Latest / The Jacksonville Jaguars Official Podcast Network / Jags A.M. Podcast Ep. 263 | Holding Strong Within the Division: What It Will Take to Beat the Colts

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Jags A.M. Podcast Ep. 263 | Holding Strong Within the Division: What It Will Take to Beat the Colts · The Jacksonville Jaguars Official Podcast Network

• 0:16
  Speaker 1: Welcome into the Hyundai Studios inside the Miller Electric Center.
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: Time for a Thursday edition of Jags AM. Brought to
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: you by GEHA, Government Employees Health Association. I'm Brian Sexton,
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: the senior writer, John Ogier is here, and the coach,
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: Mark Duffner, alongside. Here we go with big things, and
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: we'll start with number one, which is.
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: dominate.
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: The Colts have traded away their best offensive lineman and
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: their best defensive lineman. Look, at 2-5, they're not a
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: great team anyway, but this week, you've got to go
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: get the job done against a team that's raising the
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: white flag. Now, that's not the approach that head coach
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: Liam Cohen had. He shared it with the media on Wednesday.
• 0:58
  Speaker 3: It's two good players. We can't deny that, right? But
• 1:03
  Speaker 3: knowing what this team is, knowing what that team is
• 1:06
  Speaker 3: going to want to do, this has to all be
• 1:09
  Speaker 3: about our improvements, us getting back on track, got a
• 1:15
  Speaker 3: good division opponent that we're playing at home. And, you know,
• 1:18
  Speaker 3: the focus level getting in pads today has to be
• 1:22
  Speaker 3: about our execution, our fundamentals and technique, you know, because
• 1:27
  Speaker 3: you just can't control that stuff. And if you think
• 1:30
  Speaker 3: about it too much, it typically doesn't help.
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: John, we're talking about it.
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: That's what we do, the trade deadline and players moving
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: and what it means for the division, the Colts and
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: We'll do that this morning. The coach says it's not
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: about who's playing. It's about us and the way we
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: get things done. Now, we've heard that a lot in
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: recent weeks, but it seems, especially with the chaos and
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: confusion in the Colts locker room, that this week the
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: Jags can't listen to any of that. They have to
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: focus on who they are and what they need to
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: do better.
• 1:58
  Speaker 4: Yeah, people never want to hear this because it sounds
• 2:00
  Speaker 4: like coach speak. It sounds like you're channeling coaches. But yes,
• 2:04
  Speaker 4: the Jaguars should dominate this game. But they're only going
• 2:07
  Speaker 4: to do that if they play well, if they execute.
• 2:10
  Speaker 4: If they play like what they are, then they are
• 2:13
  Speaker 4: much better than the Colts. If they don't play well, Duff,
• 2:16
  Speaker 4: then it's the NFL. And anybody who's been around it
• 2:21
  Speaker 4: has seen plenty of teams get bit in a week
• 2:24
  Speaker 4: where everybody outside is saying, oh, they'll win that easy.
• 2:28
  Speaker 4: I get that people don't want to hear it, but
• 2:29
  Speaker 4: there's no such thing.
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: No, absolutely. I mean, that's the key. Every week, you've
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: got to ignore the noise from external, if you will,
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: and focus in on on what the task at hand is,
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: and that's to play your best, to execute, to utilize
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: good technique and fundamentals. And really, I think that is
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: the focus for this team right now. Kind of anxious
• 2:45
  Speaker 2: to get back after a loss that they had in
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: London right now and get back into the winning ways.
• 2:50
  Speaker 2: So that'll be the focus they've got, I'm sure.
• 2:52
  Speaker 4: Now, Brian, sorry, I do think this is a game
• 2:56
  Speaker 4: where if the Jags play to their identity, we've talked
• 3:00
  Speaker 4: about it all week, Brian, if they're more physical on
• 3:03
  Speaker 4: both sides of the ball, then I think they do
• 3:05
  Speaker 4: dominate and will be helped by the fact that those
• 3:07
  Speaker 4: two guys who could make you not dominate aren't there.
• 3:10
  Speaker 4: So to your point, it should be dominate if the
• 3:14
  Speaker 4: Jags play the way they want to play.
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: If they're the more physical team. Well, speaking of improvement,
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: the defense is our second big thing. It didn't have
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: its best game. In fact, it had its least productive
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: game of the season against Houston and London, giving up
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: 34 points. They're still stinging a bit from that in
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: particular the explosive plays down the field. Jaguars are 31st
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: in the league in explosive play percentage allowed. They know
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: that's got to get better, and the head coach yesterday
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: talked with the media about the pass defense overall.
• 3:45
  Speaker 2: It starts with get off.
• 3:46
  Speaker 3: It starts with hand usage. It starts with mixing in
• 3:50
  Speaker 3: pressure looks, right, to help get the back eaten up.
• 3:54
  Speaker 3: Or now we've got one-on-one matchups, different spots. And so,
• 3:57
  Speaker 3: you know, it has to get better. We need it
• 4:00
  Speaker 3: to get it better, but it also has to help,
• 4:01
  Speaker 3: you know, the back end's got to help. The second
• 4:03
  Speaker 3: level of the defense has to help with some of
• 4:05
  Speaker 3: those things. You know, when you get the ball thrown
• 4:08
  Speaker 3: over your head, then it doesn't help the rush.
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: So we can talk about the pass rush and the
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: guys up front needing more from your marquee players like
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: Josh Hines-Allen and Trayvon Walker. But Duff, there is an
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: immediate area where the Jaguars are reinforced with the return
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: of Monteric Brown, who was on the practice field on Wednesday.
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: We don't know about Antonio Johnson. He's a big part
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: of what they do. But getting Monteric back, getting some flexibility,
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: getting Jarrion Jones into a situation where he can play
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: more comfortably. He's the most targeted guy on this roster
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: right now. So Monteric coming back would perhaps take some
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: of the pressure off of him. They can play better
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: with better communication on the back end. and improve the
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: pass rush.
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: Well, Brian, I think what you just talked about is
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: critical in this communication. I think Monteric Brown is a
• 4:55
  Speaker 2: key component to that. I mean, again, he brings confidence,
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: he brings leadership, he brings experience, and he brings ultimate
• 5:01
  Speaker 2: great communication to that group. And that's what you've got
• 5:04
  Speaker 2: to have. When you don't have that, now the possibility
• 5:06
  Speaker 2: of explosions... Explosive plays and missed assignments show up right now.
• 5:11
  Speaker 2: So bringing back confidence, bringing back communication, bringing back leadership
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  Speaker 2: is going to be a big component to success our
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: secondary continues to move forward with.
• 5:20
  Speaker 4: Look, explosives are maybe the biggest issue for this defense.
• 5:26
  Speaker 4: But you sort of trumped me from saying this, Brian.
• 5:29
  Speaker 4: You can talk all you want about the back end.
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  Speaker 4: If pressure doesn't get there, it gives you so much
• 5:35
  Speaker 4: time for explosives People were talking about trading for a
• 5:37
  Speaker 4: corner at, I don't think they need reinforcements in the secondary.
• 5:42
  Speaker 4: I think they're going to, you know, they need to
• 5:44
  Speaker 4: get more pressure up front, but they also do need
• 5:46
  Speaker 4: to communicate better. And some of this is just when
• 5:50
  Speaker 4: the ball's in the air, Travis Hunter makes plays on
• 5:53
  Speaker 4: the ball. The other guys need to make plays on
• 5:56
  Speaker 4: the ball and knock it down in a couple of situations.
• 5:59
  Speaker 4: That sounds so basic, but sometimes it's about executing and
• 6:02
  Speaker 4: making the play in the moment. Uh, If they do
• 6:05
  Speaker 4: that a couple more times, if you eliminate one explosive
• 6:07
  Speaker 4: a game, then all of a sudden you're a lot better.
• 6:10
  Speaker 4: But yes, it's the huge issue facing the defense right now.
• 6:14
  Speaker 1: John, I do think that, and it wasn't talked about
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: a ton, the absence of Antonio Johnson for most of
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: the second half in the game in London against Houston
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: was a killer. He is so important to what they do. Now,
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: he didn't practice on Wednesday. We're not sure about the
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: rest of the week. And obviously, you've got a quick turnaround. Sunday,
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: they have the Colts. And Thursday night, they're in Baltimore
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: against the Ravens. So we'll see what Liam Cohen's approach
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: is here. But he is so critical to what they
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: do in the back end.
• 6:40
  Speaker 4: Well, sometimes when you're talking about games, storylines kind of
• 6:45
  Speaker 4: get lost. I still think the footing in London in
• 6:49
  Speaker 4: that Wembley game had a huge impact on there being
• 6:52
  Speaker 4: 34 points. It was such an outlier of what this
• 6:54
  Speaker 4: defense has done all year. So I don't think they're
• 6:57
  Speaker 4: going to get up 34 every week. But to your point,
• 7:00
  Speaker 4: Antonio Johnson is more than just a safety on this team.
• 7:05
  Speaker 4: He allows them to be more versatile. He allows them
• 7:07
  Speaker 4: to get into defenses and play schemes that you otherwise
• 7:11
  Speaker 4: can't play. His communication is high end. With apologies to
• 7:15
  Speaker 4: Travis Hunter, Antonio Johnson is as important as anybody in
• 7:19
  Speaker 4: the secondary.
• 7:20
  Speaker 2: Got it. And let me just add real quickly, I mean,
• 7:22
  Speaker 2: his big playability is right there. I mean, this guy
• 7:26
  Speaker 2: affects the run game. He affects pass rush, pressure, blitz,
• 7:29
  Speaker 2: all those things. Again, he has a major impact on
• 7:32
  Speaker 2: the defense. And, again, getting him back will be real
• 7:35
  Speaker 2: key for us moving forward.
• 7:37
  Speaker 1: All right, let's finish big things this morning with the
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: division in the AFC South. Listen, the Jaguars, as we
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: talked about, won on Sunday, and they were off. when
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: all three teams in the division drop their games in
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: week seven. So right now the Jaguars are sitting, and
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: we'll take a look at the standings, two and a
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: half games in front of the Houston Texans.
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: Guys, I'd like your thoughts.
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: Listen, the Texans are off this week, so if the
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: Jaguars beat the Colts, who are two and five, then
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: all of a sudden you've got a three-game lead heading
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: into November, which is that time of the year. when
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: the contenders and the pretenders separate from one another. I'm
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: not sure the Titans are going to be a factor
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: this year, maybe not even next year. They've got a
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: lot of issues as well. But they're playing the Bengals, so,
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: I mean, it's just they're still in their spiral. Listen,
• 8:19
  Speaker 1: we talked about dominate. You can dominate the division standings.
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: If you go win this week, you can be in
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: a great spot, John.
• 8:25
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I like to use tennis analogies, and I'm not
• 8:28
  Speaker 4: sure how well this one works, but it's almost like
• 8:30
  Speaker 4: the division– it's almost like the Texans double faulted. And
• 8:33
  Speaker 4: all of a sudden, wow, you've got this opportunity to
• 8:35
  Speaker 4: break serve again. They had a chance to go up
• 8:38
  Speaker 4: three games in London and really feel like you had
• 8:42
  Speaker 4: the division in your grasp. And then, boy, that deflated
• 8:45
  Speaker 4: feeling out of London, everybody felt it. Well, all of
• 8:48
  Speaker 4: a sudden, they kind of got a gift back, right?
• 8:50
  Speaker 4: They doubled twice into the net, and now you've got
• 8:52
  Speaker 4: a chance. I think if they win on Sunday, Duff,
• 8:56
  Speaker 4: you really have that same feeling. You didn't beat the Texans,
• 8:59
  Speaker 4: but you have that same feeling of it. It's all
• 9:02
  Speaker 4: in front of us now.
• 9:03
  Speaker 2: Oh, absolutely. And again, that's the focus right now. One
• 9:06
  Speaker 2: game at a time. Keep stacking them up right now.
• 9:08
  Speaker 2: You know, God rewards those that play hard. I know
• 9:11
  Speaker 2: Coach Campanile says he rewards those that run to the ball,
• 9:14
  Speaker 2: but God rewards those that play hard. And we got
• 9:17
  Speaker 2: a good gift from the good Lord this weekend in
• 9:19
  Speaker 2: terms of the way the standings are. Now we just
• 9:21
  Speaker 2: got to take advantage of it right now with Indianapolis
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: Colts and the Bulls on.
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: All right, those are big things on a Thursday morning.
• 9:27
  Speaker 1: We've got a great show for you. Coming up, Behind
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: Enemy Lines, Kai Stevens gives us some perspective talking to
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: a reporter from Indianapolis about all the going-ons around the Colts.
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: We're back with more from the Hyundai Studios in Jacksonville
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: right after this.
• 9:50
  Speaker 5: Welcome to Behind Enemy Lines, where we check in with
• 9:51
  Speaker 5: a media member of the Jaguars opposing team. And this week,
• 9:55
  Speaker 5: it's right in the AFC South. so it's the Indianapolis
• 9:57
  Speaker 5: Colts so we're checking in with Alexa Ross our Colts
• 9:59
  Speaker 5: insider and it's been quite a week for you certainly
• 10:03
  Speaker 5: busy to say the least but what's been going on
• 10:05
  Speaker 5: try to sum it up if you can what's been
• 10:07
  Speaker 5: going on in Indy lately?
• 10:08
  Speaker 6: Yeah two big departures in the trenches on both sides
• 10:11
  Speaker 6: of the ball for the Colts DeForest Buckner longtime interior
• 10:14
  Speaker 6: defensive lineman he is heading back to San Francisco he
• 10:17
  Speaker 6: was traded back to the 49ers and Quinton Nelson, longtime
• 10:20
  Speaker 6: All-Pro guard, is also heading out the door. He is
• 10:23
  Speaker 6: going to the Seattle Seahawks. So both older guys with
• 10:28
  Speaker 6: hopes to do really well being traded to contenders. And
• 10:31
  Speaker 6: I think that just goes to show the fire sails
• 10:33
  Speaker 6: on with the horseshoe. And the focus might be more
• 10:36
  Speaker 6: of the future than necessarily the present.
• 10:39
  Speaker 5: As we look towards this week specifically, DeForest Buckner, we know,
• 10:42
  Speaker 5: has been kind of an anchor in the middle of
• 10:44
  Speaker 5: that for a while now. What's that going to look
• 10:46
  Speaker 5: like now without him there?
• 10:48
  Speaker 6: Yeah, I think you're going to see a lot of, truthfully,
• 10:51
  Speaker 6: I think it's going to be a little chaotic. Edge
• 10:54
  Speaker 6: rushers have been a bit of an issue for the
• 10:56
  Speaker 6: Colts in years past anyway, but you always had that
• 10:59
  Speaker 6: dynamic duo of DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart, right, to
• 11:02
  Speaker 6: kind of hold it down and make sure that they
• 11:04
  Speaker 6: were able to at least try and get to the quarterback,
• 11:06
  Speaker 6: try and make life a little more uncomfortable for Trevor Lawrence.
• 11:09
  Speaker 6: But I think that we're going to see a little
• 11:11
  Speaker 6: bit less of that. We have to see kind of
• 11:13
  Speaker 6: who is tasked to fill that role, if it's maybe–
• 11:17
  Speaker 6: a defensive lineman who's a bit younger, who maybe normally
• 11:19
  Speaker 6: played on the outside that they're going to slide inward or, or,
• 11:23
  Speaker 6: or what it's, it's one of those things that we're
• 11:25
  Speaker 6: just going to have to wait and see this defense
• 11:26
  Speaker 6: has struggled throughout the early, you know, this early season.
• 11:30
  Speaker 6: And so they don't necessarily have a lot of flexibility
• 11:34
  Speaker 6: to kind of figure it out.
• 11:35
  Speaker 2: Right.
• 11:35
  Speaker 6: So I think that in a defense that has already
• 11:38
  Speaker 6: kind of lost its leadership over the years with the
• 11:40
  Speaker 6: departures of guys like sire Franklin, Kenny Moore, the second,
• 11:44
  Speaker 6: you are now in a place of, Hey, what we
• 11:47
  Speaker 6: really have to rely on these veterans in the defensive backfield,
• 11:51
  Speaker 6: like Cam Bynum and Mooney Ward.
• 11:54
  Speaker 5: Offensively, Daniel Jones, last time he was here, unfortunately had
• 11:57
  Speaker 5: that Achilles injury. He's been working back from that and
• 11:59
  Speaker 5: still trying to get his footing. It seems like we
• 12:02
  Speaker 5: don't know what the Jonathan Taylor situation is going to be,
• 12:04
  Speaker 5: but offensively, does it just feel like Jones is still
• 12:07
  Speaker 5: trying to figure things out?
• 12:09
  Speaker 6: Yeah, it's crazy to think about, right? Because during training camp,
• 12:12
  Speaker 6: it's one of the biggest questions we asked is how
• 12:14
  Speaker 6: does Daniel Jones look? How has he, how have you
• 12:17
  Speaker 6: as an offensive player kind of seen where he starts
• 12:20
  Speaker 6: to shake out, right? And everyone said, you know, he
• 12:22
  Speaker 6: looks great. He looks like he never got hurt. And
• 12:25
  Speaker 6: it looks like a thing where we're going to be
• 12:29
  Speaker 6: able to pick up right where we left off and
• 12:30
  Speaker 6: have that hot start like we did. And clearly that's
• 12:33
  Speaker 6: not been the case, right? He's had issues holding onto
• 12:36
  Speaker 6: the ball, 10 turnovers so far through seven games. It's
• 12:39
  Speaker 6: been a real problem, but Shane Steichen is committed to
• 12:42
  Speaker 6: Daniel Jones as his quarterback because he lauds his ability
• 12:45
  Speaker 6: to prepare and also just his work ethic as a
• 12:50
  Speaker 6: whole beyond just game preparation, just what he does throughout
• 12:53
  Speaker 6: the week, the kind of leader he is, things like that.
• 12:55
  Speaker 6: But those kinds of things have to be seen on
• 12:58
  Speaker 6: the field as well. You can't just have those intangibles
• 13:00
  Speaker 6: just on the practice field, you have to be able
• 13:04
  Speaker 6: to take that out as well.
• 13:06
  Speaker 5: We always know the AFC South games, we never overlook
• 13:09
  Speaker 5: because these teams know each other so well, anything can happen.
• 13:12
  Speaker 5: But looking towards this Sunday, who do you feel like
• 13:14
  Speaker 5: on offense, maybe giving an X-Factor player on each side,
• 13:17
  Speaker 5: who needs to have a good game if the Colts
• 13:18
  Speaker 5: want to get a win?
• 13:20
  Speaker 6: Yeah, I mean, Jonathan Taylor is the easy answer, right?
• 13:22
  Speaker 6: Because whenever he gets going, it's it spells wonder for
• 13:26
  Speaker 6: the Colts. But he's had a relatively quiet season. He's
• 13:29
  Speaker 6: not rushed for more than 100 yards yet this year.
• 13:32
  Speaker 6: He has come close. He's had two 95-yard games, but
• 13:35
  Speaker 6: that's still not what you expect out of a league
• 13:38
  Speaker 6: leading back, a guy who's had MVP-like seasons. He ripped
• 13:41
  Speaker 6: off his longest run of the year in Minneapolis this
• 13:44
  Speaker 6: past weekend, a 38-yard touchdown run to start things off.
• 13:47
  Speaker 6: And unfortunately, it all kind of went downhill from there.
• 13:50
  Speaker 6: But I think that that'll be a good sign, too,
• 13:52
  Speaker 6: just that the offensive line with the departure of longtime
• 13:56
  Speaker 6: guard Quinton Nelson is able to hold it down. I'm
• 13:59
  Speaker 6: eager to see if the Colts move their rookie in,
• 14:02
  Speaker 6: which is Jalen Farmer out of Kentucky, if he fills
• 14:05
  Speaker 6: that spot and to see what he can do, because
• 14:07
  Speaker 6: ultimately that's going to be a big thing. But I
• 14:09
  Speaker 6: think it's all going to come from the backfield anyway.
• 14:11
  Speaker 6: I think Seth McGowan is going to be a huge
• 14:13
  Speaker 6: guy as well. He filled in as both the kicker
• 14:16
  Speaker 6: turner and came in to be a supplemental RB2 to JT.
• 14:20
  Speaker 6: And he had the great game of his young career. So,
• 14:23
  Speaker 6: so far, I think that he's going to be a
• 14:25
  Speaker 6: guy we have to look at as a, I think
• 14:28
  Speaker 6: if he has a good game, the Colts will have
• 14:29
  Speaker 6: a good one as well. And then defensively, I think
• 14:32
  Speaker 6: Cam Bynum is going to have to, going to have
• 14:35
  Speaker 6: to run and be all over whatever the Jags have
• 14:38
  Speaker 6: going on. I think that he has been able to
• 14:41
  Speaker 6: force turnovers in a way that this defense has been
• 14:43
  Speaker 6: struggling to do. So I think if they're able to,
• 14:46
  Speaker 6: you know, intercept Trevor Lawrence or just kind of get
• 14:49
  Speaker 6: in the way and make a little commotion.
• 14:50
  Speaker 3: I think that things will.
• 14:52
  Speaker 6: Feel a little more in control for the horseshoes, but
• 14:55
  Speaker 6: the Jags certainly have that home field advantage coming up
• 14:58
  Speaker 6: this Sunday.
• 14:58
  Speaker 5: They do, but it's always going to be an interesting
• 15:01
  Speaker 5: one when these two teams face off. So we'll see
• 15:02
  Speaker 5: you on Sunday. Awesome.
• 15:04
  Speaker 6: Thank you.
• 15:04
  Speaker 5: That was Behind Enemy Lines. Stick with us here on
• 15:06
  Speaker 5: Jags AM. Coming up, we'll give you our keys to
• 15:09
  Speaker 5: victory against the Colts.
• 15:15
  Speaker 1: Well, Suddath is Florida's most trusted and dependable moving company.
• 15:19
  Speaker 1: Suddath is proud to be the official moving company of
• 15:21
  Speaker 1: the Jacksonville Jaguars. To get a guaranteed quote, visit suddath.com
• 15:26
  Speaker 1: slash Jacksonville. And we're back in the Hyundai studios on
• 15:29
  Speaker 1: Jags AM. Brian John and the coach, Mark Duffner, who
• 15:34
  Speaker 1: we send off the couch to the board to give
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  Speaker 1: us his what-ifs for Sunday and a Jacksonville win over
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  Speaker 1: the Colts.
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  Speaker 2: Coach, go get them. Brian and John, I can't wait
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  Speaker 2: for this segment right now. I love this now. It's
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  Speaker 2: going to be about matchups today. First of all, number one,
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  Speaker 2: win the run game. Right now, with Tootin and Rodriguez,
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  Speaker 2: that two-headed monster we got there, over four yards a
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  Speaker 2: carry right now, attacking Indianapolis' run game right now, which
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  Speaker 2: is about 22nd in the league, their run defense right now.
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  Speaker 2: So we've got to win that in the trenches. It's
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  Speaker 2: going to help us a little bit, the fact that
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  Speaker 2: they've got DeForest Buckner out of that unit right now,
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  Speaker 2: a dominant player for them. But that's something we've got
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  Speaker 2: to dominate to help our passing game, to help move
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  Speaker 2: the sticks. And then the other side of the football,
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  Speaker 2: we've got to stop the run. Again, we're number one
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  Speaker 2: right now in yards per carry and yards per game.
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  Speaker 2: Outstanding right now. But Indianapolis' running game last week, over
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  Speaker 2: 150 yards against Minnesota. Jonathan Taylor, 94 yards against Tennessee
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  Speaker 2: the week before, 95 yards against Minnesota. against Minnesota last week,
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  Speaker 2: and then McGowan, another running back right now. So their
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  Speaker 2: running game is spiking up right now. That's an area
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  Speaker 2: we've got to dominate in terms of play, big time
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  Speaker 2: in terms of their running game. Number two, Trevor stays hot.
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  Speaker 2: Right now he's at the top of the league in
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  Speaker 2: almost every category in the top five, passing, touchdowns, everything,
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  Speaker 2: playing great. Last two games, over 300 yards apiece. So outstanding.
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  Speaker 2: That's going to be an onus for our offensive line
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  Speaker 2: and running back to continue to protect him. But going
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  Speaker 2: against an Indianapolis secondary right now, it's a little bit
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  Speaker 2: banged up. They've got Sauce Gardner, I think, with a calf.
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  Speaker 2: They've got Wally, I think, with a groin right now.
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  Speaker 2: They're a nickel corner. Cam Taylor-Britt out on IR injuries
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  Speaker 2: right now. I had a practice squad player come up
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  Speaker 2: and play corner, so... A banged-up secondary right now. Again,
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  Speaker 2: Buckner out of the mix in terms of rush. Stay
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  Speaker 2: hot right now. Move the football. Attack a defense that
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  Speaker 2: will utilize disguise quite a bit. I know Lou Anarumo.
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  Speaker 2: I know where he's going with that. And number three
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  Speaker 2: right now, getting better. Getting better right now across the board.
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  Speaker 2: One of the big focal areas will be in our
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  Speaker 2: pass defense. Right now, we're towards the back end of
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  Speaker 2: the league right now. Uncharacteristic for us. Had over 300 yards,
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  Speaker 2: I think, passing the last couple games. and too many
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  Speaker 2: past explosives run, passes over 20 yards. So getting that
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  Speaker 2: fixed right now against, you know, Very good passing attack
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  Speaker 2: right now that's been streaky in terms of Daniel Jones
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  Speaker 2: and the receivers that they've got right now. Downs, Treadwell,
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  Speaker 2: Keenan Allen, Warren, a tight end that's one of the
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  Speaker 2: best in the league, and there are two running backs. So, again,
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  Speaker 2: rushing coverage, working together, playing sticky coverage as far as
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  Speaker 2: that's concerned, good communications. Let's get the ball from when
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  Speaker 2: the turnovers, those are areas to get better.
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  Speaker 1: All right, let's go to the top, Duff, and talk
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  Speaker 1: about stopping Jonathan Taylor, who we assume will play on Sunday.
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  Speaker 1: He hasn't been traded yet. It's Thursday as we talk
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  Speaker 1: about this. He'll probably be here on Sunday. Last year,
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  Speaker 1: the Jaguars held him to 74 rushing yards on 21
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  Speaker 1: carries here. They held him to 70 yards on 20
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  Speaker 1: carries there. They were pretty good against him, but he's
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  Speaker 1: been able to explode against them at times in his career.
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  Speaker 1: So what's the key to Jonathan Taylor, who seems to
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  Speaker 1: be a guy who can turn on a dime and go?
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  Speaker 2: Well, shoot, we're going to have to play disciplined defense
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  Speaker 2: right now. Everybody doing their responsibility, being run sound in
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  Speaker 2: terms of run fits, gap sound in terms of run fits,
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  Speaker 2: and tackling. This guy can get yards after the carry
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  Speaker 2: big time. So, again, tackling will be a factor for
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  Speaker 2: us right now. He's hot right now. Their offense is
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  Speaker 2: going to run through him. They want to have ball control.
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  Speaker 2: They want to control the clock. They want to run
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  Speaker 2: the football. That's going to be key for us. Duff,
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  Speaker 2: I'll go the other way.
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  Speaker 4: Jaguars, running backs, the running game– It feels to me,
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  Speaker 4: maybe not each week progressively, but overall, they are getting
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  Speaker 4: closer to being the running team they want to be.
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  Speaker 4: I think they've hit it at times.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, yeah.
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  Speaker 4: I guess talk about Tootin and Rodriguez. And I think
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  Speaker 4: we knew that Rodriguez was this physical. But these are
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  Speaker 4: two physical guys, and it feels like by season's end,
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  Speaker 4: if everybody's healthy, This could be a playoff, grind it out,
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  Speaker 4: punch you in the mouth type of offense But I'm
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  Speaker 4: not sure people nationally see this team that way yet.
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  Speaker 2: Well, I'm with you, John. I see it that way
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  Speaker 2: for sure. And I think the offensive line, first of all,
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  Speaker 2: needs to be lauded for their play in terms of
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  Speaker 2: the run game. My God, they're committed right now to
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  Speaker 2: being a physical group that knocks you off the football
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  Speaker 2: and can get to tough yards. And then, as you
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  Speaker 2: just mentioned, what Basial Tootin has done And Chris Rodriguez,
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  Speaker 2: Chris Rodriguez ran over the Houston linebacker last week for,
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  Speaker 2: you know, the biggest explosive run that he had. I mean,
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  Speaker 2: the physicality that we're seeing from our running backs, and
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  Speaker 2: we're inches from breaking them. We have broken them. Penalty
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  Speaker 2: should have brought them back. But we're inches from getting
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  Speaker 2: the big, big explosive runs we want. But the physicality
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  Speaker 2: starts with the offensive line, the blocking schemes, the way
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  Speaker 2: they're finishing right now, and a little bit more finish
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  Speaker 2: as far as that's going to spring these big plays.
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  Speaker 1: I've got a thought on Trevor Lawrence. In all of
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  Speaker 1: your years in football, you've seen great quarterbacks playing at
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  Speaker 1: a high level. Can you put into perspective where he
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  Speaker 1: is as we head into week eight in the NFL?
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  Speaker 2: Brian, I really like where he is right now. I
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  Speaker 2: see confidence out there. I see leadership. I see command
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  Speaker 2: of the offense. I see really good throws. I see
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  Speaker 2: utilizing his legs way more now, and he feels the
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  Speaker 2: right time to use it, which puts stress on the defense.
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  Speaker 2: I mean, I I just, again, it's not a one-man show,
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  Speaker 2: but boy, what he's doing in terms of moving the chains,
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  Speaker 2: scoring points, making good decisions, getting the ball out, throwing
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  Speaker 2: the ball on time. I mean, it's been excellent. I
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  Speaker 2: see it only getting better and better. He hasn't reached
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  Speaker 2: the pinnacle yet. He's ascending.
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  Speaker 4: Duff, you know far more about what scheming looks like
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  Speaker 4: than I do, but it seems like they really put
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  Speaker 4: Trevor in positions to succeed, meaning The choices that he's
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  Speaker 4: asked to make seem very clear-cut. There's very little uncertainty
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  Speaker 4: in the pocket. I'm not saying he'll never throw a
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  Speaker 4: pick again, but they've really done a good job, I think,
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  Speaker 4: of playing to his strengths and putting him in a
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  Speaker 4: position to be confident when he goes out there.
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  Speaker 2: And, John, what you just described is great coaching. I mean,
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  Speaker 2: that's the job of the coach is to put players
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  Speaker 2: in a position to take advantage of their strengths and
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  Speaker 2: to be successful, and his staff's done it across the board.
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  Speaker 2: I like the communication that I feel and see between
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  Speaker 2: Trevor and Liam and Grant and Yudinsky. I mean, they've
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  Speaker 2: got a good feel, and that's where it starts. You've
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  Speaker 2: got to have that kind of connection with your quarterback
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  Speaker 2: if you're the coaching staff. And so they have clearly
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  Speaker 2: gotten all those other layers, whatever they are, for any player,
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  Speaker 2: and they've got a great situation right now where they
• 22:21
  Speaker 2: can probably look at each other and know what they're
• 22:23
  Speaker 2: thinking and how to make plays.
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  Speaker 1: All right, Duff, thanks so much. We'll see you back
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: here on the couch for Monday's headlines today in just
• 22:30
  Speaker 1: a moment. As we go to break, we'll tell you
• 22:32
  Speaker 1: that Florida Blue has been here in the Jacksonville community
• 22:35
  Speaker 1: for more than 80 years. They're proud to be presenting
• 22:39
  Speaker 1: sponsor of Sunday's game. Florida Blue, committed to you, committed
• 22:44
  Speaker 1: to Jacksonville. And we are back after this to wrap
• 22:48
  Speaker 1: up Jags AM on a Thursday. Well, see Fields first.
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: Fields is Jacksonville's premier luxury auto group. Go to fieldsauto.com. Brian, John,
• 23:03
  Speaker 1: and Mark with you here on Jags AM from the
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: Hyundai Studios inside the Miller Electric Center. And it is
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: time for Monday's headlines today where we try to give
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  Speaker 1: you a little prediction on what we think will happen
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  Speaker 1: on Sunday through the magic of a Monday morning headline
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  Speaker 1: in our fictional newspaper. John, what you got?
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  Speaker 2: I went kind of boring.
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  Speaker 4: I went back to normal. and there should be a
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  Speaker 4: parenthesis there, their desired normal. Because, you know, I think
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  Speaker 4: it's normal for them to stop the run, and I
• 23:33
  Speaker 4: think they want it to be normal to be a
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  Speaker 4: dominant running team. So I just feel like coming out
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  Speaker 4: of the bye, after the bad taste in Houston, you've
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  Speaker 4: got 11 games left. You're probably feeling healthier than you
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  Speaker 4: ever have. I think they want to flex this week, Duff.
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  Speaker 4: I think they want to show there's nothing better coming
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  Speaker 4: out of the bye after the bad taste in Houston.
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  Speaker 4: then if they walk off that field holding the Colts
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  Speaker 4: to 60 yards rushing and they've got a 140-yard rushing
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  Speaker 4: day in their back pocket with maybe a long run,
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  Speaker 4: that's what they want to be. I feel like they're
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  Speaker 4: going to get to that, and I feel like they'll
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  Speaker 4: do that on Sunday.
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  Speaker 1: So let me add to that. What else is normal
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  Speaker 1: is winning at home. The Jaguars have won six consecutive
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  Speaker 1: regular season games here at Everbank Stadium.
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  Speaker 4: By like 38 to 11, by the way, the margin
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  Speaker 4: of victory.
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  Speaker 2: It's incredible.
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  Speaker 1: Over 17-point margin of victory in all of them and
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  Speaker 1: scored more than 34 points in all of them.
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  Speaker 2: Duff, what you got? I got, Brian, I got 12
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  Speaker 2: in a row. And what I mean by that is
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  Speaker 2: 12 in a row against beating this team, Indianapolis, here
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  Speaker 2: in the stadium at home. I'm with John. This team
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  Speaker 2: came out with a bad taste in their mouth. I
• 24:37
  Speaker 2: think they're determined coming out of the bye. to fix
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  Speaker 2: the things that they've got to fix right now, and
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  Speaker 2: to get back to winning ways in a dominant fashion
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  Speaker 2: against the Colts.
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  Speaker 1: Makes a lot of sense. It is a remarkable string
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  Speaker 1: the Jaguars have put together, winning 11 in a row.
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  Speaker 4: What's super unbelievable is that includes the win in a
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  Speaker 4: 1-15 season. Yeah, the first one against Phillip Rivers in 2020. Yeah,
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  Speaker 4: I mean, some of these wins in this streak, It's
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  Speaker 4: not like the Jags have been dominant during this streak.
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  Speaker 4: They've been bad a couple of years during this streak
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  Speaker 4: and still beat.
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  Speaker 6: The Colts here.
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  Speaker 1: But the Colts have been so inconsistent to quarterback. Among
• 25:10
  Speaker 1: the quarterbacks who have started in that 11-game string, Matt Hasselbeck,
• 25:15
  Speaker 1: Andrew Luck, Jacoby Brissett.
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  Speaker 4: There was a 6-3 win over Luck mixed in there, too,
• 25:21
  Speaker 4: when the Colts were really good.
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  Speaker 2: Daniel Jones, Joe Flacco. It goes on and on.
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  Speaker 1: Eight quarterbacks, for sure. I went with how, not who.
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  Speaker 1: In other words... It's how the Jaguars win. John talked
• 25:33
  Speaker 1: a bit about walking off the field, having run the
• 25:36
  Speaker 1: ball for more than 100 and holding the Colts to
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: less than 60, which is kind of the numbers where
• 25:41
  Speaker 1: the Jaguars have been all season. It's how you win
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: this game on Sunday. You dominate by imposing your will,
• 25:48
  Speaker 1: playing your style. Liam Cohen loves to talk about play
• 25:51
  Speaker 1: style with his team. This is our standard. This is
• 25:54
  Speaker 1: who we are. Go and play to your standard. How,
• 25:57
  Speaker 1: not who. Listen, they traded away Quentin Nelson. who's the
• 26:00
  Speaker 1: best guard I've ever watched play football. And then they
• 26:04
  Speaker 1: trade away DeForest Buckner, who is the one guy on
• 26:07
  Speaker 1: their defense that you felt like could really disrupt, even
• 26:10
  Speaker 1: if he should get his hands up in the middle
• 26:12
  Speaker 1: and knocking balls down, making it difficult for Trevor to
• 26:15
  Speaker 1: see down.
• 26:15
  Speaker 2: They're gone.
• 26:16
  Speaker 1: So it's about how you win this game, not who
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  Speaker 1: plays for the Indianapolis Colts. So we'll see. I believe
• 26:23
  Speaker 1: all of us think the Jags win on Sunday. Glad
• 26:25
  Speaker 1: to be home after we're 35 days away.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean, it's like.
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  Speaker 2: A year ago for me. I can't believe it. Yeah,
• 26:33
  Speaker 2: glad to be home.
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  Speaker 4: It's and don't forget three more road games after this.
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  Speaker 4: So this is a enjoy Sunday.
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  Speaker 2: Enjoy.
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: It's an important window for the Jaguars in terms of
• 26:43
  Speaker 1: the construction timeline for the stadium. Mark Lamping is going
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: to address that a little bit later today with the
• 26:48
  Speaker 1: media and the Jaguars. If they can get through this
• 26:50
  Speaker 1: with a record that puts them in a position to
• 26:52
  Speaker 1: go into December in a strong spot, which it would
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: appear that they could. then it will benefit everybody involved.
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  Speaker 1: So for John Ogier and Mark Duffner, thanks for joining
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  Speaker 1: us here on Jags AM. And we'll talk to you
• 27:04
  Speaker 1: on Sunday with a full day of coverage for the
• 27:07
  Speaker 1: Jags in Week 8 against the Indy Colts.
• 27:08
  Speaker 6: Talk to you soon.