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Jaguars have 31 on active roster with NFL playoffs experience
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- Jaguars have 31 on active roster with NFL playoffs experience
The Jacksonville Jaguars are in the NFL playoffs and will take their first step toward a potential Super Bowl berth on Jan. 11 at EverBank Stadium when they play the Buffalo Bills (1 p.m., CBS).
The Jaguars (13-4) haven't been to the playoffs since the 2022 season, when they beat the Los Angeles Chargers 31-30 at home and lost at Kansas City 27-20 . Before that, they had not been in the playoffs since 2017, when they won twice to reach the AFC Championship game.
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There are 12 players on this year's active roster who saw game action in the 2022 playoffs and one player, defensive tackle Dauwane Smoot , who was on the roster for the 2017 playoffs and had 33 snaps in three games, with one tackle and two quarterback hits.
Smoot was injured in 2022 and didn't play, but after he left for Buffalo, he played in all three postseason games for the Bills last year, getting 97 snaps, two tackles and five quarterback hits.
Jaguars coach Liam Coen , who has coached in eight playoff games on the staffs of the L.A. Rams and the Tampa Bay Bucs , said he won't have to go to great lengths to explain the difference in playoff football from the regular season.
"Sunday at 1 o'clock, it may be a little faster," he said. "It may be a little bit more physical. I think that's just kind of what you feel when you know it's one and done, right? When you know you're in a game that it's win or go home. So, I'm sure the intensity level will be up-ticked a little bit, but I think our guys will be ready for it."
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Linebacker Devin Lloyd , who played in both Jaguars playoff games as a rookie in 2022, said those with the experience would be schooling rookies and other players who have yet to breathe the rare air of an NFL playoff game.
"The guys that haven't been in those playoff environments, we talk about it," he said. "We've been talking about just understanding what playoffs are going to be like. And for us, I think everybody knows what this is going to be, what this experience is going to feel like. It's just a matter of getting to the game. It's like, 'Okay, yeah, this is the playoffs.' But we just keep preaching at the end of the day, it's football."
Center Robert Hainsey , who has four playoff games under his belt from his time with the Tampa Bay Bucs, said there will be a battle between an increased excitement level and maintaining the routine that got the Jags there in the first place.
"It definitely does kick up a little bit, but this is exactly where you want to be," he said. "This is why we play the game ... to get to this opportunity, and it's just another opportunity. It's the next one, it's the most important one, and we've got to do everything we can this week, like we've done all year, to put ourselves in the best position to win this game."
Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) spikes the ball after scoring a two point conversion during the fourth quarter of an NFL first round playoff football matchup Saturday, Jan. 14, 2023 at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Fla. Jacksonville Jaguars edged the Los Angeles Chargers on a field goal 31-30. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]
Here's the playoff experience breakdown for the Jaguars:
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Players on the 2022 Jaguars (two games)
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OT Walker Little
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LB Foye Oluokun
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LB Devin Lloyd .
Players on the 2017 Jaguars (three games)
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DT Dawuane Smoot (Smoot was on the 2022 team but on injured reserve for the playoffs).
Veterans in first season with Jaguars
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DT Arik Armstead , 12 games, San Francisco
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DT Austin Johnson . eight games, Tennessee and Buffalo
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OG Patrick Mekari , eight games, Baltimore
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TE Johnny Mundt , seven games, L.A. Rams and Minnesota
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TE Quintin Morris , seven games, Buffalo
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S Eric Murray , six games, Kansas City and Houston
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DT Matt Dickerson , six games, Tennessee and Kansas City
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C Robert Hainsey , four games, Tampa Bay
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WR Dyami Brown , three games, Washington
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WR Jakobi Meyers , one game, New England
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DE Emmanuel Ogbah , one game, Miami
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CB Greg Newsome II , one game, Cleveland
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WR Tim Patrick , one game, Detroit
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RB DeeJay Dallas , one game, Seattle
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LB Dennis Gardeck , one game, Arizona
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OT Chuma Edoga , one game, Dallas
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OG Ezra Cleveland , one game, Minnesota
Jaguars linebacker Travon Walker (44) and linebacker Josh Allen (41) combine to sack Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) during the second quarter of their come-from-behind wild-card playoff win in January 2023.
Total playoff experience for the Jaguars: 31 players for a combined 99 games.
Two Jaguars players have Super Bowl experience: Armstead (2019 and 2023 with San Francisco) and Mundt (2018 with the L.A. Rams).
Key playoff stats for Jaguars players
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Trevor Lawrence : 52 of 86 (60.4 percent), 505 yards, five TDs, five interceptions, four sacks, 72.1 passer rating.
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Travis Etienne : 30 attempts, 171 yards, 5.7 average, one TD; four receptions, 30 yards.
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Foye Oluokun: 12 tackles, 15 assists, two quarterback hits.
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Josh Hines-Allen : Four tackles, seven assists, one tackle for loss, one sack, four quarterback hits.
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Travon Walker: Two tackles, three assists, one tackle for loss, 0.5 sacks, three quarterback hits.
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Devin Lloyd: Seven tackles, six assists, one tackle for loss, two quarterback hits, one pass defensed.
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DaVon Hamilton: Three tackles, five assists, one tackle for loss, one quarterback hit, one pass defensed.
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Logan Cooke: Seven punts, 45.0 average, 41.7 net average, three punts inside the 20-yardline.
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Arik Armstead : 23 tackles, 15 assists, six tackles for loss, one sack, one fumble recovery.
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Eric Murray: 17 tackles, six assists, one interception (38-yard return), two passes defensed.
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Dyami Brown: 14 receptions, 229 yards, 16.3 average, one TD.
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Johnny Mundt: Three receptions, 40 yards, 13.3 average.
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Quintin Morris: Two receptions, 18 yards, 9.0 average.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars have plenty of NFL playoffs experience entering wild card game
