. "He's not going to grow unless he learns, and sometimes you have to learn through failure and through mistakes and making those errors."

"Tank's hard on himself. He's a guy that's gonna take this game, the good and the bad. He's gonna learn from it. And he'll be better this week for it. As a staff, we continue to just, we've got to trust him, you know, and we're gonna continue to put him back out there and he'll be better for it," Pederson said.

Against the Colts, Bigsby failed to secure a pass that ended in the hands of cornerback Tony Brown. Later in the game, he dropped a live ball that was scooped by defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, who scooped it and took it to the house.

Other coaches would've probably sent Bigsby to the sidelines for the remainder of the game. Instead, the coaching staff plugged him back into the lineup in the fourth quarter. They had him rush in back-to-back plays in the end zone and he scored in the second attempt to give Jacksonville a 24-21 lead.

The Jaguars are taking the right approach with rookie Tank Bigsby

All things considered, the Jags are right to keep giving Tank Bigsby chances. Players are bound to make mistakes, especially those who are dipping their toes into the pros, like Bigsby. By giving players another chance, Jacksonville is letting them know that making mistakes isn't the end of the world. You take them in stride and move on to the next play. That's the nature of football.

In Bigsby's case, the Jaguars have a power back that can churn out the tough yards. A third-round pick in this year's draft, he was a standout in training camp and later had a productive preseason, toting the rock 28 times for 159 yards (5.7 yards-per-carry average). His pro debut didn't probably go the way he wanted but the good news is that one game won't define his career. If he goes on to become a difference-maker for Jacksonville, everyone will shrug off the mistakes he made in the opener.

The bottom line is that the Jaguars believe Tank Bigsby will learn from his mistakes and become a better player. He'll get a chance to show he's improved against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2.

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