Monday, November 15 Updated: November 16, 12:03 PM ET Jaguars in uproar over lack of offense By Eddie Pells Associated Press |
|||||||||||||
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars offered proof that close games aren't necessarily entertaining and hard-fought victories aren't always satisfying.
Despite moving to 8-1, the Jaguars were in anything but a celebratory mood Monday, the day after their worst offensive output in team history, a 132-yard effort that had fans booing their every move. "Hopefully, it's a one-game deal, and it's going to get better," said coach Tom Coughlin. "But there's no question that when people in this locker room watch the tape of the offense, there are going to be some people who are very, very upset. Their pride will be down in their watchpocket." Fred Taylor had an MRI to diagnose the hamstring he reaggravated in the first quarter. Coughlin said he expected Taylor to be limited in practice this week. But the star running back's absence wasn't enough to explain an offense that materialized seemingly straight out of the stone age -- or at least from the expansion season of 1995. Not since the first game in team history, a 10-3 loss to Houston, had the Jaguars been so poor on offense. Even then, they managed nine more yards and one more first down than they had against Baltimore. "There's no question, we should be alarmed," said quarterback Mark Brunell, who went 20-for-29 for 118 yards. "We should be very concerned. We've got two very, very good receivers. We've got a running back who's absolutely incredible. We've got a good line, and we've got a good quarterback, and we need to be putting some points on the board." Instead, the Jaguars settled for two field goals and won for the first time in franchise history without scoring a touchdown. James Stewart relieved Taylor and rushed 18 times for 25 yards. Coughlin said Stewart was dinged up as well, and that rookie running back Stacey Mack would get repetitions in practice this week. He also might adjust the offense to run more smoothly without Taylor. "We'll do whatever we have to do to get a little spark," Coughlin said. "We need to get a little spark, there's no question about that." The downfall comes after a pair of games in which the Jaguars scored 41 and 30 points, and seemed to have all their problems solved. They refuse to blame the regression on the loss of Taylor, making the slowdown all the more befuddling. "Is there one answer? Yeah," said offensive lineman Tony Boselli. "We've got to play better, bottom line." Buried beneath the offensive doldrums is a defense that continues to dominate. The Jaguars emerged tied for first with the Ravens in total defense. In four games, they haven't allowed a touchdown. They're giving up an average of just 8.7 points. "Games like this happen," cornerback Aaron Beasley said. "We've just got to keep playing the way we do. We can't worry about the offense. It's a team game, but we've just got to keep doing our job." |
|