Why the Jaguars are confident they can regain the AFC South crown in 2024

July 30, 2024

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Why the Jaguars are confident they can regain the AFC South crown in 2024

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Despite the disappointing way their 2023 season ended, the Jacksonville Jaguars believe they are back in contention for an AFC South championship this season.

After losing five of six games to finish 9-8 and surrendering the division title to the Houston Texans (10-7), the Jags knew major changes were needed. So head coach Doug Pederson hired a new defensive staff, while general manager Trent Baalke turned to veteran leaders from winning programs in free agency to make the locker room more resilient to adversity. Then the Jaguars handed out big-money extensions to a trio of their best players: quarterback Trevor Lawrence, pass rusher Josh Hines-Allen and, most recently, cornerback Tyson Campbell.

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The headliner, of course, was Lawrence’s five-year, $275 million contract that has been hanging over our heads for the past year. By grooming their franchise quarterback after his third season — when he was first eligible for an extension — the Jaguars removed a potential distraction and gave Lawrence a chance to simply focus on the field.

“It is of course important to know that you have secured that position for the next seven years,” Baalke said The Athletics recently. “From that standpoint it was great.”

After a struggling rookie season under Urban Meyer, Lawrence solidified his value in 2022 as the Jaguars finished with six wins in seven games before pulling off an incredible 27-point comeback win over the Los Angeles Chargers in the wild-card round. The Jaguars then held on to the eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in the next round before losing 27-20, with Lawrence finishing seventh in MVP voting and earning his first Pro Bowl nod.

Lawrence was back on track during the Jags’ 8-3 start to 2023 until he was slowed by a barrage of injuries, including a severe ankle sprain, a concussion and a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder.

“It affected him, and obviously it affected us as a team, not being able to practice on Wednesday or Thursday,” Pederson said. The Athletics“I’m a big believer that if you don’t get those reps, especially as a quarterback, it’s really hard to perform at a high level on game day. I know it affected him.”

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That’s why getting Lawrence healthy — and keeping him that way — is No. 1 on the list of things the Jaguars want to improve this season. They know a healthy Lawrence will go a long way toward keeping them in the heat of the playoff race.

“He was in a really good position (before the injuries),” Pederson said. “The injuries took their toll toward the end of the season. He wasn’t the same quarterback. (In the first half) he made good decisions. He took care of the ball well. We helped him on offense. Everybody was involved. One guy can’t do everything, and we’re not asking him to do everything.

“He just has to continue to lead the football team. He’s done a good job for us the last few seasons. He’s more outspoken, which is what we’ve asked him to do. Schematically, with the game planning, he’ll continue to grow there.”

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The Jaguars are also expected to take a big step forward on defense. After the season, Pederson fired defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell and several members of his staff. He replaced Caldwell with former Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, a fiery personality who led an aggressive pass rush during his stints with the Falcons and New Orleans Saints.

The hope is to increase the intensity around Hines-Allen, edge rusher Travon Walker and key free agent acquisition, defensive tackle Arik Armstead.

“I like the guys that I let go,” Pederson said. “I was the one who hired them here in 2022. But we’re in a better position now. We’ll see how camp goes. We’ll see how the season unfolds, what kind of defense and offense we’re going to be and want to be. What I’ve seen so far is positive and we just have to keep doing that.”

They also need to be far less generous with the ball. The Jaguars’ 30 turnovers last season were the fifth-most in the NFL. They’ve lost the turnover battle nine times, including each of their last four losses, which was all the more painful considering they finished a game behind Houston.

So when the team-building process began, they focused on players with proven reputations as leaders who had a history of winning. It led them to guys like Armstead (formerly of the San Francisco 49ers), cornerback Darnell Savage (Green Bay Packers), center Mitch Morse (Buffalo Bills) and wide receiver Gabe Davis (Bills).

“Improve the locker room, the leadership, the presence, to build a team that trusts each other, that’s loyal to each other, that’s committed to each other,” Baalke said. “Bring in guys that have been there and done it. We have a young team, so … if we were going to bring in guys from outside the team that we didn’t draft, we wanted leaders that came from good programs and had success in this league at a high level.”

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Remember, the Jaguars were 15-5 from Week 12 2022 to Week 12 2023, including the playoffs. They believe they are closer to that team than the team that literally and figuratively pulled off the final sprint.

If their mid-season plan is to succeed, they will need to prove it.