00:00:00
Speaker 1: Time for our countdown to kick off interviews for Week eleven, JP Shadwick with you ahead of the Chargers Jaguars match up, delivered by CSX. We start this week with CBS Sports Senior writer Pete Prisco, each week visiting with Mike Dempse.
00:00:14
Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's something I've been hoping and preaching he needs to do for a while. I just think he plays better when he turns it loose. And it's almost like these he's not alone in this league anymore, Mike. I mean, you look at the completion percentages around the league. They're higher than they've ever been, in large part because people don't turn it loose. They're ready to take the checkdown. And he's guilty of that. We've seen it many, many, many times this season where he's passed on the big throw down the field to take the easy throw and so turn it loose, go have fun. And I said this on Monday, I said, what he should do is what they should do is put on the tape of the second half of the game against the last time he played the Chargers, you know, in the playoffs, and say, hey, look at this, this is when you turned it loose because you had to turn it loose or go play like that, and I think they'll ultimately get to that. The problem is that, you know, the weapons down the field haven't exactly been playing at a great level either.
00:01:04
Speaker 3: That's a great way to look at it, right, Like, do you think any NFL coach has ever gone into a game telling us quarterback, hey, let's approach just like we're down seventeen, right, Like, let's go out and play like your hair's on fire. I think they're more conservative by nature, but you're right somehow you got to get yourself in that mindset that it's out there for me and I just have to go take it.
00:01:22
Speaker 2: Yeah, And you know, we always have the old adage it's built in still from way back in yesteryear. If you throw the football, three things can happen in two of them are bad. Right, that's not the case. I mean you can also you know, you run the ball and you have a long time consuming drive and you end up getting a field goal. Is that a better situation than getting a seventy yard touchdown pass down the sideline?
00:01:43
Speaker 4: No?
00:01:43
Speaker 2: Absolutely not. And I think we've gotten too caught up in this. You know, all these defenses play off coverage now, and so everybody's afraid to take the big shot. Well, there's ways to beat those the coverages with the big shot. You just got to figure it out. I don't think the offensive coaches have been aggressive and enough, aggressive enough, not just in Jacksonville, but every taking their shots down the field.
00:02:02
Speaker 3: Pete, you've been around covering this league for a long time as well as anybody. And when teams get to Tuesday, they start talking about how we got to look ahead the next week, we can't let it impact us. How easy is that to do or how difficult in this circumstance where you do blow a nineteen point lead and for the first time in franchise history, and you lose in the fourth quarter in the fashion they did. How well positioned is this Jaguar team mentally to bounce back?
00:02:26
Speaker 2: In your opinion, Well, it's going to test Liam Cone again. I mean, and he's done a nice job of handling himself during the week. But I'm a big believer in once you get out on the field and get hit in the mouth the next week, that game's gone. Now you might carry it over into the Wednesday and you're thinking about it and maybe even in a Thursday. But then I think you put it behind you and you realize what you have to do, and then when you get out of the field and the guy across from you puts a four ONM in your mouth, you're not going to sit there and say, oh, well, what happened last week? Maybe I'm not reacting to test them up. So I think that stuff kind of gets overrated because it is a week to week league, and I think guys do a great job of putting it behind them.
00:03:02
Speaker 3: A typical team would look at the charges and go, Wow, they're playing without their starting tackles, your interior, the offensive line has had issues. We are going to feast in the pass rush. But it's a very similar situation to what Houston had last week. Are the Jags going to be able to impact Justin Herbert with their pass rush today?
00:03:20
Speaker 4: Well?
00:03:20
Speaker 2: They better, And you know we saw that last week. That's a bad offensive line and they didn't get much pressure. And it's a lot of money invested in that defensive line, a lot of assets invested in that defensive line to not get pressure. So I mean, if I were on that team right now, I would be calling out the pass rushers I'd call out Josh heinz Allen and he kind of did. This week, Liam Cohen, I'd call out Trayvon Walker. I mean, your first overall pick and you don't do anything. And I know he had to hand injury, but you've got to be more aggressive getting up the field. You know, even the fact where he got called back for the personal foul, the guy tried to cut them. It wasn't like he won tried to cut him and miss them. And so I think this is a week they have to be able to pressure justin Herbert, it's going to be a long day, Pete.
00:04:00
Speaker 3: For many years we've looked at this team and said, man, why can't they cover a tight end? And over the last few weeks it's kind of been that case. Again. I know they have a bunch of injuries in the secondary. You're not getting pressure, so you know, guys have to cover longer. But a Rondee Gatson junior, maybe not a household name, very good young player in his rookie season making an impact. How dangerous is he to the Jaguars defense today?
00:04:24
Speaker 2: Well, he's definitely dangerous because he's you know, he's a formal wide receiver's blown up to a tight end. So he gives you mismatchup problems. And you know, we thought last week we saw the touchdown in the back of the end zone to the tight end and how did that happen? Well, he had a week and a day to throw the football. I mean, if you're going to have a week in a day to throw the football, you're going to beat those those safeties. And it's a little bit of a you know, liability in that defense. Winger can't run with anybody and that's a problem, and Johnson blows assignments. That's a problem. So you have two safeties that you can't rely on. And I think when you want to try and get aggressive and blitz, you're going to leave those safeties in some one on one situations and that's problematic. So it's like you're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't. And it's tough to call defense when you don't have a great pass rush and you have safeties who give up big plays.
00:05:10
Speaker 3: All right, all that being said, how do you see it going today?
00:05:12
Speaker 2: I think the Chargers win the game. I just they could prove me wrong by rushing the passer. But if you don't rush justin Herbert, He's gonna sit back and carve you to shreds. And I just think what we saw from the Chargers defense last week was impressive. I know it's a short, you know, short turnaround for them on the East Coast, but I just think Herbert's going to do enough to win the game.
00:05:31
Speaker 1: I caught up with CBS sports analyst Adam Marcalletto Friday first overall ten thousand foot view of Liam Cohen's first half season as a head coach at five and four.
00:05:42
Speaker 5: Well, listen, I've always been impressed by Liam. I had an opportunity twice last year when he was the offensive coordinator at Tampa Bay to just get a feel for him. And right off the bat, you know, it strikes me about him and what I love about him. And you hear this so often with offensive guys. He's not the offensive genius or guru. It's not about his scheme and not about how smart he is, even though he is smart and has a good scheme, but it's about football principles and he's just a really good football teacher, right and he really does understand and this is a cliche, but he does understand that it's about players, not plays, And to me, that is the hallmark.
00:06:23
Speaker 6: Of any good coach.
00:06:24
Speaker 5: You know, it's his first year in the National Football League, he's a head coach.
00:06:27
Speaker 6: He's learning. But I really do like his makeup.
00:06:30
Speaker 5: I love his leadership style, and I do love that he's a head coach.
00:06:34
Speaker 6: But he's a teacher.
00:06:34
Speaker 1: First, Jaguars defense giving up thirty three points a game since Week seven.
00:06:40
Speaker 7: They've got some injuries in the back end of the defense.
00:06:42
Speaker 1: Right now, they're struggling through the pass rush, his issues getting home tied for the few of sacks in the NFL. And this week they face Justin Herbert, who has no issues with pressure. Even when he is pressured, he seems to perform. Well, how do you affect Justin Herbert and this Chargers offense today?
00:07:00
Speaker 5: Listen, that's a great question, because you know, I've been in this business a long time, and I've been a player, and I've been a part of this league. And usually when we go into a game and one of our biggest graphics is this is the ninth or tenth offensive line combination that they've had this year. That normally means that they're not a good football team, no matter who's playing quarterback, and it's a disaster, right, And so just the fact that their offensive line is in shambles and they're down their tackles and they've given up all those pressures and all those hits and they're still where they are, you know, at seven and three, and they're still a legit top five offense and they've been able to manage it. To me, really really says a lot. Yes they're giving up a lot of pressure, Yes they're giving up a lot of hits, but Justin Herbert has been able to excel and thrive. And you know when I talked to their coaching staff and I talked to Greg Roman, and there's no doubt that they go into every game conscious of the pressure, conscious of the hits, and they know maybe they're not going to be as explosive is that, or dynamic as they could be. They could be the number one passing offense in the NFL, but they really want him to be efficient and get rid of the football because a healthy Justin Herbert is better than one that's sitting on the bench. But it really is a testament to Herbert their coaching staff that they found a way to win games despite catastrophic injuries to really the most important position group on offense.
00:08:27
Speaker 1: Now to the other quarterback in this game, certainly for the Jaguars, Trevor Lawrence, and you know, it's a third offense for him. We're halfway through his first season in this offense, and there's conversation this week with the head coach about telling him to let it rip a little bit more, maybe a little hesitancy in pushing it down the field. What's your view outside looking in of Trevor so far?
00:08:51
Speaker 6: Well, listen, I think that.
00:08:54
Speaker 5: With high expectations comes a high level of scrutiny. And if you are that guy, that quarterback, and you're paid as that guy, there's no question that you have to play better. And you know, there's a lot of quarterbacks that have had to learn different systems, and you know, I think that the scrutiny is.
00:09:16
Speaker 6: Correct.
00:09:17
Speaker 5: There should be a higher standard and we should look at these quarterbacks with a higher standard.
00:09:21
Speaker 6: I will say this, as far as.
00:09:23
Speaker 5: Letting it rip goes, to me, the biggest hurdle that any player, regardless of position, has to learn is that concept. Because if you are second guessing yourself, no matter what you play. If you're a linebacker, on.
00:09:37
Speaker 6: Your reads or whatever it is, you just can't play. Guys are too good. You need to be confident in what you see. You have to be decisive in what you see.
00:09:45
Speaker 5: And it's kind of counterintuitive, but you can't play with fear of the result.
00:09:53
Speaker 6: You really do have to be in a.
00:09:55
Speaker 5: Place where you're not consciously making decisions, but you're in thinks. You're just telling you that it's there and you have to trust it. If you never learn to trust it and you're always second guessing, you never know what you're capable of, and so in those moments when there is maybe that little bit of indecision, you're not going to be able to perform.
00:10:14
Speaker 6: So I just think it's a lesson.
00:10:16
Speaker 5: Especially if you have some built in scars and you've made some mistakes.
00:10:20
Speaker 6: You know that ability to get rid of those and just be.
00:10:22
Speaker 5: Able to go out there and play and trust what you see is to me one of the biggest.
00:10:28
Speaker 6: Priorities of any player.
00:10:30
Speaker 5: So quarterback you have to make more decisions, you know, and there's a lot of responsibility, but that's why they pay those.
00:10:37
Speaker 7: Guys no doubt, and then you've got to make decisions and plays against Derwin James and this Chargers defense today, Let's just touch on James on the back end and they're moving them all over the place.
00:10:50
Speaker 6: He's done it for a long time at a high level he has.
00:10:52
Speaker 5: He's done it in a number of different defensive systems as well.
00:10:57
Speaker 6: What I love about Derwin James is it's hard to be good at everything.
00:11:04
Speaker 5: You know, most there's very few players that are good at everything. Most players have a special trait. They do something very well, and I think Pete Carroll used to call it. They're uniquely talented in some way, shape or form. And a lot of times when you try to be everything.
00:11:19
Speaker 6: You never are good at anything, right.
00:11:21
Speaker 5: But for Derwin James, he's a big safety who really you know, early in his career under Gus Bradley, really excelled in the box, really was a great box safety, was able to blitz, and then he started moving around, and then they started playing him at nickel and they played him at free safety. He truly is one of the guys that can do it all in affect the game. It's not a situation where oh James is in the deep middle, let's go attack him here. You know, we got him out of position or he's in the slot. This year, jesse Mentor is blitzing him more than he's ever blitzed before. And to me, even though he can do everything, that's where at its best. I think when you see Derwin James in the box or in the slot, you have to be aware because he has that ability to make plays and he's just an excellent tackler.
00:12:07
Speaker 6: They're doing a great job with that secondary in general.
00:12:09
Speaker 1: Brian Sexton this week with Jaguars kicker Cam.
00:12:12
Speaker 8: Little, I mean, you can never really say that there's a line that's too far, because if you say that, then another guy is gonna go out there and hit it. But I mean, you've seen some guys hit even in the offseason when some guys are on the league are just hitting their hitting seventy seventy five, like the guys that have the big legs, like the Aubrey's of the world debates, those guys are hitting seventy plush yarders in training and so I mean, you saw Aubrey on what was that Monday night football hit one from sixty eight that could have probably been good for seventy three seventy four. So there's there's definitely guys that can touch that limit.
00:12:40
Speaker 1: Yeah, for sure.
00:12:41
Speaker 9: Do you ever stand back there and think that is a long way away? Because I went and stood on the field after you hit it and thought, man, that's a long way away.
00:12:48
Speaker 8: Yeah, in the in the game preseason game against Pittsburgh, that was a long one. That was the first kick I've really like stood behind and been like, holy cow, this is seventy yards away from the uprights. But most of the time when you go out there, you just you don't You're peripheral and add to the fans and the everything that's around you, like the line in front of you, you can't really like tell that it's that far because you're just so dialed in on the spot and the kick.
00:13:12
Speaker 9: How much of your preparation is on the mental side.
00:13:14
Speaker 8: Oh, I think that's probably what separates an NFL kicker from a lot of you know, college guys that that jump mentally knowing you have to do it not only every time, but seventeen games throughout the season. You know, It's like golf. Golf is a mentally taxing game, and your mind can try and play tricks on you sometimes. But yeah, I think mental preparation probably takes up about eighty percent of my you know ability, twenty percent is talent and you know, hard work and technique and all that stuff. But a lot of guys can kick a ball sixty yards and in, but you know, can't do it every time because mentally they're thinking about things in their backswing. So I think mentally the mental game is a big side of kicking for sure.
00:13:55
Speaker 9: Physically, how much of it is just your genetics and how much of it is the actual art of preparing.
00:14:00
Speaker 8: Yeah, I think preparation is I've always been a big believer that like preparation throughout the week leads to success. I think when I have, you know, my best weeks of practice and know when I'm hitting the ball well, and I'm not thinking that's when I usually go out there and play the best. But even I've had to learn throughout my NFL career, if you don't have and even in college career, like if you don't have a good week of practice, you can't on the flip side, you can't let that affect your game because at the end of the day, we play games on Sundays, we don't practice to you know, go out there and you know, the practice isn't the game. The game is the game. So yeah, I think preparation is a big reason why I do have confidence in leading up to success.
00:14:33
Speaker 4: Yeah, who's your caddy?
00:14:34
Speaker 9: You know that guy that that's out there with you deciding, you know, this is the mark today, here's the wind and the way that it's coming across the field. Who is it that you consult with?
00:14:43
Speaker 4: Yeah?
00:14:43
Speaker 8: I think Heath is a good Heath and Logan are both really good assets for that. Heath has been around the league for so many years now, not only as a player but as as a coordinator, and so he's you know, played with great kickers that have had long careers and obviously he coached Tyler Bass and Buffalo and you know a lot of good kickers here and so so he kind of knows my leg and kind of gauges that based on the wind and stuff like that. And then obviously Logan's played here for what is see in his ninth year here now, so he knows the win in this stadium, he knows the wind all around everywhere. So both those guys are great assets for me.
00:15:13
Speaker 9: And why do you suppose it is now all of a sudden, the guys are just nailing it past sixty five. I can remember in nineteen ninety eight when Jason Elam kicked the first record setting field goal in Denver against the Jaguars, and since then it's just been record after record after record.
00:15:29
Speaker 4: Why is that happening?
00:15:30
Speaker 8: I just think you think about golf swing and the evolution of the golf swing, and people will be able to hit it so far now they're starting to learn how to waste to kick the ball farther. Not only that, but like the operations are just so good now. I mean you look at ours so good when like you look at the sixty eight, all Ross put it directly over the spot. All Logan had to do is just sit it down, laces out, and we're going out there and we're making it.
00:15:51
Speaker 10: And so.
00:15:53
Speaker 8: Not only the technique and you know, the ability is evolutionizing, but the operation is so good now to where guys just have to go out there and worry about kicking. And that's the beauty of you know, being here is all I gotta do is just go worry about kicking the ball.
00:16:05
Speaker 6: I don't got to worry about my operation at all.
00:16:06
Speaker 9: Let's just wrap it up with this going into the stretch run of the season. You've kicked a sixty eight yard field goal, You've kicked one that sent it into overtime. We've had long returns by reserve wide receivers to set up plays, and we've had Parker Washington with a couple special teams. Seems to be hitting its stride. It's important time of the year.
00:16:23
Speaker 8: Yeah, I think that kind of credits Heath and just the kind of guys first of all, credits Heath, but not only Heath, but the guys in that room very meticulous about you know, going into practice week, and you know that's a big emphasis and a big, big part of the big.
00:16:37
Speaker 4: Part of the game.
00:16:38
Speaker 8: You know, it's the third phase of the game besides offices, defense, and whenever we can go out there and make an impact. You know, with those guys in the room that take their job really seriously on special teams, it can be a special thing. So it's really cool to know that we have, you know, guys like you know Ross and Logan that have been here for six to nine years, say Ros six or seven and Logan eight or nine, that are kind of leading that room and they know that the standard is a standard. We're can drop alow that standard. So it's really cool to you know, be a part of something that matters because you know, special teams in you know, high school and college may not matter to a lot of teams, you know they play the two phases, but here it's a it's a big part of it.
00:17:10
Speaker 1: And continuing the special teams theme, Brian Sexton with teams coordinator Heath.
00:17:14
Speaker 10: Farewell, Yeah, i mean, these kickers keep getting better every year. It's it's so impressive, how how talented they are, the work they put in, it's it's unbelievable. Cam we see every day. You know, he's one of the hardest workers on this team. Uh, and so you see the results. You know, we've seen him do it in practice. So it's really cool to kind of actually to put it to a to a game, to kind of for a display for everybody in the stadium and the and the TV to see, to witness what we see all the time.
00:17:38
Speaker 9: You're kind of his caddy right him in the caddy you kind of know what the wind is doing and and and and where his spot is on the field. How do you how do you calculate that when when you're on the field in the pre game.
00:17:49
Speaker 10: I mean, I think just knowing your guy. I think that's part of his knowing your guy and then getting a feel how he's feeling on game day, what the wind is like, you know, and that's it's a feel thing on game and so him and I have great conversations, and it's you know, it starts all week of how he's feeling, and then it continues throughout warm ups and throughout the games. You know, I have to check in with him as that win changes, maybe in the fourth quarter or what does that change to his line? So him and are in constant communication of what I'm seeing, what I'm feeling, and he's doing the same. And so between the two of us, we usually come up with those lines, and you know, it's funny how it works out. It seems like what our numbers are pretty much almost exactly every time. We just have a good relationship and feel for each other. I know how he's feeling. I could feel him, you know, I think he can understand where I'm coming from. And so it's amazing how accurate we are on those lines. And we trust him. And that's the biggest thing is when he tells us the line or we talk to a line. We're sending him out there with it, with the with the thought he's gonna make it, and we know he's gonna make it.
00:18:48
Speaker 9: Tell you about your return game. Last two games, right, you get the long one against the Raiders on the kickoff that was very important to you, and of course Parker sets the franchise record with his third career putt return. Tell me about your return game.
00:19:00
Speaker 10: I mean, our returners are unbelievable. You know we have Obviously, Parker's been fantastic. His ability to change directions make people miss is spectacular. And I think the guy's blocking, it's it's it's really cool to kind of see where they've come from, you know, week one or week two to where they are now and just blocking for him. They're unbelievable. And then, like I said, Bagel, la Quint's been back there, We've had you know, a bunch of guy we've rotated through. You know, Diami's been back there. So we've rotated through a bunch of returners and they've all kind of gave us a different look and different perspective. Uh, and they've all been great. So it's been really cool to kind of work with these guys. But you can feel anytime Parker gets the ball, and you know, you talk to the guys that are out there on the field, they they believe and they believe anytime we get those pump returns there's a chance to score. So you could feel that that, you know, that emotion, and even the sideline kind of stands up like wait, that something's good about to happen. So it's a cool thing to be a part of. I think the guys are really embracing the return game and like I said, I'm glad to be a part of it.
00:20:03
Speaker 1: And we wrapped the week, of course with pride of the Jaguars running back Fred Taylor. The Jags coming off a really disappointing loss down in Houston last week. Fred nineteen point lead, blowing the largest in franchise history. But hey, guess what, there's still the seventh seed. There's a lot of important football left here. You got to clean some things up though, before you move forward.
00:20:24
Speaker 11: Yeah, that's what it's all about, JP, you know, making sure you are operating under a high efficiency mindset, high efficiency thought process. That's the players, the coaches, everyone alike. I remember at the end of the game last week, Coach Cohen, he made a statement, you know, addressing potential play call or execution. You know, it could be a combination of both, especially when you you know, have a nineteen point lead with you know, fifteen minutes remaining in a game and you give up you know, twenty six and lose the game. So a lot of questions, and I think a lot of times it all goes back to one simple muscle, the heart, Like at some point you gotta display that thing and go out there and fight. That dog has to come out and ain't no way you're supposed to give up that many points.
00:21:26
Speaker 4: So there are a lot of.
00:21:27
Speaker 11: Questions surrounding these guys. Hopefully they had a solid week of practice. From what I'm hearing, it was a solid week of practice. It was a quality week of practice of work, and they're ready to you know, erase that taste from a week ago. And typically the best way to do it is go and line up against another opponent and play your hearts out and try to get a win. So we'll see what that looks like this afternoon.
00:21:58
Speaker 1: Prince Taylor with us, Well, the opponent this week is really good. The La Chargers are seven to three and are fighting for the AFC West title. And they've got the quarterback and some veteran receivers and a running game and a young tight end. The old Lion's been a little question. They've had some injuries there, of course, but even with Justin Herbert getting hit a lot, he's still number one in completions and attempts in the league, second in passing yards. He can run with it too. Where do you begin with Herbert? And what do you like about the Chargers quarterback?
00:22:30
Speaker 11: You said it right there, JP. It's just a matter of executing and taking advantage of it. They've been beat up across the board with their offensive line. I know they lost later for the season, and this was several weeks ago, but they're still finding a way to truck long.
00:22:45
Speaker 4: And it's by design.
00:22:47
Speaker 11: It's by having a quarterback who's smart enough to take advantage of what the defense gives him.
00:22:53
Speaker 4: You know, it's taking his deep shots.
00:22:54
Speaker 11: He has this big veteran og back and Keenan Allen who recently broke the charges all the time, receiving a record a week ago.
00:23:04
Speaker 4: So he's a deep shot guy. He's their possession. Guy.
00:23:07
Speaker 11: And then when you throw in lad Mo Conkley and those running backs that you've mentioned, these are our players that are going to go out there, dependable players. They're going to go out there and make plays for him. And he trusts those guys, so they're always on the same page from what I'm getting from them. And coach Harball, you know, he's a high efficiency coach, very high quality coach. He has great systems. He's always had great systems. So it starts by just getting after Herbert. You know, pressure. You know, we started a couple of years ago, different different time, but same same guy. You know, the tendency is there that when he's pressured, he'll give you the ball. Most quarterbacks will, but Herbert has shown that if you get after him. Tough guy, big guy, but if you get after him enough, the pressure will get to them. Here eventually start throwing the ball over and with his own defense that the Jags are playing ben but don't break. They need more pressure up front, but they need more sacks up front. They're getting pressure, they're getting to the quarterbacks, it's just they don't have to sacks to show for it. And they have to clean that up and if they can generate pressure, they'll be able to get after after Herbert and get some turnovers.
00:24:28
Speaker 4: And when they get turnovers, they win football games.
00:24:30
Speaker 1: Fred, I mean, they have twelve sacks this year. There's two guys in the league that have eleven solo sacks, So I mean it is tied for the lowest total in the league.
00:24:40
Speaker 4: And they've tried with five.
00:24:41
Speaker 1: They can't get home with four right now, they've tried with five. I mean, at what point do you start changing players that are.
00:24:49
Speaker 11: Up on game day?
00:24:50
Speaker 1: Give younger guys a shot? Like, what else do you do well as a defensive coordinator, as a head coach to jump start this pass rush.
00:24:58
Speaker 11: It's gonna be hard to sit down a guy who you just gave, you know, a brand new extension to an offseason.
00:25:07
Speaker 4: And Josh heines Allen.
00:25:08
Speaker 11: You know, when you talk to Trayvon, he's just a couple of years removed from being selected number one over all. So you got your two bookends. You brought in a big time free agent to shore up the middle. Now again, they play well in spurts, but the consistency isn't there, you know, and then those moments when they do get sacked shout out to Trayvon. It's followed up by roughing the passers. So just playing smarter. They they're gonna have to if they're gonna want to play that good zone defense from behind. Uh, they're gonna have to get pressure, you know. So it may be the rotation, addressing the rotation where everybody's fresh. You know, Josh heines Allen, he's playing almost every snap, he's influencing plays. He's playing really well. It's just that he doesn't have the sacks to show for it. But the pressure is there, the influences there. He's feeding the other guys, helping the other guys make plays. But they I think the consistency is the bigger concern, and addressing that by way of rotation, getting some of those young fresh legs in there at the right moments can potentially help them turn that around.
00:26:28
Speaker 1: Fred Taylor with US Pride of the Jaguars running back and now on the other side of the Jaguars offense against this Chargers defensive group that has some veteran players on the back end, they've got guys up front that can get after it.
00:26:40
Speaker 4: Of course, Khalil Mack.
00:26:44
Speaker 1: All these guys have multiple sacks up front, so they know how to get after the passer. So as a Jaguars offense, what's the approach today? Is it just kind of play your own games, trying to run it still and balance it out like you always kind of want to do, or do you have something else sleep especially if Trevor Lawrence they've talked this week Fred about him letting it rip in so to speak, down the stretch. Maybe that's more of a broad mentality than a game to game thing.
00:27:13
Speaker 4: But what do you make of all this on offense?
00:27:16
Speaker 11: I think the mindset is you want to enter the game with the thought process of running the ball, establishing and run. There's so much more efficient and their offense is a little bit more high power when they're able to run the ball because they can do so many things off of the run.
00:27:34
Speaker 4: You've got play action.
00:27:36
Speaker 11: Then you also have screen game that you can implement play action screen which they've shown.
00:27:44
Speaker 4: To work well. You know, even getting the tight ends back involved.
00:27:48
Speaker 11: You know, off those actions, you have some boot actions where the tight ends can seep out until the coverage late or even crossing routes. And these are the things that we saw the JAG's doing well the first couple of weeks of the season, and then you take pressure off the offensive line, who has struggle.
00:28:08
Speaker 4: We could go versus the Texans.
00:28:11
Speaker 11: The Neil Hunter took full advantage of the offensive line and created pressures at the right time that put Houston in position to come back and win that game.
00:28:22
Speaker 4: So if you're running the ball, you're allowing your.
00:28:25
Speaker 11: Defense and opportunity to rest up so you can avoid those moments that happened a week ago. If you're running the ball, you're taking pressure off your offensive line. You don't give guys like Khalil Mack an opportunity to get excited and get after the quarterback. He isn't as great of a player as he was when he first came in the league, but he still has a lot of tank. He a lot in his tank. He's a savvyvet. And on the back end, Derwin James, he's their coverage leader. He's gonna blitch you. Just a great player, potential Hall of famer in my in Derwin one of their best players on the team. So you want to influence him as well in the run game because he's gonna be active. So run the ball, create some play action opportunities for yourself. Get back to the screen game, get the tight ends involved, and Trevor take advantage of the checkdowns, you know, get it out to the batch early once they're at their spots. Allow the linebackers to come up and coverage to want to now defend the checkdown game, and after that play action, have them draw the linebackers in. Then throw the ball behind them with the crossing route game in the pass game to the receivers and hopefully they catch the ball.
00:29:46
Speaker 4: And then that's the formula for success.
00:29:50
Speaker 1: Fred Taylor with US last meeting between the Jags and Chargers the AFC Wild Card playoff game after the twenty twenty two season, in which the Jaguars down twenty seven to nothing after four first half interceptions from Trevor Lawrence, and then they threw four touchdown passes and the Jaguars won the game on the last second field goal. There's a handful of the guys still there for the Chargers, certainly handful of guys still there for the Jacks so long ago. But let's not get down twenty seven nothing this week.
00:30:18
Speaker 11: Well, you know, it doesn't it doesn't seem like it was so long ago. Maybe two some Jags fans. It seemed like a turn a year ago because we hadn't been to the playoffs and quite some time. But I don't know, man, you know what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna bring a pivot for the guy. So when you're not doing what you're supposed to do, just pivot right and you turn things around.
00:30:44
Speaker 4: JP.
00:30:45
Speaker 11: So being down twenty seven zero would be tough. Yes, you can't do that. It's usually tough. So we had the greatest comeback against you know, a week ago. We don't want to have the greatest come four you know, this week because we already had that in twenty twenty two. I doubt it'll be that. This is a much better team across the board, and I think based on how the game went a week ago, they'll come back home, turn things around and get this win in front of the home team, in front of the fans.
00:31:21
Speaker 4: Save that pivot for the fourth quarter this time. Will you hand them out late? Hand them out late? Well, they you know they know where to find me.
00:31:29
Speaker 11: I'm actually looking for Mark Lamping so we can cut a deal so I can have it in this stadium.
00:31:34
Speaker 4: How about that everybody can get.
00:31:36
Speaker 1: It best wishes on that good luck to your.
00:31:38
Speaker 4: Fan and I just had to pitch it out there. It's vivid.
00:31:43
Speaker 6: We'll talk to you and both gave friend.
00:31:45
Speaker 4: Appreciate you JP.
00:31:47
Speaker 1: The Jaguars host the Chargers Sunday at one o'clock. Enjoy the game.
Speaker 1: Time for our countdown to kick off interviews for Week eleven, JP Shadwick with you ahead of the Chargers Jaguars match up, delivered by CSX. We start this week with CBS Sports Senior writer Pete Prisco, each week visiting with Mike Dempse.
00:00:14
Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's something I've been hoping and preaching he needs to do for a while. I just think he plays better when he turns it loose. And it's almost like these he's not alone in this league anymore, Mike. I mean, you look at the completion percentages around the league. They're higher than they've ever been, in large part because people don't turn it loose. They're ready to take the checkdown. And he's guilty of that. We've seen it many, many, many times this season where he's passed on the big throw down the field to take the easy throw and so turn it loose, go have fun. And I said this on Monday, I said, what he should do is what they should do is put on the tape of the second half of the game against the last time he played the Chargers, you know, in the playoffs, and say, hey, look at this, this is when you turned it loose because you had to turn it loose or go play like that, and I think they'll ultimately get to that. The problem is that, you know, the weapons down the field haven't exactly been playing at a great level either.
00:01:04
Speaker 3: That's a great way to look at it, right, Like, do you think any NFL coach has ever gone into a game telling us quarterback, hey, let's approach just like we're down seventeen, right, Like, let's go out and play like your hair's on fire. I think they're more conservative by nature, but you're right somehow you got to get yourself in that mindset that it's out there for me and I just have to go take it.
00:01:22
Speaker 2: Yeah, And you know, we always have the old adage it's built in still from way back in yesteryear. If you throw the football, three things can happen in two of them are bad. Right, that's not the case. I mean you can also you know, you run the ball and you have a long time consuming drive and you end up getting a field goal. Is that a better situation than getting a seventy yard touchdown pass down the sideline?
00:01:43
Speaker 4: No?
00:01:43
Speaker 2: Absolutely not. And I think we've gotten too caught up in this. You know, all these defenses play off coverage now, and so everybody's afraid to take the big shot. Well, there's ways to beat those the coverages with the big shot. You just got to figure it out. I don't think the offensive coaches have been aggressive and enough, aggressive enough, not just in Jacksonville, but every taking their shots down the field.
00:02:02
Speaker 3: Pete, you've been around covering this league for a long time as well as anybody. And when teams get to Tuesday, they start talking about how we got to look ahead the next week, we can't let it impact us. How easy is that to do or how difficult in this circumstance where you do blow a nineteen point lead and for the first time in franchise history, and you lose in the fourth quarter in the fashion they did. How well positioned is this Jaguar team mentally to bounce back?
00:02:26
Speaker 2: In your opinion, Well, it's going to test Liam Cone again. I mean, and he's done a nice job of handling himself during the week. But I'm a big believer in once you get out on the field and get hit in the mouth the next week, that game's gone. Now you might carry it over into the Wednesday and you're thinking about it and maybe even in a Thursday. But then I think you put it behind you and you realize what you have to do, and then when you get out of the field and the guy across from you puts a four ONM in your mouth, you're not going to sit there and say, oh, well, what happened last week? Maybe I'm not reacting to test them up. So I think that stuff kind of gets overrated because it is a week to week league, and I think guys do a great job of putting it behind them.
00:03:02
Speaker 3: A typical team would look at the charges and go, Wow, they're playing without their starting tackles, your interior, the offensive line has had issues. We are going to feast in the pass rush. But it's a very similar situation to what Houston had last week. Are the Jags going to be able to impact Justin Herbert with their pass rush today?
00:03:20
Speaker 4: Well?
00:03:20
Speaker 2: They better, And you know we saw that last week. That's a bad offensive line and they didn't get much pressure. And it's a lot of money invested in that defensive line, a lot of assets invested in that defensive line to not get pressure. So I mean, if I were on that team right now, I would be calling out the pass rushers I'd call out Josh heinz Allen and he kind of did. This week, Liam Cohen, I'd call out Trayvon Walker. I mean, your first overall pick and you don't do anything. And I know he had to hand injury, but you've got to be more aggressive getting up the field. You know, even the fact where he got called back for the personal foul, the guy tried to cut them. It wasn't like he won tried to cut him and miss them. And so I think this is a week they have to be able to pressure justin Herbert, it's going to be a long day, Pete.
00:04:00
Speaker 3: For many years we've looked at this team and said, man, why can't they cover a tight end? And over the last few weeks it's kind of been that case. Again. I know they have a bunch of injuries in the secondary. You're not getting pressure, so you know, guys have to cover longer. But a Rondee Gatson junior, maybe not a household name, very good young player in his rookie season making an impact. How dangerous is he to the Jaguars defense today?
00:04:24
Speaker 2: Well, he's definitely dangerous because he's you know, he's a formal wide receiver's blown up to a tight end. So he gives you mismatchup problems. And you know, we thought last week we saw the touchdown in the back of the end zone to the tight end and how did that happen? Well, he had a week and a day to throw the football. I mean, if you're going to have a week in a day to throw the football, you're going to beat those those safeties. And it's a little bit of a you know, liability in that defense. Winger can't run with anybody and that's a problem, and Johnson blows assignments. That's a problem. So you have two safeties that you can't rely on. And I think when you want to try and get aggressive and blitz, you're going to leave those safeties in some one on one situations and that's problematic. So it's like you're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't. And it's tough to call defense when you don't have a great pass rush and you have safeties who give up big plays.
00:05:10
Speaker 3: All right, all that being said, how do you see it going today?
00:05:12
Speaker 2: I think the Chargers win the game. I just they could prove me wrong by rushing the passer. But if you don't rush justin Herbert, He's gonna sit back and carve you to shreds. And I just think what we saw from the Chargers defense last week was impressive. I know it's a short, you know, short turnaround for them on the East Coast, but I just think Herbert's going to do enough to win the game.
00:05:31
Speaker 1: I caught up with CBS sports analyst Adam Marcalletto Friday first overall ten thousand foot view of Liam Cohen's first half season as a head coach at five and four.
00:05:42
Speaker 5: Well, listen, I've always been impressed by Liam. I had an opportunity twice last year when he was the offensive coordinator at Tampa Bay to just get a feel for him. And right off the bat, you know, it strikes me about him and what I love about him. And you hear this so often with offensive guys. He's not the offensive genius or guru. It's not about his scheme and not about how smart he is, even though he is smart and has a good scheme, but it's about football principles and he's just a really good football teacher, right and he really does understand and this is a cliche, but he does understand that it's about players, not plays, And to me, that is the hallmark.
00:06:23
Speaker 6: Of any good coach.
00:06:24
Speaker 5: You know, it's his first year in the National Football League, he's a head coach.
00:06:27
Speaker 6: He's learning. But I really do like his makeup.
00:06:30
Speaker 5: I love his leadership style, and I do love that he's a head coach.
00:06:34
Speaker 6: But he's a teacher.
00:06:34
Speaker 1: First, Jaguars defense giving up thirty three points a game since Week seven.
00:06:40
Speaker 7: They've got some injuries in the back end of the defense.
00:06:42
Speaker 1: Right now, they're struggling through the pass rush, his issues getting home tied for the few of sacks in the NFL. And this week they face Justin Herbert, who has no issues with pressure. Even when he is pressured, he seems to perform. Well, how do you affect Justin Herbert and this Chargers offense today?
00:07:00
Speaker 5: Listen, that's a great question, because you know, I've been in this business a long time, and I've been a player, and I've been a part of this league. And usually when we go into a game and one of our biggest graphics is this is the ninth or tenth offensive line combination that they've had this year. That normally means that they're not a good football team, no matter who's playing quarterback, and it's a disaster, right, And so just the fact that their offensive line is in shambles and they're down their tackles and they've given up all those pressures and all those hits and they're still where they are, you know, at seven and three, and they're still a legit top five offense and they've been able to manage it. To me, really really says a lot. Yes they're giving up a lot of pressure, Yes they're giving up a lot of hits, but Justin Herbert has been able to excel and thrive. And you know when I talked to their coaching staff and I talked to Greg Roman, and there's no doubt that they go into every game conscious of the pressure, conscious of the hits, and they know maybe they're not going to be as explosive is that, or dynamic as they could be. They could be the number one passing offense in the NFL, but they really want him to be efficient and get rid of the football because a healthy Justin Herbert is better than one that's sitting on the bench. But it really is a testament to Herbert their coaching staff that they found a way to win games despite catastrophic injuries to really the most important position group on offense.
00:08:27
Speaker 1: Now to the other quarterback in this game, certainly for the Jaguars, Trevor Lawrence, and you know, it's a third offense for him. We're halfway through his first season in this offense, and there's conversation this week with the head coach about telling him to let it rip a little bit more, maybe a little hesitancy in pushing it down the field. What's your view outside looking in of Trevor so far?
00:08:51
Speaker 6: Well, listen, I think that.
00:08:54
Speaker 5: With high expectations comes a high level of scrutiny. And if you are that guy, that quarterback, and you're paid as that guy, there's no question that you have to play better. And you know, there's a lot of quarterbacks that have had to learn different systems, and you know, I think that the scrutiny is.
00:09:16
Speaker 6: Correct.
00:09:17
Speaker 5: There should be a higher standard and we should look at these quarterbacks with a higher standard.
00:09:21
Speaker 6: I will say this, as far as.
00:09:23
Speaker 5: Letting it rip goes, to me, the biggest hurdle that any player, regardless of position, has to learn is that concept. Because if you are second guessing yourself, no matter what you play. If you're a linebacker, on.
00:09:37
Speaker 6: Your reads or whatever it is, you just can't play. Guys are too good. You need to be confident in what you see. You have to be decisive in what you see.
00:09:45
Speaker 5: And it's kind of counterintuitive, but you can't play with fear of the result.
00:09:53
Speaker 6: You really do have to be in a.
00:09:55
Speaker 5: Place where you're not consciously making decisions, but you're in thinks. You're just telling you that it's there and you have to trust it. If you never learn to trust it and you're always second guessing, you never know what you're capable of, and so in those moments when there is maybe that little bit of indecision, you're not going to be able to perform.
00:10:14
Speaker 6: So I just think it's a lesson.
00:10:16
Speaker 5: Especially if you have some built in scars and you've made some mistakes.
00:10:20
Speaker 6: You know that ability to get rid of those and just be.
00:10:22
Speaker 5: Able to go out there and play and trust what you see is to me one of the biggest.
00:10:28
Speaker 6: Priorities of any player.
00:10:30
Speaker 5: So quarterback you have to make more decisions, you know, and there's a lot of responsibility, but that's why they pay those.
00:10:37
Speaker 7: Guys no doubt, and then you've got to make decisions and plays against Derwin James and this Chargers defense today, Let's just touch on James on the back end and they're moving them all over the place.
00:10:50
Speaker 6: He's done it for a long time at a high level he has.
00:10:52
Speaker 5: He's done it in a number of different defensive systems as well.
00:10:57
Speaker 6: What I love about Derwin James is it's hard to be good at everything.
00:11:04
Speaker 5: You know, most there's very few players that are good at everything. Most players have a special trait. They do something very well, and I think Pete Carroll used to call it. They're uniquely talented in some way, shape or form. And a lot of times when you try to be everything.
00:11:19
Speaker 6: You never are good at anything, right.
00:11:21
Speaker 5: But for Derwin James, he's a big safety who really you know, early in his career under Gus Bradley, really excelled in the box, really was a great box safety, was able to blitz, and then he started moving around, and then they started playing him at nickel and they played him at free safety. He truly is one of the guys that can do it all in affect the game. It's not a situation where oh James is in the deep middle, let's go attack him here. You know, we got him out of position or he's in the slot. This year, jesse Mentor is blitzing him more than he's ever blitzed before. And to me, even though he can do everything, that's where at its best. I think when you see Derwin James in the box or in the slot, you have to be aware because he has that ability to make plays and he's just an excellent tackler.
00:12:07
Speaker 6: They're doing a great job with that secondary in general.
00:12:09
Speaker 1: Brian Sexton this week with Jaguars kicker Cam.
00:12:12
Speaker 8: Little, I mean, you can never really say that there's a line that's too far, because if you say that, then another guy is gonna go out there and hit it. But I mean, you've seen some guys hit even in the offseason when some guys are on the league are just hitting their hitting seventy seventy five, like the guys that have the big legs, like the Aubrey's of the world debates, those guys are hitting seventy plush yarders in training and so I mean, you saw Aubrey on what was that Monday night football hit one from sixty eight that could have probably been good for seventy three seventy four. So there's there's definitely guys that can touch that limit.
00:12:40
Speaker 1: Yeah, for sure.
00:12:41
Speaker 9: Do you ever stand back there and think that is a long way away? Because I went and stood on the field after you hit it and thought, man, that's a long way away.
00:12:48
Speaker 8: Yeah, in the in the game preseason game against Pittsburgh, that was a long one. That was the first kick I've really like stood behind and been like, holy cow, this is seventy yards away from the uprights. But most of the time when you go out there, you just you don't You're peripheral and add to the fans and the everything that's around you, like the line in front of you, you can't really like tell that it's that far because you're just so dialed in on the spot and the kick.
00:13:12
Speaker 9: How much of your preparation is on the mental side.
00:13:14
Speaker 8: Oh, I think that's probably what separates an NFL kicker from a lot of you know, college guys that that jump mentally knowing you have to do it not only every time, but seventeen games throughout the season. You know, It's like golf. Golf is a mentally taxing game, and your mind can try and play tricks on you sometimes. But yeah, I think mental preparation probably takes up about eighty percent of my you know ability, twenty percent is talent and you know, hard work and technique and all that stuff. But a lot of guys can kick a ball sixty yards and in, but you know, can't do it every time because mentally they're thinking about things in their backswing. So I think mentally the mental game is a big side of kicking for sure.
00:13:55
Speaker 9: Physically, how much of it is just your genetics and how much of it is the actual art of preparing.
00:14:00
Speaker 8: Yeah, I think preparation is I've always been a big believer that like preparation throughout the week leads to success. I think when I have, you know, my best weeks of practice and know when I'm hitting the ball well, and I'm not thinking that's when I usually go out there and play the best. But even I've had to learn throughout my NFL career, if you don't have and even in college career, like if you don't have a good week of practice, you can't on the flip side, you can't let that affect your game because at the end of the day, we play games on Sundays, we don't practice to you know, go out there and you know, the practice isn't the game. The game is the game. So yeah, I think preparation is a big reason why I do have confidence in leading up to success.
00:14:33
Speaker 4: Yeah, who's your caddy?
00:14:34
Speaker 9: You know that guy that that's out there with you deciding, you know, this is the mark today, here's the wind and the way that it's coming across the field. Who is it that you consult with?
00:14:43
Speaker 4: Yeah?
00:14:43
Speaker 8: I think Heath is a good Heath and Logan are both really good assets for that. Heath has been around the league for so many years now, not only as a player but as as a coordinator, and so he's you know, played with great kickers that have had long careers and obviously he coached Tyler Bass and Buffalo and you know a lot of good kickers here and so so he kind of knows my leg and kind of gauges that based on the wind and stuff like that. And then obviously Logan's played here for what is see in his ninth year here now, so he knows the win in this stadium, he knows the wind all around everywhere. So both those guys are great assets for me.
00:15:13
Speaker 9: And why do you suppose it is now all of a sudden, the guys are just nailing it past sixty five. I can remember in nineteen ninety eight when Jason Elam kicked the first record setting field goal in Denver against the Jaguars, and since then it's just been record after record after record.
00:15:29
Speaker 4: Why is that happening?
00:15:30
Speaker 8: I just think you think about golf swing and the evolution of the golf swing, and people will be able to hit it so far now they're starting to learn how to waste to kick the ball farther. Not only that, but like the operations are just so good now. I mean you look at ours so good when like you look at the sixty eight, all Ross put it directly over the spot. All Logan had to do is just sit it down, laces out, and we're going out there and we're making it.
00:15:51
Speaker 10: And so.
00:15:53
Speaker 8: Not only the technique and you know, the ability is evolutionizing, but the operation is so good now to where guys just have to go out there and worry about kicking. And that's the beauty of you know, being here is all I gotta do is just go worry about kicking the ball.
00:16:05
Speaker 6: I don't got to worry about my operation at all.
00:16:06
Speaker 9: Let's just wrap it up with this going into the stretch run of the season. You've kicked a sixty eight yard field goal, You've kicked one that sent it into overtime. We've had long returns by reserve wide receivers to set up plays, and we've had Parker Washington with a couple special teams. Seems to be hitting its stride. It's important time of the year.
00:16:23
Speaker 8: Yeah, I think that kind of credits Heath and just the kind of guys first of all, credits Heath, but not only Heath, but the guys in that room very meticulous about you know, going into practice week, and you know that's a big emphasis and a big, big part of the big.
00:16:37
Speaker 4: Part of the game.
00:16:38
Speaker 8: You know, it's the third phase of the game besides offices, defense, and whenever we can go out there and make an impact. You know, with those guys in the room that take their job really seriously on special teams, it can be a special thing. So it's really cool to know that we have, you know, guys like you know Ross and Logan that have been here for six to nine years, say Ros six or seven and Logan eight or nine, that are kind of leading that room and they know that the standard is a standard. We're can drop alow that standard. So it's really cool to you know, be a part of something that matters because you know, special teams in you know, high school and college may not matter to a lot of teams, you know they play the two phases, but here it's a it's a big part of it.
00:17:10
Speaker 1: And continuing the special teams theme, Brian Sexton with teams coordinator Heath.
00:17:14
Speaker 10: Farewell, Yeah, i mean, these kickers keep getting better every year. It's it's so impressive, how how talented they are, the work they put in, it's it's unbelievable. Cam we see every day. You know, he's one of the hardest workers on this team. Uh, and so you see the results. You know, we've seen him do it in practice. So it's really cool to kind of actually to put it to a to a game, to kind of for a display for everybody in the stadium and the and the TV to see, to witness what we see all the time.
00:17:38
Speaker 9: You're kind of his caddy right him in the caddy you kind of know what the wind is doing and and and and where his spot is on the field. How do you how do you calculate that when when you're on the field in the pre game.
00:17:49
Speaker 10: I mean, I think just knowing your guy. I think that's part of his knowing your guy and then getting a feel how he's feeling on game day, what the wind is like, you know, and that's it's a feel thing on game and so him and I have great conversations, and it's you know, it starts all week of how he's feeling, and then it continues throughout warm ups and throughout the games. You know, I have to check in with him as that win changes, maybe in the fourth quarter or what does that change to his line? So him and are in constant communication of what I'm seeing, what I'm feeling, and he's doing the same. And so between the two of us, we usually come up with those lines, and you know, it's funny how it works out. It seems like what our numbers are pretty much almost exactly every time. We just have a good relationship and feel for each other. I know how he's feeling. I could feel him, you know, I think he can understand where I'm coming from. And so it's amazing how accurate we are on those lines. And we trust him. And that's the biggest thing is when he tells us the line or we talk to a line. We're sending him out there with it, with the with the thought he's gonna make it, and we know he's gonna make it.
00:18:48
Speaker 9: Tell you about your return game. Last two games, right, you get the long one against the Raiders on the kickoff that was very important to you, and of course Parker sets the franchise record with his third career putt return. Tell me about your return game.
00:19:00
Speaker 10: I mean, our returners are unbelievable. You know we have Obviously, Parker's been fantastic. His ability to change directions make people miss is spectacular. And I think the guy's blocking, it's it's it's really cool to kind of see where they've come from, you know, week one or week two to where they are now and just blocking for him. They're unbelievable. And then, like I said, Bagel, la Quint's been back there, We've had you know, a bunch of guy we've rotated through. You know, Diami's been back there. So we've rotated through a bunch of returners and they've all kind of gave us a different look and different perspective. Uh, and they've all been great. So it's been really cool to kind of work with these guys. But you can feel anytime Parker gets the ball, and you know, you talk to the guys that are out there on the field, they they believe and they believe anytime we get those pump returns there's a chance to score. So you could feel that that, you know, that emotion, and even the sideline kind of stands up like wait, that something's good about to happen. So it's a cool thing to be a part of. I think the guys are really embracing the return game and like I said, I'm glad to be a part of it.
00:20:03
Speaker 1: And we wrapped the week, of course with pride of the Jaguars running back Fred Taylor. The Jags coming off a really disappointing loss down in Houston last week. Fred nineteen point lead, blowing the largest in franchise history. But hey, guess what, there's still the seventh seed. There's a lot of important football left here. You got to clean some things up though, before you move forward.
00:20:24
Speaker 11: Yeah, that's what it's all about, JP, you know, making sure you are operating under a high efficiency mindset, high efficiency thought process. That's the players, the coaches, everyone alike. I remember at the end of the game last week, Coach Cohen, he made a statement, you know, addressing potential play call or execution. You know, it could be a combination of both, especially when you you know, have a nineteen point lead with you know, fifteen minutes remaining in a game and you give up you know, twenty six and lose the game. So a lot of questions, and I think a lot of times it all goes back to one simple muscle, the heart, Like at some point you gotta display that thing and go out there and fight. That dog has to come out and ain't no way you're supposed to give up that many points.
00:21:26
Speaker 4: So there are a lot of.
00:21:27
Speaker 11: Questions surrounding these guys. Hopefully they had a solid week of practice. From what I'm hearing, it was a solid week of practice. It was a quality week of practice of work, and they're ready to you know, erase that taste from a week ago. And typically the best way to do it is go and line up against another opponent and play your hearts out and try to get a win. So we'll see what that looks like this afternoon.
00:21:58
Speaker 1: Prince Taylor with us, Well, the opponent this week is really good. The La Chargers are seven to three and are fighting for the AFC West title. And they've got the quarterback and some veteran receivers and a running game and a young tight end. The old Lion's been a little question. They've had some injuries there, of course, but even with Justin Herbert getting hit a lot, he's still number one in completions and attempts in the league, second in passing yards. He can run with it too. Where do you begin with Herbert? And what do you like about the Chargers quarterback?
00:22:30
Speaker 11: You said it right there, JP. It's just a matter of executing and taking advantage of it. They've been beat up across the board with their offensive line. I know they lost later for the season, and this was several weeks ago, but they're still finding a way to truck long.
00:22:45
Speaker 4: And it's by design.
00:22:47
Speaker 11: It's by having a quarterback who's smart enough to take advantage of what the defense gives him.
00:22:53
Speaker 4: You know, it's taking his deep shots.
00:22:54
Speaker 11: He has this big veteran og back and Keenan Allen who recently broke the charges all the time, receiving a record a week ago.
00:23:04
Speaker 4: So he's a deep shot guy. He's their possession. Guy.
00:23:07
Speaker 11: And then when you throw in lad Mo Conkley and those running backs that you've mentioned, these are our players that are going to go out there, dependable players. They're going to go out there and make plays for him. And he trusts those guys, so they're always on the same page from what I'm getting from them. And coach Harball, you know, he's a high efficiency coach, very high quality coach. He has great systems. He's always had great systems. So it starts by just getting after Herbert. You know, pressure. You know, we started a couple of years ago, different different time, but same same guy. You know, the tendency is there that when he's pressured, he'll give you the ball. Most quarterbacks will, but Herbert has shown that if you get after him. Tough guy, big guy, but if you get after him enough, the pressure will get to them. Here eventually start throwing the ball over and with his own defense that the Jags are playing ben but don't break. They need more pressure up front, but they need more sacks up front. They're getting pressure, they're getting to the quarterbacks, it's just they don't have to sacks to show for it. And they have to clean that up and if they can generate pressure, they'll be able to get after after Herbert and get some turnovers.
00:24:28
Speaker 4: And when they get turnovers, they win football games.
00:24:30
Speaker 1: Fred, I mean, they have twelve sacks this year. There's two guys in the league that have eleven solo sacks, So I mean it is tied for the lowest total in the league.
00:24:40
Speaker 4: And they've tried with five.
00:24:41
Speaker 1: They can't get home with four right now, they've tried with five. I mean, at what point do you start changing players that are.
00:24:49
Speaker 11: Up on game day?
00:24:50
Speaker 1: Give younger guys a shot? Like, what else do you do well as a defensive coordinator, as a head coach to jump start this pass rush.
00:24:58
Speaker 11: It's gonna be hard to sit down a guy who you just gave, you know, a brand new extension to an offseason.
00:25:07
Speaker 4: And Josh heines Allen.
00:25:08
Speaker 11: You know, when you talk to Trayvon, he's just a couple of years removed from being selected number one over all. So you got your two bookends. You brought in a big time free agent to shore up the middle. Now again, they play well in spurts, but the consistency isn't there, you know, and then those moments when they do get sacked shout out to Trayvon. It's followed up by roughing the passers. So just playing smarter. They they're gonna have to if they're gonna want to play that good zone defense from behind. Uh, they're gonna have to get pressure, you know. So it may be the rotation, addressing the rotation where everybody's fresh. You know, Josh heines Allen, he's playing almost every snap, he's influencing plays. He's playing really well. It's just that he doesn't have the sacks to show for it. But the pressure is there, the influences there. He's feeding the other guys, helping the other guys make plays. But they I think the consistency is the bigger concern, and addressing that by way of rotation, getting some of those young fresh legs in there at the right moments can potentially help them turn that around.
00:26:28
Speaker 1: Fred Taylor with US Pride of the Jaguars running back and now on the other side of the Jaguars offense against this Chargers defensive group that has some veteran players on the back end, they've got guys up front that can get after it.
00:26:40
Speaker 4: Of course, Khalil Mack.
00:26:44
Speaker 1: All these guys have multiple sacks up front, so they know how to get after the passer. So as a Jaguars offense, what's the approach today? Is it just kind of play your own games, trying to run it still and balance it out like you always kind of want to do, or do you have something else sleep especially if Trevor Lawrence they've talked this week Fred about him letting it rip in so to speak, down the stretch. Maybe that's more of a broad mentality than a game to game thing.
00:27:13
Speaker 4: But what do you make of all this on offense?
00:27:16
Speaker 11: I think the mindset is you want to enter the game with the thought process of running the ball, establishing and run. There's so much more efficient and their offense is a little bit more high power when they're able to run the ball because they can do so many things off of the run.
00:27:34
Speaker 4: You've got play action.
00:27:36
Speaker 11: Then you also have screen game that you can implement play action screen which they've shown.
00:27:44
Speaker 4: To work well. You know, even getting the tight ends back involved.
00:27:48
Speaker 11: You know, off those actions, you have some boot actions where the tight ends can seep out until the coverage late or even crossing routes. And these are the things that we saw the JAG's doing well the first couple of weeks of the season, and then you take pressure off the offensive line, who has struggle.
00:28:08
Speaker 4: We could go versus the Texans.
00:28:11
Speaker 11: The Neil Hunter took full advantage of the offensive line and created pressures at the right time that put Houston in position to come back and win that game.
00:28:22
Speaker 4: So if you're running the ball, you're allowing your.
00:28:25
Speaker 11: Defense and opportunity to rest up so you can avoid those moments that happened a week ago. If you're running the ball, you're taking pressure off your offensive line. You don't give guys like Khalil Mack an opportunity to get excited and get after the quarterback. He isn't as great of a player as he was when he first came in the league, but he still has a lot of tank. He a lot in his tank. He's a savvyvet. And on the back end, Derwin James, he's their coverage leader. He's gonna blitch you. Just a great player, potential Hall of famer in my in Derwin one of their best players on the team. So you want to influence him as well in the run game because he's gonna be active. So run the ball, create some play action opportunities for yourself. Get back to the screen game, get the tight ends involved, and Trevor take advantage of the checkdowns, you know, get it out to the batch early once they're at their spots. Allow the linebackers to come up and coverage to want to now defend the checkdown game, and after that play action, have them draw the linebackers in. Then throw the ball behind them with the crossing route game in the pass game to the receivers and hopefully they catch the ball.
00:29:46
Speaker 4: And then that's the formula for success.
00:29:50
Speaker 1: Fred Taylor with US last meeting between the Jags and Chargers the AFC Wild Card playoff game after the twenty twenty two season, in which the Jaguars down twenty seven to nothing after four first half interceptions from Trevor Lawrence, and then they threw four touchdown passes and the Jaguars won the game on the last second field goal. There's a handful of the guys still there for the Chargers, certainly handful of guys still there for the Jacks so long ago. But let's not get down twenty seven nothing this week.
00:30:18
Speaker 11: Well, you know, it doesn't it doesn't seem like it was so long ago. Maybe two some Jags fans. It seemed like a turn a year ago because we hadn't been to the playoffs and quite some time. But I don't know, man, you know what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna bring a pivot for the guy. So when you're not doing what you're supposed to do, just pivot right and you turn things around.
00:30:44
Speaker 4: JP.
00:30:45
Speaker 11: So being down twenty seven zero would be tough. Yes, you can't do that. It's usually tough. So we had the greatest comeback against you know, a week ago. We don't want to have the greatest come four you know, this week because we already had that in twenty twenty two. I doubt it'll be that. This is a much better team across the board, and I think based on how the game went a week ago, they'll come back home, turn things around and get this win in front of the home team, in front of the fans.
00:31:21
Speaker 4: Save that pivot for the fourth quarter this time. Will you hand them out late? Hand them out late? Well, they you know they know where to find me.
00:31:29
Speaker 11: I'm actually looking for Mark Lamping so we can cut a deal so I can have it in this stadium.
00:31:34
Speaker 4: How about that everybody can get.
00:31:36
Speaker 1: It best wishes on that good luck to your.
00:31:38
Speaker 4: Fan and I just had to pitch it out there. It's vivid.
00:31:43
Speaker 6: We'll talk to you and both gave friend.
00:31:45
Speaker 4: Appreciate you JP.
00:31:47
Speaker 1: The Jaguars host the Chargers Sunday at one o'clock. Enjoy the game.
