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Jacksonville Jaguars Doug Pederson job status: Players say it's not topic of locker room talk
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- Jacksonville Jaguars Doug Pederson job status: Players say it's not topic of locker room talk
Two Jacksonville Jaguars players on Monday said that the status of coach Doug Pederson 's future is a rare, if not non-existent topic in the locker room as the team's lost season drags through the final month.
Cornerback Tyson Campbell and running back Travis Etienne , who were made available to the media through a video conference, both said the issue of whether Pederson returns or a change is made by owner Shad Khan is above their pay grade and as such, not an issue over which they concern themselves.
Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1) rushes for yards against New York Jets cornerback Michael Carter II (30) during the second quarter Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]
The Jaguars (3-11) lost to the New York Jets 32-25 at EverBank Stadium on Sunday, their eighth one-score loss of the season. They play at Las Vegas (2-11) on Sunday (4:25 p.m., CBS)
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"Stuff like that is out of our control," said Campbell about whether players speculate on Pederson's future. "We can just control what we can control and that's focusing on these last three games of the season. But as far as that, pretty much not much locker room talk [about Pederson]."
When Campbell was asked if there was an assumption among players that Pederson will return for the 2025 season, he had a one-word answer: "Yes."
Etienne, who had 65 yards rushing and caught four passes for 20 yards against the Jets, said Pederson's job status is "nothing we worry about."
"It's out of our control anyway," he said. "Honestly, we just kind of focus on being 1-0 every week. It's kind of redundant but I feel like we just try to be the best that we can be each and every Sunday, to put great things on film and try to win games. But it hasn't worked in our way."
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Jaguars offense put up good numbers
The Jaguars did have an encouraging performance on offense average averaging 12 points per game in the previous four. Quarterback Mac Jones threw for 294 yards and two touchdowns, both to rookie wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr., who caught 10 passes for 105 yards to break Jaguar rookie records for yards and TDs.
Etienne and Tank Bigsby (42 yards) helped the Jaguars run for 136 yards and a 4.7 per-carry average, breaking a streak of six games in a row in which the Jags were held below 100 yards as a team.
"I feel like we all wanted to come out there with a win and put good things on tape," Etienne said. "I feel like we just kind of finally were clicking. We took a lot of the thinking out of it and just went out there playing football."
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Jaguars defense was torched by Rodgers , Adams
While the offense performed better, the defense was unable to stop the combination of Aaron Rodgers to Davante Adams in the second half. The Jets scored 25 points after intermission, with Rodgers throwing for 289 yards and three touchdowns and Adams catching nine balls for 198 yards and two of the scores — all in the second half.
Adams caught a 71-yard TD pass with 3:24 left and a 41-yard reception to set up Breece Hall 's 1-yard TD with 1:05 left for the winning score.
Campbell said the defense will continue battling.
"We've been going since late July … we're a tight-knit group and we want to finish what we started. We just have a passion to play for the guy next to us and that fuels going in week-in and week-out."
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville Jaguars players won't speculate on Doug Pederson future
