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'Gritty, not pretty': Jaguars find confidence at perfect time with win over Panthers
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- 'Gritty, not pretty': Jaguars find confidence at perfect time with win over Panthers
Confidence is key.
The Jacksonville Jaguars (9-7) entered Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers (2-14) with no reason to have confidence. The team had lost four straight games, starting QB Trevor Lawrence was lost to a shoulder injury and they were a loss away from being outside of the AFC South race.
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None of that mattered. The Jags played with high confidence anyway and it showed in their ninth shutout in team history, a 26-0 thrashing of the Panthers. It all started in practice, said Jaguars outside linebacker Josh Allen .
Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence watched Sunday's 26-0 victory over Carolina from the sidelines, missing his first NLF game.
Takeaways: Jaguars keep AFC South title hopes alive, defeat Panthers 26-0
"We came out Wednesday, that was one of the best practices we had all year. Thursday we followed up with it. Friday, executed the calls. Saturday, clean. And then Sunday we did all the hard work," Allen said after the game. "Just go out here and play. That was our mindset coming into the game."
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Backup quarterback C.J. Beathard , who was thrust into the game because of Lawrence's right shoulder injury, also emphasized the team's practice habits as a tell-tale sign of what might come Sunday.
"One of our better weeks of practice we had, just from an energy standpoint," Beathard said after the game. "So guys are locked in from early in the week and it showed out there on the field today."
The Jaguars held Carolina to 1-of-13 on third-down conversion attempts, including 124 total net yards (57 total net rushing yards and 67 total net passing yards).
Carolina's 67 net passing yards is the team's best performance against the pass since allowing just 52 net passing yards against the Baltimore Ravens in 2017.
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Panthers rookie QB Bryce Young completed just 19-of-32 passes for 112 yards and an interception.
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) is tackled by Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Josh Allen (41) during the fourth quarter of a regular season NFL football matchup Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jacksonville Jaguars blanked the Carolina Panthers 26-0. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]
Panthers interim head coach Chris Tabor said after the game he did not see Sunday's performance coming from Carolina.
Perhaps because Jacksonville wasn't supposed to be playing this well, and Carolina has done well the last two games, especially after their near-victory against the Packers .
"Did not see it coming. I will tip my hat to the Jaguars. The way we were trending, I did not see this performance coming down," Tabor said after the game.
No one saw the performance coming. At least no one except for the Jags, who preached last week about taking accountability and understanding what their jobs are.
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Jaguars linebacker Foye Oluokun said after the game he believes the team, and specifically some of the defense, saw what the Las Vegas Raiders did on Christmas to the Kansas City Chiefs , defeating them 20-14 with the winning points coming from the defensive side of the football, a pick-six by Raiders defender Jack Jones.
"All that finger-pointing about what the offense is doing ... regardless of what the offense is doing, we can win the game," he said. "We weren't playing well defensively. Doesn't matter what situation we're put in, there's always a chance to win, we can do our part to win the game."
Oluokun said when the team holds everyone accountable and everyone does their job, it looks like a "well-oiled machine."
"Everybody could win their one-on-ones now, nobody has to take care of somebody else doing it, so it's going to see," he continued. "Keep building on that and understand that your 1/11th is great for the team."
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Foyesade Oluokun (23) in action during an NFL football game against the Carolina Panthers, Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Gary McCullough)
Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said the defensive performance hadn't been where they wanted it over the last few weeks. That changed Sunday, however, and his team's performance didn't catch Pederson by surprise like it did Tabor.
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"After four weeks of a little bit of heartbreak, it's the one thing that I appreciate about our guys, they continue to roll up their sleeves. They continue to go to work," Pederson said after the game. "They know the mistakes they've made, that we've been making, but they continue to work and they continue to work hard during the week, and it showed today.
"It might not have been just a pretty football game, but they never are. They're hard. They're gritty. They're tough. They're physical. All that kind of stuff. Just proud of our guys for the way they competed today."
The Jaguars had every reason to lay down this week, and every reason not to lay down. They came into the game without a win in December, with their season on the line. They were without their leader and could see the end of the line.
Still, they stayed true and never relented even with several backups forced into action, something that ought to inspire confidence for the team moving forward.
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"Teams aren't going to make excuses for us. We're not going to make excuses. We have to make sure we're coaching the next guy up and putting them in positions to help us today," said Pederson. "I thought that they really did some good things. They stepped up. And what do they say? It's gritty, not pretty. They just hung in there and battled it out."
Oluokun, the originator of the "gritty, not pretty" phrase in Jacksonville agreed with Pederson's assessment of the team's confidence.
"Very happy that we won, does a great deal for our confidence. Let's continue to build on it and end the season right," he said.
The Jaguars head to Nashville this week to take on the Tennessee Titans , a game that'll decide whether or not the Jaguars win the AFC South.
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With a loss, one of the Houston Texans or Indianapolis Colts will win the division. With a win, the Jaguars will win it, becoming back-to-back AFC South champions for the first time in team history.
Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82 .
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars' win over Panthers without Trevor Lawrence inspires confidence
