JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- One of the most concerning elements of the Jacksonville Jaguars' late-season collapse to miss the playoffs in 2023 was Josh Hines-Allen's admission that nobody stepped up to provide the spark they needed to turn things around.
They didn't have a problem finding sparks in 2022 -- Rayshawn Jenkins' OT interception return for a touchdown against Dallas and Marvin Jones Jr.'s TD catch and Zay Jones' two-point conversion catch in the final seconds against Baltimore, for example -- but Hines-Allen said everyone kept waiting around for something to happen ... and it never did.
Which is partly why all six of the team's major free-agent signings came from perennial playoff teams. Those players -- center Mitch Morse, receiver Gabe Davis, returner Devin Duvernay, defensive linemen Arik Armstead, cornerback Ronald Darby, and safety Darnell Savage -- understand how to handle a late-season playoff push.
And, more importantly, how to stop things from spiraling out of control.
"Winners, right?" said defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen. "I mean, what you're describing is winners. You want to get a collection of winners on the same team and bring along some of the guys that maybe haven't been there before.
"A lot of that is those guys know execution. Don't beat yourself. Just be in the right spot, align and adjust, fundamentals and technique, and then ... finishing the game. Those guys bring that."
Those six players have appeared in a combined 49 playoff games, including 12 conference title games and three Super Bowls. Darby has the lone championship, winning Super Bowl LII with the Doug Pederson-coached Philadelphia Eagles after the 2017 season.
The rest of the current 90-man roster have appeared in a combined 100 playoff games -- which includes 10 by cornerback Tre Flowers (who is on his fourth team since entering the league in 2018 and is likely a longshot to make the 53-man roster).
Linebacker Foyesade Oluokun, who has appeared in two playoff games (both with the Jaguars), is glad he has a group of players he can mine for information when the season enters the final month. The Jaguars didn't handle the adversity of the final six weeks well last season -- which included injuries to receivers Christian Kirk and Zay Jones, quarterback Trevor Lawrence, and cornerback Tyson Campbell -- and it will help to have teammates who have gone through similar situations and have had success.
"They've seen more than we've seen probably because they played long and they've been successful," Oluokun said. "I'm sure they've had seasons where they weren't as successful, but they've been through it all and they can give their input on when things might be going awry. But I like seeing winners and I like hearing from winners so it's been cool to have them."
So far, though, the six free agent signees haven't said much to their teammates about their experiences. It's just the third week of training camp, Morse said, and there will be time for those conversations later in the season -- if they're even needed at all.
"I think it's one of those things that you just first see it, you feel it out first," he said. "... the last thing you want to do is come in with marching orders or say something to guys, when you haven't been with them [and] know them.
"I think part of it's just how you handle your day-to-day and these guys handle their day-to-day beautifully, and it's really fun to be a part of that. ... but it's more so just how you could be as consistent as possible. And I think that goes for everyone."
Morse and the other newcomers are aware of the impact the 1-5 finish had in the locker room. While they don't completely know all the reasons for the stumble -- and they don't see a reason to ask -- there is an agreement that having gone through that and learning from it is just as valuable as anything they could say or do if things start to go wrong this season.
And what the Jaguars would have learned from last season is that waiting for something to shake them out of their slump doesn't work, Duvernay said.
"Ultimately it lies on the players," Duvernay said. "The players have got to have the juice, got to create the spark, create a play, not waiting on one man to make a play. You go do it. You go be that spark. You go make that big tackle, make that big play, make that big catch. It is all a collective effort and everyone being selfless, taking care of one another. You're going to get punched at some point and you've just got to roll with it.
"It's going to be how you respond. You can't get punched and lay down. You got to be able to respond or react and take it from there."
None of the newcomers may provide that example better than Morse, whose Kansas City and Buffalo teams were a combined 35-8 in December and January regular-season games in his nine seasons. That includes a 10-0 mark with the Bills in the past two seasons.
Maybe he would have been able to help last season, when the Jaguars' lone victory in the final two months of the season came against Carolina. Maybe he, or any of the other five free agents, could have made a difference.
There's obviously no way to know, but that's a big reason why they're all here now.
"It's not one of us coming in holding some magic candle or lighting it and we're holding hands singing 'Kumbaya,'" Morse said. "I think it's just adding more pieces to the puzzle that have kind of gone through adversity and this team has now gone through adversity, so they know what that feels like.
" ... Consistency is the biggest thing. Don't ever get too high. Don't ever get too low. Celebrate the victories, but also be constructive about the defeats. And of course, take them personally, but don't let them be detrimental to your future endeavors."