Having swept the Texans last year for two of their four wins, the Jaguars were fairly confident this week at home against Houston. Coming off a last-second win against the Giants they could see improvement and how “the process” was taking hold. Not that Houston was any kind of pushover. With JJ Watt playing at an MVP level, Arian Foster looking like the Pro Bowl back he is, and Ryan Fitzpatrick coming off a 6-TD performance, it’s a pretty good test for the home team.

Again this week Sen’Derrick Marks played at a Pro Bowl level, recording 1.5 sacks in the first quarter to get the Jaguars in good field position. Marks is scheduled for a big payday if he gets to 8 sacks from the DT position. That’s a huge number coming from that spot on the field on a team that has won 2 games and isn’t usually harassing the QB because the opposition is throwing it all the time trying to catch up.

Taking advantage of the short field, the Jaguars drove the ball in from the 50 with a nice blend of runs by Denard Robinson and Toby Gerhart and a back-shoulder 26 yard pass from Blake Bortles to Marqis Lee to take a 7-0 lead. The TD pass was impressive because the Jaguars used their bootleg roll to the right goal line play but the Texans sniffed it out and covered everybody coming out of the backfield and the tight end off the line of scrimmage. Bortles kept the play alive rolling to the right and final Allen Hurns danced away from his man enough for Bortles to fit it in there for a touchdown.

Anytime Foster is in the game the Texans have a chance. When he’s healthy and playing, he gets a hundred yards a game pretty much all the time. The Jaguars were keeping him in check until one of their “fits” from the defensive secondary didn’t work on a running play and he ripped off 51-yards into Jaguars territory. Along the way he stiff-armed Josh Evans so hard that he de-cleated Evans at midfield. The Texans got a FG to make it 7-3. On the ensuing possession, Houston got the short field and scored on a Fitzpatrick run (following a 19 yard Foster carry) 10-7 Houston.

A lot of fans have been down on some of the free agent acquisitions for the Jaguars in the offseason. They cut Dekota Watson, Zane Beadles hasn’t had much to work with and Toby Gerhart isn’t the guy everybody thought he’d be. Hard to say if Beadles is just suffering from all the young guys around him or not. But it’s clear that Gerhart hasn’t been healthy until now. He’s running hard and is a good combination with Denard Robinson in the backfield. The Jaguars gave it to him on 3rd and 9 and he powered through the line and ran over a couple of guys on the next level for a first down. Scobee kicked another field goal to make it 10-10. And with Bortles running around looking for somebody, he checked down to Gerhart who blasted through a few guys again for a first down. Another Scobee FG made it 13-10 at halftime.

Bortles is playing more like the guy who came in during the second half of the third game of the year. He’s avoiding the rush, finding open receivers and not making the same mistakes he made in that five game stretch. Hard to say if he’s peeking out of the fog or not but he looks like that guy the Jaguars thought they drafted.

After halftime, the weather turned a little worse with a light mist and a cold wind blowing through the stadium. Apparently the Jaguars didn’t like the weather shift because the 3rd quarter was all Houston. They went on an 84 yard, 16 play TD drive to take a17-13 lead and intercepted Bortles at the 25 near the end of quarter and scored to start the 4th to take a 24-14 lead. The second touchdown was particularly galling because the Texans went for it on 4th down only to have Foster stoned at the goal line but slip away backwards and skirt untouched around the left end for the TD. There was a big swing of emotion on the play, elation when Foster was stopped but despair when it was apparent nobody tackled him and he slipped in for the score.

Houston controlled the clock on offense and stifled the Jaguars with their defense for most of the second half. With eight minutes to go in the game Bortles and the offense had officially -1 yards on the books. Cecil Shorts had a critical drop on a slant that he’d still be running on and the Jaguars gave it back to the Texans. Houston kicked another FG to make it 27-13.

Right when the Jaguars looked like they’d make a game of it by gaining 51 yards on two plays and getting to the Texans 29 yard line, they started going backwards with sacks and penalties. Houston did their best to grind the clock, Foster professionally and smartly staying in bounds to get it under 3 minutes before giving it back to the Jaguars.

I’m not sure if they’ll be able to pinpoint exactly why there was no production in the second half on either side of the ball. Critical drops (Shorts et al) and penalties, along with an inability to keep Bortles upright all contributed to their problems. Certainly his interception deep in their own territory didn’t help but it felt like a small step forward for Bortles in game management, performance and playing with more freedom than in the past.

While they had the lead at halftime, the Jaguars never felt in control of this game and while you’d like to say it was entertaining and fun to be there, in the second half it was anything but that. In fact, the stands were mostly empty as people retreated inside because of the rain and the cold.

Houston knelt on it for the final 2 minutes to add insult to injury, a wound that the Jaguars can only salve by being able to do the same to the Texans in the final game of the season.

One more home game on the 18th against Tennessee on a Thursday night that could be fun, and winnable.

You know anytime you’re going to face a Tom Coughlin coached football team they’re going to run the football. A lot. Former Jaguar Rashad Jennings is Coughlin’s workhorse in the backfield (another one of those guys like Montel Owens, Justin Forsett and Daryl Smith that I can’t figure out why they’re not on this team) and as expected, the Giants started out running the football. A lot. The Jaguars had three plays in the first quarter for nine yards while the Giants dominated the field and time of possession including a 19-play, 91 yard, 9 minute and 51 second drive for a TD (scored by Jennings) to take an early 7-0 lead. I’ll admit, it’s not what I expected from the Jaguars defense, especially in the middle.

A complete lack of production isn’t what I expected on offense early in the game either. The Giants took a 14-0 lead driving on a short field before the Jaguars even got to ten offensive snaps. Their first two offensive series where both three and out, the one on the goal line including a bad throw, a dropped pass and a batted ball. If Gus Bradley challenged his players and coaches to do more, to step up, it didn’t show in the first 25 minutes of the game. While Blake Bortles tries to find that aggressive side and measure it against turning the ball over, the rest of the offense has to step forward. The receivers have to get open and the offensive line has to move defenders off the ball. Neither of those things is happening.

Taking advantage of another short field, the Giants scored on a 17 yard run by Jennings (again) and took a 21-0 lead.

With the Giants rushing three on third down deep in Jaguars territory, Bortles was able to elude the rush and fire a strike to Alan Hurns downfield. But a defender met Hurns with his should right about the time he was going to catch the ball and delivered a big hit to force an incompletion. Hurns was on the ground for a while.

He did return as the Jaguars got their first drive of the day going. Offensive Coordinator Jedd Fish finally started rolling Bortles out of the pocket and hitting some guys on crossing patterns. Throw in a nice run by Denard Robinson and the Jaguars were inside the Giants ten. But Robinson occasionally still hesitates at the point of attack when there’s not an obvious hole there so the Jaguars went nowhere on first and second down, including a fade throw to Marqis Lee. (Which I don’t understand because no matter what he’s listed at, he’s actually around 5’8″.) A scramble by Bortles with a throw into the end zone to Cecil Shorts was negated by a holding call on Luke Joeckel and the Jaguars settled for a Josh Scobee field goal to make it 21-3.

Looking for a single word to describe the first half performance, “woeful” was the one that kept coming to mind. Without much production on offense, whether because of play calling or execution (or both) the Jaguars were hoping their defense would keep them in the game but that didn’t happen either. It is alumni weekend for the Jaguars and seeing all of those former players on the field had to give the Jaguars fans in attendance a good feeling about what they had at one point. And what they’re hoping for. There were big ovations for several players, including Jimmy Smith who hadn’t been in Jacksonville for a while.

Top open the second half the Jaguars moved the ball near to midfield before having to punt. But a big 61-yard punt by Brian Anger put the ball on the Giants 13. That’s when the defense started to come to life again, Geno Hayes sacking Eli Manning and forcing a fumble that JT Thomas jumped on in the end zone for a TD to make it 21-10 Giants.

Manning was sacked on third down on the Giants next possession as well and appeared to fumble but the officials ruled him down on forward progress and didn’t allow a challenge allowing the Giants to punt to the Jaguars 22.

After an exchange of punts, the Jaguars offense came to life, finally with some exotic play calling. The wildcat formation, the read-option by Bortles and a beautiful throw to Lee on a fade route to the back corner of the end zone from 30 yards out cut the score to 21-16. I know a 2-point conversion cuts it to a 3 point game but with 2 minutes left in the third quarter, all that did was kill the momentum with the pass was batted down at the line.

It’s almost unbelievable what happened next. The Giants were finding some momentum near midfield when Manning hit TE Larry Donnell on a little out route. He was hit high and low by the Jaguars and fumbled the ball on his way to the ground. Rookie Aaron Colvin was in on the tackle and also scooped the ball up for a score giving the Jaguars a 22-21 lead after they went for 2, again, and didn’t make it. Hindsight is 20/20 but going for two in both of those situations seemed a little early.

Meanwhile, I’m sure the Giants were confused. Weren’t they in control of this game 21-0? While the gashed the defensive line early on the ground, they couldn’t find anything that really worked in the second half. Until Eli Manning went to the short rhythm passing game and moved them right down the field. The defense stiffened and the Giants kicked a FG to take a 24-22 lead.

So with just over 3 minutes to play, Blake Bortles and the offense had a chance to redeem themselves. Just a FG wins it. And this is where confidence and careers are formed. Bortles looked decisive hitting Lee and Shorts for midrange gains. He ran the ball on the read-option a couple of times to get first downs. He looked like they were going to WIN THIS GAME. No hesitation, no second-guessing. And sure enough, they moved it to the Giants 25 yard line where Josh Scobee calmly kicked a 43 yarder to win the game, 25-24.

How they did it? If you follow Gus’ commands its about about giving a little more and finding a way. Whatever they were doing before wasn’t enough. And if it takes two defensive touchdowns, then go get two defensive TD’s. Hopefully Bortles and the offense gains some confidence after that game winning drive.

The good news is they get to play at home again next week. And the opponent is Houston.

It hasn’t been a good history against with the Colts for the Jaguars. With only 8 wins in 27 games, the Jaguars haven’t figured out what the Colts are all about. Two reasons are obvious though: Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck. The Colts have had success in just about every phase of the game against the Jaguars, and their 30-0 lead at halftime in Jacksonville in game three put Blake Bortles in the lineup. There is one stat that goes in the Jaguars favor: They’ve won 2 of the last 3 in Indianapolis.

This week the Jaguars will get Marcedes Lewis back in the lineup and Aaron Colvin will see his first action of the year after suffering an ACL injury at the Senior Bowl. The Colts have injuries of their own with Ahmad Bradshaw out of the backfield.

But they still have Andrew Luck.

“You want to be tested,” Colvin told me at the team hotel on Saturday. “He’s (Luck) a great player, he’ll test what we have, no question.”

Indy is 6-4 this year, so they’re not world-beaters. Last week they were thrashed on the ground, losing to the Patriots, 42-20. That’s what the Jaguars will try to do today, take advantage of the Colts inability to stop the run. With Denard Robinson starting and a healthy Toby Gerhart, look for Bortles to get some help on the ground.

Bortles in just shy of 2,000 yards passing this year with 8 TD’s and 14 interceptions. His passer rating is 72.3. In other words, being judged as anything but a rookie quarterback, he’s been average. But as a rookie QB, Bortles has shown improvement, a tremendous upside and an aggressiveness that can be fun to watch, or get him in trouble.

“It’s those turnovers on the plus side of the 50 that hurt,” he told us this week. “Those take points off the board.”

And his recognition of that is why there’s still optimism for his development this year. “He sees that and knows he can fix it,” Gus Bradley said during the taping of his weekly show. “Limiting turnovers, particularly on our side of the field is one of the things we challenged the players with this week.”

Bradley’s mantra has been all about “getting better” to the point where he’s redefined victory for the Jaguars. For his tenure in Jacksonville so far, fans have been satisfied with his rebuilding of the team. But after the bye week and the loss to Dallas, there’s a sense that they want more.

“We’re trying to give the ownership to the players as the final step,” Bradley said this week, “and we’re getting there.” While that’s a laudable goal, these last six weeks the Jaguars have to show more than just improvement. They have to show the ability to win. They don’t necessarily have to win, but rather look like they are in games and have a chance to grab victory.

If history is a marker, today’s not the day for that, so we should look to be surprised The Jaguars veteran defensive front seven should be able to stop the run and put pressure on Andrew Luck. How they “fit” behind the front seven will determine the Jaguars fate today.

And it could be an indicator for the rest of the year as well.

With one win, the Jaguars of 2014 sit near the bottom of the 20 teams who have worn the teal and black of the franchise since it’s inception in 1995. This week’s Top 20 is the best Jaguars teams, top to bottom in their 20 years of existence.

At the top is the 1999 team that went 14-2 in the regular season, demolished Miami in their first playoff game and lost to Tennessee at home if the AFC Title game despite leading 14-10 at halftime. That team had single digit rankings across the board including being the top ranked team in defensive points given up. They’re a clear cut #1.

From there it actually gets a little tricky. It would be easy to put the 1996 team here because they played in the Conference championship game but there are a few other contenders for that spot as well. The ’97 and ’98 teams were playoff teams while the 2005 club went 12-4 during the regular season. We’ll put the ’96 team second because they got hot in the playoffs and had two historic wins on the road in Denver and Buffalo.

We’ll follow that with the ’97 team with all of those Pro Bowlers on it and the ’98 squad that went 11-5 with the 2005 and 2007 playoff teams in the top six.

There are a lot of very average teams after that but the 2004 team had a winning record at 9-7 so they’ll go in at seven. Eight and eight teams of 2010 and 2006 would be 8 and nine. Both teams were huge disappointments under head coach Jack Del Rio, losing their last three games (needing only one win) to be eliminated from playoff contention.

The 7-9 team in 2000 is 10th because they were actually a decent football team that couldn’t get out of their own way. They suffered through a 5 game losing streak in the middle of the year and lost their last two games to finish under .500 for the first time in 5 years.

Historically, the Jaguars have had a losing record in 10 of their 20 years, including this year and 6 of the last eight. The last time the Jaguars had a winning record was 2007. So the 6-10 teams of 2001 and 2002 are in the 11th and 12th spots. It was the end of the Tom Coughlin era and when the Jaguars were going to have to pay for some salary cap issues. Even Del Rio lauded Coughlin’s coaching job with a thin roster for those two squads.

The first year team finished 4-12 but got the most out of the talent on the roster and is in at the 13th spot. Probably should have won only a couple of games in the expansion year. Behind that squad is the7-9 team under Del Rio in 2009 despite being 6-4 after 10 games, they lost 5 of their last six including their last 4 straight to start the end of Del Rio’s coaching career here.

In 2003, 2008 and 20011, all under Del Rio, the Jaguars went 5-11 and were never considered a contender.

Which brings us to the bottom 3. Hard to say if this year’s team will get any better but we’ll list them at 17 because at least they have a better roster than the past two. Last year’s team probably was good enough to get four wins so they’re in at 19. And at the bottom of the list is the 2012 team. Mike Mularkey took the head coaching job knowing that it was a massive rebuild and said frequently, “We’ll take our lumps” noting privately the lack of talent on the roster. But he never got a chance to put his plan in place, being dismissed after just one year along with General Manager Gene Smith. That roster probably had about two wins in it, and earned both.

Disagree? Send your ideas to sports@wjxt.com or tweet them with the #JagsTop20 and we’ll talk about it this week on Jaguars Friday Night.

1. 1999
2. 1996
3. 1997
4. 1998
5. 2005
6. 2007
7. 2004
8. 2010
9. 2006
10. 2000
11. 2001
12. 2002
13. 1995
14. 2009
15. 2003
16. 2008
17. 2001
18. 2014
19. 2013
20. 2012

When you spend anytime with Shad Khan, it’s easy to see why he’s been so successful in just about everything he’s done. He’s passionate about the things he’s involved in. His eyes light up when you talk about car parts. He has a vision for his football team and a vision for what role he can play in helping the city of Jacksonville. The trip to London is a big part of that economic stimulus Khan is looking for. When I spoke to him on Saturday morning in the library of 45 Park Lane, one of his favorite places in London, Khan was relaxed but focused on making this year’s trip a success for Jacksonville and the Jaguars.

“Last year we laid some of the ground work, and I think this year we’re harvesting some of those things,” he said referring to sponsorships that are being developed for the team and the economic ‘trade mission’ this trip has turned into for the City of Jacksonville. Meetings with a variety of potential international partners from Liverpool to South Africa all could be lucrative contacts for the future.

Khan is interesting in development in Jacksonville for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the positive impact it can have on his franchise. “We want to help. Pretty much from day one I felt and have shown it with action, the community has to grow so the team can grow, sort of a rising tide raising all boats kind of a concept,” he commented when I asked about his commitment to economic growth in the city.

“I’ve played a very active role in what do we have to do to attract jobs here. The Shipyards is just one of those projects to try and do that.” Khan is getting ready to make a proposal to develop the Shipyards with a Jaguars theme, rumored to include a practice field, some retail and possibly even an aquarium.

Recently, Khan was quoted as saying “A homeless guy in Detroit has more mojo than the millionaires in Jacksonville.” He knows he’ll have some opposition to his development ideas but sees incredible potential in the city. When I asked him about civic leadership doing it’s job in bringing business to town, he just laughed. But added, “There’s a lot there, but somehow it just doesn’t translate. I think we can play a role in helping with that.”

And while the city as a whole is in Khan’s vision, his focus is on revitalizing downtown.

“If you look at any urban planning, you cannot have a vibrant city without a vibrant downtown. That is absolutely something we’re lacking. We want to rejuvenate the downtown area. It’s right next to the stadium and there’s a lot of synergy. It’s going to help us.”

This year’s opponent seems to have given this game, and Khan’s and the Jaguars’ role in it a bigger stage. He even brought up Dallas’ image on a national scale. “We’re playing Dallas, they’re America’s Team,” Shad said. “We want to be the face of the league NFL International.”

Part of Khan’ excitement regarding this year’s game is the fact that Dallas is the opponent. Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones has been one of his mentors in the NFL ownership circle. “Jerry Jones couldn’t be kinder to me. Took me though the idiots guide to owning an NFL team. He’s an Iconic guy, I love him.”

Jones mentioned this week in a press conference that he expected Khan to have a bigger commitment to London. Khan said he’ll assess that shortly. “For us, we want to do the right thing for the franchise and the right thing for the city. We don’t have the growth in the Jacksonville, We know that. How do we stabilize the team. This is the second year of our 4 year commitment, so next year maybe we’ll say that’s the time to say ‘Hey, what do we do.'”

If you watch Khan operate, you see that he has a plan with whatever he’s doing. That certainly applies to his NFL team where the “rebirth and rebuilding” is in it’s second year. “We’ve gone through a process, we’ve got the youngest team in the league. What’s encouraging to me is that the last three or four games have come down to the last few plays. The players have to mature; we can’t lose all those games. It’s up to Gus and myself to get our expectations out clearly.” Which means the players, and coaches, will know exactly what Shad thinks when it comes to wins and losses starting next year.

Recently, Khan was named the most “popular NFL owner” by one publication. Certainly interesting for a guy who’s only been in the public eye for two years. He clearly has embraced that part of ownership but admitted the celebrity aspect of being an NFL owner kind of surprised him.

“I had no experience. The business I had is not a public business. Part of sports is you have to have a public profile. (You) were not interviewing me when we were doing auto parts. Some of the craziest things. Look at the boat on the Thames, who would have thought, I mean this is London, but it’s become a major curiosity. ”

Khan did bring his new boat “Kismet” to London and anchored just east of Tower Bridge. It has caused a stir with tourists constantly stopping to take pictures and make comments.

Khan has a plan for the boat and executed it. It’s Jaguars themed throughout, including a silver Jaguar on the bow with a teal light in its eye. He has the same kind of plan for the city and his football team. The boat was a six-year project. He’s hoping the plan for the team and the city takes less than that.

This is the second of four years the Jaguars are the “home” team in London as part of the NFL’s International Series. And as the home team, they get first pick of hotels, practice facilities and everything else that goes with the game.

But it’s still a lot of work.

The Jaguars left for London directly after their trip to Cincinnati, arriving mid-morning in the UK. For there they boarded busses to the outskirts of the city to the bedroom town of Watford and “London’s Country Estate” The Grove, their home for the next five days. And on Friday they packed up again and headed in town to the Wembley Hilton, across the street from the stadium.

“We’ll take this show anywhere, anytime,” Sen’Derricks said as the players settled into their newest “home” for a couple of nights. “Gus (Bradley) has done a good job with that message to the team, especially the young guys.”

Marks said he’s enjoyed the trip, his time in London and the practices in the UK. “There was a little sluggishness at the beginning of practice on Wednesday but we got over that real quick. Wednesday was a good practice and Thursday was even better. We’re on ‘go.'”

Things were set up so meticulously in London that the Jaguars had a bus to take them to the stadium for Saturday’s practice. Despite that it was just over 100 yards to the field. “They want to emulate just about everything that’s going on for Sunday,” one staffer told me. “They’ll ride to the stadium on Sunday so they’ll miss the crowd. So they’re riding over there today.”

This year’s trip had a familiar feel for many of the Jaguars and their fans. But it seemed there were fewer fans in black and teal to be found. A trip to Trafalgar turned up nary a Jaguars fan among the street performers, monuments and poppy memorial. We did see two young girls, perhaps 4th graders, in Jaguars print coats but that was it. So it was off to Westminster and the crowded corner overlooking the Cathedral, Parliament, and the London Eye.

We weren’t there long when Michael and Tammy Heath walked by, proudly sporting Jaguars gear. “We were here last year and it was great,” Michael said without prompting. “There aren’t as many Jaguars fans here and Cowboys fans aren’t representing. We’ll be walking by and they’ll say ‘Boo, Hiss, Go Cowboys’ and we’ll look around and they won’t be wearing any stuff. Maybe the cold has everybody bundling up,”

“Last year we did a bunch of stuff but we haven’t seen so we’re doing that today,” Tammy told us. “We did go down and see Shad’s boat,” she told us. When asked if it would fit under the Parliament Bridge she said, “I bloody well don’t think so.” Khan’s yacht “Kismet” drew a crowd on both banks of the Thames, with thousands of photos taken each hour.

Khan hosted dinners at Parliament and Kensington Palace, cocktails on his boat two nights, had sponsors at Craven Cottage for the Fulham match (they won 3-1) and guests at Wembley on Sunday. He’s been busy.

Sure would be a good weekend for Shad if the Jaguars could come up with a victory but not many people think that’s possible against Dallas. The Jaguars are a decided underdog in the game, especially with Tony Romo saying he’s playing.

Two road games in two weeks without coming home is a difficult task for any NFL team. The Jaguars have made this kind of trip two years in a row. In 2013 they traveled to Oakland and Seattle, staying on the West Coast in between the games and practicing in San Jose. Last year, they lost both games.

This year, the trip over two weeks has been bumpy from the start. In Cincinnati, the Jaguars had a couple of chances with momentum against a pretty good team but squandered them with mistakes and a turnover. Turbulence over the Atlantic Ocean at 39,000 feet ensured not much sleep for anybody onboard the team charter although some of the players might have gotten some rest. In an unusual and very well received team building move, Gus Bradley and the coaching staff, normally first class occupants on team charters, gave up their seats and allowed veteran players and starters (allocated by seniority and a sort of “lottery’) to fly ‘up front’ in the 47 transcontinental “lie-flat” cubicles available on the Virgin Atlantic Airbus 340-600. The coaches and senior staff sat in what Virgin Atlantic calls “Upper Class” sort of like a domestic first class seat in the US. While there were plenty of bumps going over and regular reminders to keep your seatbelt on (it was bumpy enough that if you weren’t wearing it you might get bounced out of your seat) one senior Jaguars staffer looked in on the players up front only to find them asleep. “Every one of them, sacked out,” he told me with a laugh.

If you’ve ever gone through London’s Gatwick airport, you know it’s a long slog to get to immigration, then off to baggage and customs. Of course, on arrival, it started to rain. While sponsors were whisked off to a luxury hotel in downtown London for the week, the team and the football staff boarded buses for the 1 ½ ride to their home for most of the week, The Grove Hotel. Outside of the city but accessable by “motorway” and the train, the Grove is a resort not unlike but smaller than the Greenbriar or the Homestead in the US. The NFL has used it as a base for one of the teams playing, building a football field for practice and erecting a temporary locker room right next to it. They also have a world class golf course that hosted a World Golf Championship event in 2006. Tiger Woods won it at 23 under par.

Of course when the team pulled up to the Grove, it rained a little harder.

Not to worry, the team grabbed their room keys and reported to the locker room for a quick workout and a ‘meet and greet.’ About 100 members of the Union Jax, the UK’s Jaguars fan club, were invited to the practice to watch, shake hands and have their picture taken with the players and coaches. And it actually stopped raining for a while.

UK Jaguars fans are rabid, coming from all over the country to see ‘their team” practice. Most were in jerseys. There were about a half dozen members of the British military there as well as athletes from the Invictus Games, a competition for wounded veterans.

When the formalities were concluded, the Jaguars UK coordinator introduced Head Coach Gus Bradley to the group and said, “So Coach, if you’ll do the honors?” Bradley stepped up and addressed the group, then led them in an impromptu version of the “We Believe In Victory” chant we saw him do in the locker room after the Browns victory.

“Did you know you were going to do that,” I asked Gus afterwards.

“NO,” he quickly responded and laughed. “Absolutely not. But we talk about engaging the fans at home and here as well. What better way to do that? Our fans are great and they’re growing. At home and here. They’re great!”

The players met with the coaching staff, went over the Cincinnati game and had the rest of the day off. Most took advantage of the bus provided to take them into Central London. The coaches worked on the game plan.

On Tuesday the players split into groups and went into the surrounding community to meet with local fans as well as students and military veterans. More than a dozen went to the NFL’s “Play 60” event in the nearest town and worked with 8 and 9 year olds on “American Football.”

“These are real American football players and they’re teaching us,” one young girl told us with wide eyes and real astonishment.

“You have to tackle and sometimes ‘budge’ somebody,’ one boy explained. “Yes, budge’ he emphasized apparently incredulous that you’d actually take somebody to the ground and it would be OK under the rules.

The rest of the day was the players day off, with most going into town and the rest playing ping pong, PlayStation in the players lounge, or just resting on the grounds of the Grove. A couple played the golf course and reported it was “spectacular.”

The team will start practice with “Competition Wednesday” and stay at the Grove through Friday afternoon. They’ll then transfer into London for their Saturday walk-thru and the game Sunday against the Cowboys.

Leading up to the game in Cincinnati, the Jaguars knew they’d be making some changes in their lineup and the Bengals would be a mixed bag of personnel who had gotten them to four victories this year. The Bengals are thin on the defensive line and at linebacker and their best running back; Giovanni Bernard is banged up and out. AJ Green is returning to the Bengals lineup after missing time with a toe injury. But on defense, Cincy has six first round picks among their safeties and cornerbacks.

Blake Bortles had an “attacking” week at practice according to Head Coach Gus Bradley, focusing on not turning the ball over. With a nice mix of the pass and run, the Jaguars moved the ball with only one heart-skipping moment when Bortles threw a pass right to a Cincy defensive back but Toby Gerhart, healthy, and Denard Robinson, again, moved the ball downfield leading to a Josh Scobee FB, 3-0 Jaguars. It was a little conservative when it came inside the red zone but points are points and the Jaguars took an early lead.

It wasn’t a shock when the Jaguars defense stuffed the Bengals rushing attack, forcing Andy Dalton to go to the air to try to move the ball. With a week to prepare with Demetrius McCray and Dwayne Gratz at corners and Sherrod Martin knowing he was going to play, the Jaguars defensive backfield looked well organized early in the game against the Bengals passing attack. All three made nice plays on Dalton passes to keep Cincinnati at bay. But between Green and Mohammed Sanu, the Bengals have a formidable duo heading downfield. So when they started to get on rhythm with Dalton, it was not good news for the Jaguars. Using those two and the occasional run from Jeremy Hill the Cincinnati marched down the field on a 10-play 80 yard 4:33 drive to take a 7-3 lead.

It was a few early mistakes that cost the Jaguars good opportunities. A couple of penalties on the offensive line on Zane Beadles and Austin Pasztor and a missed tackle on defense by Telvin Smith either snuffed out drives for the Jaguars or kept things going for the Bengals early. Those mistakes are the kinds of things that get you beat, the little things that are magnified when you’re at least competitive.

Good teams usually get some breaks. The Jaguars forced AJ Green into a fumble but Abry Jones couldn’t control it at the 10-yard line and Sanu recovered. It’s the kind of play good teams get and the Jaguars haven’t gotten there yet. It was a good defensive stand helped by an offside penalty against Green that wiped out his TD catch. A field goal ensued and the Jaguars trailed 10-3.

Maybe it’s because they’re young or maybe that’s just an excuse but the Jaguars small mistakes are blatant enough to keep them from succeeding and allowing the other team second, or easy chances. Telvin Smith missed a tackle that would have forced a Cincinnati punt. Then he apparently missed a block on the punt that allowed the Bengals to come up with a block in the end zone that resulted in a safety, 12-3 Bengals. And at the end of the half, Smith was called for unnecessary roughness after the punt on the final play of the half, pushing the kickoff back to the 20 to open the second half.

The Bengals made the Jaguars pay for that penalty, taking advantage of the field position gained and scored on their opening drive to take a 19-3 lead. And just when you thought that might be the game-got-out-of-hand moment, Blake Bortles ran the naked bootleg and threw a long pass to Alan Hurns for a TD. Hurns made a great adjustment on the ball and perhaps Bortles under threw it on purpose but either way the Jaguars scored to make it 19-10.

After a nice interception by Sherrod Martin where he broke on the ball in front of the receiver, it was the small things that kept the Jaguars from scoring. Denard Robinson ran through a gaping hole only to get in front of himself trying to run down field and fell after a decent but not great gain. Then on 2nd down Bortles didn’t throw the ball downfield enough for Toby Gerhart to go get it, incomplete. Incomplete on third down and they were forced to punt. The plays were there; the jaguars just didn’t make them when it counted.

Special teams bit the Jaguars again, allowing a long punt return by Adam (Pacman) Jones followed by a TD pass from Dalton to Green, again, 26-10 Bengals.

Again, the Jaguars fight back, scoring on another nice adjustment by Hurns in the end zone against double coverage made the score 26-16 and the Jaguars decided to go for two. Cecil Shorts couldn’t hold the conversion in the end zone and they were still down by 10. I know the card probably says go for 2 there but why not kick the PAT and be down by nine where a FG and a TD wins the game for you?

Still, a really nice play by JT Thomas called an interception on a Dalton fumble/pass led to a TD for the Jaguars and they’re now down by 2, 26-23 with just over 8 minutes to play. It’s the first game with two interceptions for the Jaguars in 2014. That’s where with 10 minutes to play I think you kick the PAT and have a chance to win the game. I know if you had made the 2-pt conversion you’d be playing for a chance to tie, but that’s hindsight.

No matter though because Josh Scobee kicked the ball out of bounds on the kickoff, giving the ball to the Bengals at the 40. On the first play, Jeremy Hill ripped off a 60-yard TD, breaking tackles along the way to give Cincy a 33-23 lead. Again, little things, like a kick out of bounds by a veteran player gave the Bengals a chance. And they cashed it in.

But again the Jaguars responded, marching down the field with a couple of nice catches by Hurns and a strong run by Gerhart on third down that showed what he can do when healthy. But again, Bortles threw into traffic in the end zone and the ball was intercepted ending the rally. Bad decision by Blake after looking at his first two reads and finding nobody open, in that situation, he needs to throw it into the stands and live to play another day. Instead, Cincinnati got the ball and ground the clock.

Again this week, it’s the little things that look big that got the Jaguars beat. They fall to 1-8 and head to London to face the Cowboys. Fortunes can change in this league quickly, just look at Dallas. Riding high and getting accolades as potentially the best team in the league, the Cowboys have lost two straight and probably won’t have Tony Romo in London to face the Jaguars.

If Gus wants a “take this show anywhere” philosophy, it’ll be tested this week, that’s for sure.

“Run the football, stop the run.” That’s the mantra of almost every NFL coach but for the Jaguars this year, half of that equation has been non-existent. Trying to change things on the offensive line, the scheme and the backs running the ball, the Jaguars have gone nowhere on the ground, currently 32nd in rushing in the league.

“Running the ball changes so many things, makes so many things easier,” head coach Gus Bradley said this week. “It forces the 8 in the box to respect the run, and the play action opens up the passing game. It changes things.”

Bradley’s right, but the Jaguars have been so ineffective with the run that other teams don’t even respect it. With a very young offensive line and backs that are still learning the position and the professional game, it’s been tough sledding for the Jaguars. Even the addition of Toby Gerhart in the offseason is still a work in progress. Gerhart hasn’t been completely healthy since week one and won’t play again this week against the Browns.

Statistically, quarterback Blake Bortles has been somewhat average, but he’s giving the Jaguars fans hope and a glimpse into a brighter future. Athletic and smart, Bortles moves in the pocket, looks downfield and makes some beautiful throws. Conversely, he’s thrown the ball to the other team too often, gets fooled by disguised coverages and occasionally has missed wide-open receivers. In other words, he’s a rookie learning the game. But he’s learning along with the other rookies on offense. The Jaguars are playing with six rookies on offense (Bortles, Johnson, Robinson, Lee, Bowanko, Linder) and rookies Alan Hurns and Nic Jacobs will also play. Add Luke Joeckel, technically still a rookie (he only played 5 games last year) and you have an unprecedented number of young players in the game at the same time. That’s not generally a recipe for success in the NFL. Even some of the greatest players in the game struggled their first year in the league. Troy Aikman won one game his rookie year. Peyton Manning won three.

So the focus is still on getting better, but at least Gus Bradley has admitted that so far it hasn’t been good enough. “If we’ve been striving for victory,” he said this week, “maybe we need to strain for victory. So far, we haven’t earned it.”

And that’s what it comes down to again for the Jaguars franchise. For all the moves, talk and histrionics about who’s playing where and when things will start to turn around, the key is just playing better. Sometimes that takes more time than most people would like to give. For the rest of 2014 the Jaguars will be an underdog in every game, including today against Cleveland. Realistically there are only a handful of games left you’d think the Jaguars have enough firepower and talent on the roster to win, and today is one of them. Perhaps next week against Miami, the home game against Tennessee and the two matchups remaining against Houston.

Today would be nice though.

Sometimes it’s not about the stats, first downs, time of possession, completions, rushing yards and the like. Sometimes it’s about the eye test. And having seen every play the Jaguars have run this year, when it comes to the eye test, there’s no question they’re getting better. Health has something to do with it and the Jaguars were as healthy as they’ve been all year against the Titans. Only Toby Gerhart was out of this game because of injury.

In the first quarter against Tennessee having a healthy receiving corps showed as the Jaguars took the opening drive 80 yards in 7 plays to take a 7-0 lead. It’s the second straight game the Jaguars have scored on the opening possession. Blake Bortles threw a beautiful pass to Clay Harbor going away from him at an angle for a 59-yard gain. Storm Johnson got a one-yard carry for the TD.

With that momentum on their side, the Jaguars immediately gave up a 50-yard return by Jacksonville native Leon Washington. The defense was incredibly inconsistent, stopping the Titans cold occasionally and then letting receivers run free through the secondary with blown assignments.

All of that resulted in a 7-3 lead after the 1st quarter. Bortles is growing into the part, a real leader on offense. His footwork is key, creating both velocity and accuracy on his passes. Some were high against the Titans but the healthy receiving corps hauled them in and the Jaguars moved the ball offensively.

It came to a grinding halt as the Titans put the clamps on the Jaguars offense, pressuring Bortles and recording three sacks in the half. On defense, the Titans had receivers running free through the secondary, a sign of a blown assignment, especially in the middle of the field. They still haven’t figured out how to cover the tight end, no matter who’s in the game for the Jaguars. They started Demetrius McCray at corner but he must have looked out of place once too often and was replaced by Dwayne Gratz. McCray returned to the lineup in the third quarter. Jonathan Cyprien and Josh Evans are always a step late covering a crossing pattern and without enough pressure, that play is always open.

It was more of the same as the second half started. Open receivers combined with two third down penalties on the Jaguars kept Tennessee’s drive alive. A good stop on the goal line by Telvin Smith forced the Titans into a field goal and a 13-7 lead.

With about half of the third quarter gone is where good teams stick their foot in the ground and start to force their will on the other side. While the Jaguars are far from a good team, the Titans are no great shakes either. So this is where a game can either get interesting, or start to slip away.

The Jaguars backed themselves up with a penalty on the kick return but with a couple of key third down conversions had a good drive going as the 3rd quarter wound down. Just one score behind, any points would continue the momentum. When Gus Bradley talks about consistency, he’s talking about two failed plays on that drive that changed everything. They had Jordan Todman singled up on a defensive end, running down the field and while the ball was just a hair underthrown, Todman couldn’t make the catch. Two plays later, Bortles missed a wide-open Harbor on a simple out route about 20 yards down the field leading to a third down. Because they couldn’t covert on either of those plays, Bortles was in a third and long and went to Alan Hurns for the first down but Hurns slipped and the ball was intercepted.

So while the Titans weren’t exactly forcing their will on the Jaguars, the Jaguars couldn’t get out of their own way. Tennessee kicked a field goal to make it 16-7, a two score game.

Back on offense the Jaguars started to move the ball downfield, running and passing, some planned, some improvisation. Just when they got in some rhythm, driving toward the goal line, Cecil Shorts coughed the ball up inside the 10 and the game seemed over right there. Of all the players, Shorts is the one who’s supposed to know how important it is in that situation to cover and protect the football.

A TD pass from Bortles to Harbor with 30 seconds left brought the Jaguars within 2 and the Jaguars recovered the on-side kick. With no timeouts they moved close enough for Josh Scobee to attempt a field goal from 55-yards but it was blocked and 16-14 was the final.

It’s there, you can see it, but too many mistakes at crucial times cost the Jaguars chances to win their first game of the year.

They let this one slip away.

This week’s Top 20 in recognition of the Jaguars 20th anniversary looks back at the top 20 personalities in Jaguars history. There have been a few standouts that were obvious and would be obvious to hard-core or casual fans of the Jaguars franchise. Others were a bit subtler and as we got to know these players through interviews, locker room chats, charity work or developed personal relationships with some of them, parts of their personalities were revealed that you never would have believed.

A lot of candidates for the top of the list but John Jurkovic comes in at number one. Funny, frank, sometimes so blunt you wanted to ask him if he really wanted to say that, “Jurko” was part of the daily conversation among anybody interested in the Jaguars during his time here. Called his gut “the boiler” and delivered the needle to everybody. Parlayed his personality to a second career as a sports talk radio host in Chicago.

Trying to change the culture of a downtrodden franchise is a difficult task. As good of a coach as he seems to be, Gus Bradley is also a big personality, capable of getting the team to “buy in” to a winning way of thinking. Could have been at number one.

Shad Khan has cut such a wide swath since buying the Jaguars he could also qualify in the top spot. He clearly enjoys the “celebrity” aspect of being a NFL owner but is truly engaging, smart, fun to listen to and fun to be around. His moustache and hair are also so distinctive that they’ve helped catapult him to the number one spot among popularity when it comes to NFL owners.

Jeff Fisher makes the top five, right in front of Tom Coughlin because he became the first personality Jaguars fans loved to hate. He had the needle out for Jacksonville since day one in public. Privately he told friends he loved to beat Coughlin because Tom acted “like he invented football.”

Coughlin is in the top 5 and has such a multi-faceted personality that he could easily make the top spot. Over the twenty years since 1995, Coughlin has morphed into somebody who understands the culture of the modern day player a bit better. If he had been willing to change his ways sooner, he’d probably still be the Jaguars Head Coach. Super smart, engaging, loyal to his friends, Coughlin is qualified virtually in any spot on this list.

Tony Boselli has a big personality and it showed on the field and in the locker room as a players. Since returning to Jacksonville, Tony has dipped his toe into politics, been part of what could be some of the solutions to civic problems with his foundation and has emerged as an easy listen as an analyst on Jaguars broadcasts.

Despite his recent troubles, for a guy who doesn’t talk, Jaxon De Ville is one of the big personalities of the Jaguars. Easily the best mascot in the NFL, Jaxon has such a big personality that he’s part of the landscape of the Jaguars in the league and internationally.

You might not think of Kyle Brady as a “personality” but I laugh every time I think of going with him on the Jaguars charter flights. He’d grab the flight attendant microphone, do imitations, and Coughlin would storm to the back of the plane. Hilarious. He once showed up at a Halloween party as the Hulk, having painted his whole body green. Very authentic. Brady has a wicked sense of humor and might be the smartest guy to ever wear the Jaguars uniform. A commercial pilot, Kyle is also a licensed financial planner and a lawyer who recently passed the bar in Florida.

Maurice Jones Drew played and spoke with a chip on his shoulder. Quirky, somewhat inconsistent, but definitely a personality. Tom McManus had the same personality as a player as he had on his popular radio show. Big opinions, sure of his position, McManus wrote screenplays in his spare time and has stayed in town to raise his family. One of the most intense players in the history of the franchise, Jeff Lageman gave no quarter to anybody not giving a hundred percent, in anything. A graduate from Virginia in economics, Lageman has used that analytical part of his brain to flourish on Jaguars broadcasts.

Linebacker Brant Boyer kept his teammates in stiches with his physical comedy. An undersized player for his position, Boyer knew how to get the needle out and leave ’em laughing.

Reggie Williams was so strange; we weren’t sure where he fit on this list. He was big on “grills” as a fashion statement and even admitted he probably lived on “Planet Reggie.” John Henderson was genuinely funny and anybody who had a trainer slap him in the face to get him ready for games had to be in the top 20. I think John was also an interior decorator in his spare time. Josh Scobee and Joe Zelenka might have broadcasting careers in front of them if they like. They both see the irony in some things that happen in football and have been staples on Jaguars.com interviewing their teammates.

Sen’Derrick Marks is always honest and fun and you can tell something goes on in the locker room when the media’s not there. His teammates are always all over him when it comes to anything he says. Nobody can joke with his teammates on this current team like Sen’Derrick.

Taking a line from Al Michaels, Dave Widell cemented his place in Jaguars history when he grabbed the mic at the stadium after the win in Denver and asked, “Do you believe in miracles,” to the assembled spontaneous crowd. Widell would give you an honest answer anytime you asked. Known all over town for his charity work and his willingness to help, he should probably be higher on this list.

Andre Branch has a sense of humor and a sardonic sense of style that spills over into his personality. The owner of more than 500 pairs of shoes, all of which he wears, he’ll intern for GQ this coming summer.

You might not know Pete Carmichael. He was the receivers coach under Coughlin. Anybody who stood in front of Coughlin at practice, moving around so Coughlin couldn’t see the team on the field, on purpose, every day, for six years, and had a laugh about it, has to be on this list.

And you might wonder why Andre Rison made the list. He’s in at #20 because he’s the nuttiest player ever to be on the team. Kooky, head shaking, eye rolling off his rocker. He’d be #1 on any list of nuts in teal and black. So he’s here.

1) John Jurkovic
2) Gus Bradley
3) Shad Khan
4) Jeff Fisher
5) Tom Coughlin
6) Tony Boselli
7) Jaxon De Ville
8) Kyle Brady
9) Maurice Jones Drew
9) Tom McManus
10) Jeff Lageman
11) Brant Boyer
12) Reggie Williams
13) John Henderson
14) Josh Scobee
15) Joe Zelenka
16) Sen’Derrick Marks
17) Dave Widdell
18) Andre Branch
19) Pete Carmichael
20) Andre Rison

Among the honorable mentions: Mike Tice as an assistant coach was likeable, a cutup, and sociable enough to say hi if he saw you out somewhere. Fred Taylor and Mark Brunell fit into a similar category but I’m not sure if it’s because of who they’ve become after their careers were over or just how long I’ve known them but both are thoughtful, funnier than you might think and guys who are trying to raise families and impact their kids.

I hosted the End Zone with Keenan McCardell so there are a few stories there from off-air that wouldn’t be fair to share but suffice to say, Keenan likes the finer things. He was always dressed impeccably, carrying a Louis Vuitton bag and gave me wristwatch envy on several occasions. Keenan also brought a “winning” and a “losing” outfit to the locker room each Sunday.

Aaron Beasley was a locker room cut up, but he saved it for his teammates. Ty Hallock was among the smartest guys to ever wear a Jaguars uniform and his dry sense of humor was never lost on his teammates. Mike Smith as the Jaguars defensive coordinator left an impact in town. He’s one of the nicest guys you’ll meet and did tireless charity work while he was here.

Jeff Novak was a riot to his teammates. Mark Duffner was about as subtle as you could be and still make a whole room laugh. Pete Mitchell was thoughtful and a go-to interview while Damon Jones might say anything so you had to talk with him. Plus with a nickname of “Big Sofa” you get a glimpse into his personality. Richard Collier was such a funny, engaging guy as a player and looked to be on his way to a solid career. It’s hard not to think what “might have been.

TJ Slaughter had his own clothing line and was a model. Paul Spicer and Jeremy Mincey were engaging in the locker room and funnier when the cameras were off. Mincey couldn’t live in the Gus Bradley world and that’s a shame because he could be a contributor on this team right now. He’s also passionate about his music business. Montel Owens also qualifies as one of the smartest guys to ever wear Teal and Black. A University of Maine graduate, Owens made the team as an undrafted free agent. He’s an accomplished trumpet player as well. I still scratch my head about his release. He seems like a perfect fit for the current Jaguars.

Terrance Knighton is showing the personality we knew in the locker room on his current Bridgestone tire ads. Gary Walker and Kelvin Pritchett didn’t mind calling out, fans, teammates or even the media if they thought necessary. Danny Clark saw himself as more than a football player and Paul Posluszny couldn’t be more engaging when he’s around (and not working) He’s also currently working toward his Private Pilot’s license.

And Leon Searcy deserves a mention here. Not a guy to talk much, when he did, it was usually something meaningful. He also remains the only guy in Jaguars history that, by consensus in the Channel 4 Sports Department, we wouldn’t want on the other side in an alley fight. No thanks.

Did we miss anybody? Tweet us at #jagstop20 or @Sports4Jax or just send us a note on Facebook. We’ll talk about your adds on Jaguars Friday Night.

As the assembled local and international media filed into “The Greenhouse” on the grounds of The Grove where the Jaguars are staying and practicing, a definite chill was in the air and the occasional sprinkle fell from the sky as the sun peeked in and out from behind passing clouds.

“It’s a lovely day isn’t it,” a hostess said at the door with all sincerity. Since it is November and we’re outside the city of London it actually could qualify as a “lovely” day for this time of year. This trip for the Jaguars is two weeks later than last year, so the change in the season is more defined this time around.

“It’s fine,” Allen Hurns said when asked about the weather. “Just a little different than home this time of year but no big deal.”

Hurns was appreciative of the help he’s gotten from the veteran players preparing for this trip. “Cecil (Shorts) and Cyp (Jonathan Cyprien) told us what to look for, how to prepare our bodies as professional athletes so it’s been good.”

With a day and a half to get acclimated, the Jaguars went back to work on their custom built field on the grounds at The Grove on Wednesday.

“My mind is but my body’s not,” Sen’Derrick Marks answered with a chuckle when asked if he had settled into the time change. “But I’ll be right by Sunday,” he added. If last year is any indication, Marks said the time here early in the week is a plus for adjusting, and coming a day earlier is even better. “Leaving right after the game and flying at night is better,” he told me on Monday. “Getting that rest and being able to sleep on the way over helps.” Forty-seven Jaguars players were given the first class lie-flat cabin seats for the trip over as the coaches moved back to ‘upper class” on the charter.

Starting with Wednesday, the Jaguars will have a “normal” schedule in the UK, practicing, meeting, eating and sleeping at the same times they would back home.

“It makes it seem as normal as possible,” Blake Bortles said during his press conference. “Meeting, sleeping, eating, practicing the same as home is all part of the routine.”

The players all seem to appreciate the non-scheduled time as well. Some spend time in the player’s lounge on video games, others play Ping-Pong and some sit in the “meal room” just whiling the time away with conversation.

“I noticed that a lot of guys are just hanging out together,” Gus Bradley said when asked if this trip makes the team a more close-knit group. “And not in their regular groups. Different guys are sitting together. I see that and that’s good. We’re already a close team, but maybe this will make it even better.”

Bortles agreed, “It’s like training camp just hanging around with the guys. It definitely makes us a closer team.”

Notes: Cecil Shorts stepped out of practice with a tight hamstring. Marqis Lee rolled his ankle in practice and was limited in his workout. Brandon Linder worked on the side but was held out of practice. If he can’t play the Jaguars will look at Shatley and McClendon at the RG spot. Josh Scobee said he expects the grass to be a little higher at Wembley stadium, similar to the practice field so it’s important to pick the right cleats for the game. Bradley said DeMarco Murray of the Cowboys is the rare combination of speed and “can make people miss.” Marks said Murray is “hard to bring down.” Bortles noted that the Cowboys on defense “Don’t do much, but what they do, they do very well.” Blake said that OC Jedd Fisch and Chad Henne have helped him look at other options when he turns the ball over. “If I don’t ask them, they’ll tell me.”

It’s consistently about 5 to 8 degrees (F) colder where the Jaguars are practicing this week as compared to London. Temperatures at their practice facility tonight are expected to go just below freezing. Between a 50 and 80% chance of rain is predicted for the rest of the week both where the Jaguars are staying and in London for the game. The forecast is for just around 50 degrees (F) at kickoff and going down from there.

Starting the game, the Jaguars defense looked like it had a bit of a chip on their shoulder. Last in the league in just about every measurable category, their pride is injured. Former Jaguars defensive end and current radio color analyst Jeff Lageman said as much in the pregame show,

“These guys are veterans. Two won a Super Bowl last year. Nobody is more frustrated and angry than they are. I expect them to play better.”

He turned out to be prophetic early on. When you look at the array of talent on offense for San Diego, it’s hard not to shudder based on the Jaguars lack of ability to stop anybody. Phillip Rivers is one of the top five quarterbacks in the league. Antonio Gates might go to the Hall of Fame. Add a running game and wide receivers who can fly, and you have the makings of a blowout.

But early in the half the Jaguars defensive line put the stops on the Chargers running game and harassed Rivers enough to keep it close.

The offense also did it’s job, putting up 12 first downs in the first half on 15-17 passing by rookie Quarterback Blake Bortles. Making his first NFL start, Bortles looked poised and made the tough throws when he needed to guiding the Jaguars to 14 points.

Give Rivers credit though. He was 16-18 in the first half for 207 yards and two TD’s, the last one a beautiful crossing route to Eddie Royal (his second TD catch of the day) beating Winston Guy to give the Chargers a 17-14 lead. Giving up 17 points to the Chargers in one half is respectable, only trailing by 3 after 30 minutes is like being on a different planet than last week.

To start the second half, the Chargers took the kickoff and marched down the field in 9 plays, a 24 yard Rivers to Malcolm Floyd TD pass for the score. 24-14 SD. Demetrius McCray was in man coverage against Floyd and Rivers got just the coverage and time he was looking for. When a backup corner comes in the game, the top QB’s recognize it and go after them.

When you go with a rookie QB you’re going to have growing pains. Bortles was baited into an interception by veteran DB Brandon Flowers. While Cecil Shorts didn’t do him any favors by just standing there, Bortles didn’t see Flowers hiding behind Shorts and thought he was open. Instead Flowers stepped up and picked it off. The defense held them to a FG, 27-14. Bortles will learn not to throw that pass but Shorts has to keep moving after he sits in his spot and isn’t the primary target.

Through three quarters the defense had only given up 22 yards on the ground but a whopping 353 in the air. I wouldn’t say the offense didn’t help a bit because they did put together a few sustained drives but somewhere, pass coverage and pass rush aren’t getting the job done. Once Gratz left the game the Jaguars were putting together makeshift coverage, especially in their nickel package and Rivers always found the open man.

I wasn’t sure what Offensive Coordinator Jedd Fisch was doing on offense in the 3rd quarter either, constantly going to the short route and some kind of misdirection. Nothing downfield. Maybe he didn’t think the young offensive line could protect well enough but occasionally you have to air it out. And even though they had some success with Gerhart running the ball on third and short, they didn’t stick to it and turned it over on downs. If you have a power back on your roster, give him the ball, twice if necessary, to gain a yard.

The rest of the game was try this, try that for both teams. Bortles did make an incredible athletic play to hit Clay Harbor on 3rd down for 30 yards to keep one drive alive. Last week, he threw that ball in that situation across the field and it was picked off. He admitted after the game he learned from that play and looked downfield instead.

While there are no moral victories in pro sports, this one felt a little better with flashes of what the possibilities might be.

“It’s about consistency,” Zane Beadles said in the locker room. “Blake’s right, you have to make those plays over and over and while we did it in the first half, we didn’t in the second.”

The defense is suffering from almost the exact same thing. First and second down are going well, but big chunks of yardage are being given up on third down, especially to teams that can throw the ball.

“We need consistency,” Andre Branch said. “All of us need to do our job. On every play. It doesn’t work any other way unless you do your job and trust what we’re doing.”

I wouldn’t say Branch called out any of his teammates but it was obvious that he was biting his tongue, not naming names but knowing where the problems lie.

Somewhere in the secondary, the Jaguars need help and need to get the kind of consistent play that would give them a chance to stay in games. Josh Evans replaced Winston Guy in the lineup this week, but with the injury to Dwayne Gratz, Guy was pressed into service in the nickel package. He was the player chasing Eddie Royal on his second TD. That’s the kind of play that lacks consistency and enables other teams to get the big play.

This week the Jaguars will work on that, but if they don’t get it fixed, the Steelers Ben Roethlisberger will have a similar day as Phillip Rivers.

And nobody wants to see that again.

There are a lot of “firsts” this week for the Jaguars and Blake Bortles. The Jaguars rookie quarterback is preparing for his first start in a regular season NFL game. While you’d think he was excited about it, his comments seem to say the opposite.

“I’ve prepared like I was going to start every week. I learned that, and a lot of other things from watching Chad (Henne)” Bortles said in front of the assembled media before the Wednesday practice. “I’m going to go play football. I’m going to be as ready as I can. We’re going to play Sunday either way so I might as well try to be as ready as I can be.”

Bortles was named the starter after playing the second half against the Colts and helping produce 17 points.

“My focus is on this team and making us better,” he noted. “I don’t have a lot of time for anything else.”

“He has the pen last,” Offensive Coordinator Jedd Fisch said before practice as well. “I asked him what he wanted to take out (of the game plan) and he gave me a couple of plays right away. He has to be comfortable with what we’re doing.”

Being named the starter, Bortles is sitting “In the first chair” in the quarterback meeting room according to Fisch.

“He’s been second chair. He hasn’t had to run the remote, meet with the Oline, the receivers when the coaches aren’t in there. It’s his first time. .”

“He went to meetings, more meetings,” according to Head Coach Gus Bradley. “His demeanor didn’t change. He’s the same. Competitiveness didn’t change. His mentality hasn’t changed a bit.”

Bradley says often “The game isn’t too big for him” when talking about Bortles. That seems to be the case so far. He likes to play football and while that sounds pretty basic, there have been some guys in that job with the Jaguars who didn’t particularly like the game, or didn’t act like it. To Bortles, it’s football, and he enjoys it.

“I had no idea if it would be this year or five years down the road when I got to start in an NFL game. I think it was huge to be with Chad and watch him prepare every week.”

As the starter, Bortles will take a majority of the snaps in each offensive period in practice. “It helps the more reps you get. You get a feel for it after doing it over and over in games and in practice.”

It’s a role reversal between he and Henne, but the transition seems to be smooth.

“I’ll be his biggest cheerleader. I hope he’s successful,” Henne said.

No doubt it was a tough week for Jaguars Head Coach Gus Bradley. After being overwhelmed in Washington, Bradley’s charge was to “fix it” and fix it fast. After giving up 10 sacks, the offensive line was the first place to look. So after looking at video of the game, Bradley announced some changes on the line among the starters and cut Cameron Bradfield, the player who started at right tackle just two days prior.

“It’s hard,” Bradley said this week of making those changes. “Guys come in here, work hard, do what you ask and then things change and you have to do something so yeah, it’s hard. But everybody understands it’s the NFL and we’ll move forward.” It is a harsh reality sometimes that the league is built on performance and if that disappears, so does a playe’rs spot on the team. Bradfield had been a good swing guy for the Jaguars, playing in several spots. But he was obviously beaten on some of those 10 sacks and based on the “accountability” mantra espoused by Bradley; somebody had to be held accountable.

That leaves Sam Young at right tackle, Brandon Linder at right guard, Luke Bowanko at center, Zane Beadles at left guard and Luke Joeckel at left tackle. They have differing amounts of experience but pretty much any way you cut it, the Jaguars are starting four rookies up front.

So where does that put the team in Bradley’s goal of a “Race to Maturity? Agreed, these players have talent and as the head coach has said a couple of times this week, the “look the part.” And they do. At about 6’5″ and 320 at each position, when they stand there, they look the part. But playing the part is a different story. Perhaps if you’re going to have growing pains, why not have them all together. Bradley agreed that there’s a way to look at these guys progressing as a positive.

“They all want to get there fast, and maybe doing it together will create some camaraderie,” the head coach noted when asked if they could all get to maturity together.

Getting their offensive line to play solid and consistent football is a priority for the Jaguars because for what they want to do on offense, without and offensive line doing their job, they can’t get anything done.

Throw the inexperience at wide receiver in the mix and you don’t have much of a chance for production on offense. With Cecil Shorts nursing a hamstring, the team has relied on mostly rookies and second year Mike Brown as the receiving corps. Shorts might return this week and Alan Hurns is also listed as probable. Marquis Lee has already been declared out. So again, not much experience at wide receiver could hurt the passing game performance. Subtract Marcedes Lewis from the equation because of the high ankle sprain, and the who offense remains in question.

So for all of the problems they’ve had in the last six quarters, quarterback Chad Henne has performed as well, if not better than expected. Although he took responsibility for a couple of sacks last week, the pressure Henne has been under has been daunting. Nonetheless, he’s stood in there and for the most part, thrown the ball to the open receiver. He’s had numerous drops, and wrong routes run by receivers but he hasn’t complained, despite the pounding.

Calls to put Blake Bortles in the game are premature, considering the state of disarray the rest of the offense is currently in. Getting something consistent and something you can lean on will allow the coaches to put Bortles in the game to start the process toward what they hope is consistent winning.

“When it’s time to put Blake in the game, you’ll know it,” I said to Bradley during the taping of his show.

“That’s right,” he said, confident that he’ll recognize the right situation.

It’s up for debate what the “Top 20 Moments” are in the 20 years the Jaguars have played in the NFL. And actually, some of the moments were before they started playing football at all. There might be even a debate about what the number one moment in team history could be, but we picked the announcement of a team as our number one. After 14 years of pursuing the NFL through “Colt Fever” and the USFL, when NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue said the name “Jacksonville” as the next franchise in the league, it’s as if time stopped for a second or so and the city would never be the same.

Second on our list is the return trip from Denver after beating the Broncos in the Divisional Playoff game in 1996, 30-27 despite being heavy underdogs. At Channel 4 we stayed on the air continuously after the game up until the team returned to Jacksonville. Perhaps because we were on the air and a lot of people were excited and watching, fans spontaneously flocked to the stadium, looking for a communal place to celebrate. City leaders didn’t know what to do, but did the right thing by mobilizing some staff and security and getting the cooperation of the JSO, opened the stadium and turned the lights on. No concessions, no game, just a place to high-five fellow revelers. It must have been some scene from the team charter when they flew over the stadium and rocked their wings in acknowledgement. Fans wouldn’t give up and the team buses brought the players to the stadium for a victory lap around the field. This is a pretty good candidate for the top spot on this list and I could probably be convinced either way.

Without the win in Denver the celebration wouldn’t have happened so the game vs. the Broncos is our third choice. A famous writer in the Denver press box heckled me before the game asking what we were doing there since we were “a USFL team anyway.” I ignored him then (as I do now although he’s risen to unexplained national prominence) but did say after the game walking out of the locker room, “USFL in the Conference Championship game, NFL staying home.” I guess it’s no wonder he hasn’t spoken to me since! (Which is OK) I remember standing on a rooftop in Denver doing live television in about 12 degrees for 4 hours. Our field producer happened to be my boss at the time (he had lived in Denver) and told me to “come inside and warm up.” I was so into it I just said,, “Really? Our team just beat the Broncos and is going to the AFC Title game and I’m coming inside because I’m cold? No!” We both got a laugh out of that in the subsequent years.

I guess most of these “moments” get onto the list because if you’ve followed the Jaguars; you know right where you were when they happened. That’s why Morten Anderson missing the field goal that put the Jaguars in the playoffs in the first place in 1996 occupies the 4th spot. I’ve had so many people over the years say, “I was standing in my seat,” or “I was crossing my fingers screaming from the upper deck,” when they talk about the win over the Falcons here at home. I was part of the “I can’t watch” segment. It’s the only time I’ve ever done that, but I couldn’t bear to watch the dream go away in an instant. That’s why I turned my back on it and stood next to my friend and colleague Todd on the sidelines when Anderson lined up for the chip shot to win it. I remember Todd saying very calmly (the first time) “He missed it.” I was like, “What?!” And then he screamed, “He missed it, he missed it” and jumped up and down with the rest of the people in the stadium.

People still talk about Tony Boselli waving Jason Taylor downfield as the Jaguars beat the Dolphins on national television. It was one of the validations of the teams of the ’90’s. It’s in the top five. In our sixth spot, the playoff win over the Dolphins was such a demolition that the game seemed to be over just when it started. Some think it might be the best home win in franchise history. It ended the careers of both Dan Marino and Jimmy Johnson.

In defining a “moment” it’s a pretty nebulous term ,but for this list it’s the times you have seared in your memory of Jaguars history. Driving to the stadium for the first game in 1995 is a memory most people who lived here then will remember whether they were Jaguars fans or not. An NFL game in our city with our team? It’s seemed impossible but there it was, Jaguars vs. Oilers right next to the Green Bay, New England and Pittsburgh scores. It made it real. Mark Brunell’s run against Denver in the win there makes the list at number 8 because it might have been the first time most fans thought, “Hey, this team is hot and pretty good. They might be able to pull this off!”

A few weeks into the inaugural season, the Jaguars win against the Oilers in Houston makes the list as a milestone and a relief that the team wouldn’t go winless in their expansion season. An unproven coach coming out of college with a bunch of expansion castoffs was a complete unknown.

Going to Pittsburgh and beating the Steelers in 2007 was made possible by an improbable run by QB David Garrard. Steeler fans to this day scream “What about the holding” when you bring that play up. That certainly makes it memorable at number ten. Eleventh was hotly debated but the way Josh Scobee ran around the field with his helmet in the air after beating the Colts with a 59 yard field goal in 2010 qualifies. Maybe because the Colts were the Jaguars nemesis at the time, but we thought it belonged here. And ditto for Fred Taylor’s run against the Dolphins to open the scoring. Never really given his due while he was playing, Taylor showed the speed and power that very few backs have for a moment many Jaguars, and Dolphins fans won’t forget.

We put the Jack Del Rio firing and the Wayne Weaver selling the team as one entry, 13th on the list. Weaver had kept his intention to sell the team so quiet that when he fired Del Rio, he didn’t even tell Jack when he sent him home. It wasn’t a surprise that Del Rio was shown the door but in retrospect, firing Jack before he got here was probably one of Shad Khan’s “asks” when the deal was getting done. (Or maybe Weaver just wanted the pleasure of doing it.) It also solidified Jacksonville as the Jaguars home. Despite the constant drumbeat regarding the team moving to LA, the sale to Shad Khan was Weaver’s parting gift to the city. He acknowledged that he had spurned offers from “groups in California” instead opting for Khan and his commitment to keep the team in town. So far, Khan hasn’t done anything to make anybody think to the contrary.

In fact, 14th on the list is one of those wild things that Khan thinks up and then makes happen: World’s largest video boards. New technology, new look, when they were unveiled in July of 2014 it was hard not to be impressed. More than 53,000 showed up in a scene reminiscent of the “old days” where people just liked coming to the stadium to be together. A nice soccer match, a concert and the unveiling were all nice but “being there” was the thing that counted.

Our 15th selection happened on the road, or it might have been higher. Fred Taylor ran all over the Steelers for 275 yards at Three Rivers, the most for an opponent all-time vs. Pittsburgh. At the time, the Jaguars were in the AFC Central and Tom Coughlin had used the Steelers as the gold standard when building his team. Manhandling the vaunted Steeler defense by running it right at them put the Jaguars on the map as a tough, physical team.

Sixteenth is a little obscure and wasn’t seen by many people but everybody who was there says the same thing: “That was really cool.” When Aaron Ross signed with the Jaguars he was the second best athlete in his household. His wife, Sonja Richards Ross was an Olympian and the favorite in the 200 meters in London. Head Coach Mike Mularkey arranged for her race to be shown live on the screens in the stadium and surprised his team with a shortened practice and a walk onto the field to watch. Richards Ross lost the lead in the middle of the race but finished strong to win the gold. Perhaps the best outcome any football coach could have asked for to show his team how to get the job done. Mularkey never got that chance, unlucky again as the Head Coach in the wrong situation. Very cool moment though.

Three plays make the 17-19 spots on the list. Mike Thomas’ catch of the Hail Mary for a TD is still talked about, perhaps mainly because it’s so improbable it generally never happens. If you were at that New Orleans game here and remember it being cold and dank, the lateral filled TD they scored in the games waning moments certainly woke up the crowd. And when John Kearney (who later kicked for the Jaguars) missed the PAT, it was a stunning, head-scratching moment for everybody who was there. And in the Jaguars first appearance on Monday Night Football, it seemed as if the stadium was the center of the universe that night against the rival Steelers. Chris Hudson’s return of a blocked kick for a TD sealed the victory for the Jaguars, but Bill Cowher’s half-step onto the field and the moment you thought he might actually punch Hudson is something considerably memorable.

Tagging on the 20th most memorable moment was debatable between several candidates. Chris Hanson hitting his own leg with an axe in the middle of the locker room while “chopping wood” made the list maybe because it’s so preposterous. When Del Rio put that piece of wood in there to symbolize his whole silly “keep chopping wood” theme for a team that was losing, just about everybody thought it was a bad idea and a disaster waiting to happen. As a self-fulfilling prophecy and a memorable moment, it certainly qualifies.

Our honorable mention moments include the loss to the Titans in the AFC Championship game in 2000. It could have easily been anywhere after the top 4 or 5 on this list but I think it’s still too painful for the Jaguars faithful.

Here’s a look at the list.

• 1 Getting a team – Tagliabue announcement
• 2 Return from Denver
• 3 Beating Denver
• 4 Anderson Missed Kick
• 5 Boselli waving on at Jason Taylor
• 6 62-7 win over Dolphins
• 7 1st game vs. Houston
• 8 Brunell Run vs. Denver
• 9 1st win in Houston
• 10 Garrard run vs. Pitt
• 11 Scobee 59 yarder vs. Colts OCT 3 2010
• 12 Taylor 90-yard run vs. Miami
• 13 Del Rio firing/Weaver sells team
• 14 Video Board unveiling
• 15 Taylor game vs. Pitt
• 16 Sonja Richards Ross video board watch
• 17 Mike Thomas Hail Mary
• 18 Saints lateral and missed PAT (John Kearney)
• 19 Cowher fake punch on Chris Hudson Sept 12 1997
• 20 Chris Hanson Chopping wood

Honorable mention:

• Beating Buffalo in 1996 Playoffs
• Khan approved by NFL Owners
• James Stewart 5 TD’s vs. Philadelphia here
• Jimmy Smith game vs. Baltimore
• Losing AFC Title game to Titans

While the off season has been full of quarterback and giant video boards talk, the on-field product for the Jaguars this year will be tested in an unglamorous way.

Up front. Both sides.

We can talk about the future for Blake Bortles and whether Chad Henne is the right call all we want. We can debate whether the lack of a real veteran in the wide receiving corps will be exposed by opposing defenses once the regular season starts. And any discussion about the receivers can spark a debate on how the Jaguars spent their draft picks, taking Marquis Lee and Allen Robinson back to back. But any discussion about the success, or lack thereof of the 2014 Jaguars has to start with the offensive and defensive lines.

Acquiring Chris Clemons, Red Bryant, Ziggy Hood and Dekoda Watson in the off-season as free agents showed how General Manager Dave Caldwell wanted this 2014 team to perform. Too often last year, double-digit losses early in the season were because when the offense sputtered, the defense couldn’t hold. This season, Caldwell and Head Coach Gus Bradley are hoping the money spent on defensive free agents will keep the Jaguars in games. Bryant and Clemons will start on the defensive line, giving the Jaguars two veteran players who have proven track records. Bryant might be the linchpin, taking up double and triple teams, freeing Clemons, Sen’Derrick Marks and others to beat their man and make a play. At least that’s the plan.

Hood will rotate in and do the same, with the team hoping Watson will have the speed and the instincts to rush the passer when necessary. You might hear the terms “cheetah” and “lightning” thrown around a lot this year in passing situations, both denoting defensive personnel packages designed to get the maximum number of speed players on the field at one time.

The Lone free-agent acquisition on the offensive line is veteran Zane Beadles. Like the defensive newcomers, Beadles is in the prime of his career and has a proven track record. For the Jaguars, he’s the own known quantity up front. Luke Joeckel is technically a second year player and starts at the all-important left tackle spot. But with only 5 games in 2013 before he suffered a season-ending injury, you could call this rookie year 2.0 for Joeckel. He’s already good, worthy of his second overall selection. But he’s not the elite player yet the Jaguars hope he’ll be. The rest of the line is a big question mark. Most coaches admit that linemen in the NFL have a gradual growth in their development. There aren’t any giant leaps forward as there can be with the skill players. So often players are put in situations they’re hoping they’ll grow into. Such is the case of Brandon Linder at right guard. The Jaguars see great “upside” in Linder, so he’s starting right now with the team hoping he grows into the player they think he can be. But he’s not that yet. To his right, Cam Bradfield is a known quantity and a valuable stopgap player until Austin Pasztor returns. But Bradfield isn’t a superstar. And Pasztor is a project in his own right. In the middle, Jacques McClendon won the center job almost by default. Mike Brewster never could perform at the level the Jaguars had hoped he would and McClendon, a guard by trade, was plugged in until Luke Bowanko, a sixth round draft pick, can push himself into the starting lineup.

None of what Toby Gerhardt, Lee, Robinson, Marcedes Lewis or Chad Henne does can be done successfully without the five guys up front getting their job done consistently well. Same thing with Alan Ball, Dwayne Gratz, Jon Cyprien and Winston Guy. Without effective pressure up front and some kind of run stopping force from the D-Line, they’re job is almost impossible.

So watching the game against the Eagles Sunday, look at what’s happening up front. It’ll give you a clue as to what’s going to happen in the back.

And on the scoreboard.

From the opening series, the Jaguars were looking to get different players involved in the offense and use their up tempo look to move the ball downfield. Both were evident as Marqis Lee, Toby Gerhardt and Marcedes Lewis all had touches for considerable gains right away. The “no-huddle” started paying dividends right away, keeping the Bears base defense on the field for the first nine plays of the game, culminating in a Josh Scobee Field Goal and a 3-0 lead. While they team has worked on the stretch running play during training camp, they haven’t had much success with it and against the Bears on 3rd and 1, Gerhardt failed to gain a yard. Starting on the offensive line, Luke Joeckel, Zane Beadles, Mike Brewster, Jacques McClendon and Austin Pasztor gave Chad Henne good protection but didn’t provide a lot of room to run. Luke Bowanko was in the game in the second series at center for a few plays before Brewster returned. Center is an area of concern for the Jaguars coaching staff and they’re looking for the right combination.

Meanwhile, Henne showed good leadership and patience, finding open receivers both down field and coming out of the backfield. He has a good command of the offense and is finding the open man better than in the past.

Getting into the Red Zone is a big emphasis for the Jaguars this year, but scoring touchdowns is also what Gus Bradley is looking for. Again, they had a false start penalty near the goal line, (Brewster failed to snap the ball on time) and settled for another Scobee field goal, 6-0.

Will Blackmon is one of those players you need around for a lot of reasons and on special teams, he continues to make an impact. A strip and a fumble recovery on the kickoff gave the Jaguars the ball back. Henne continued to answer the bell, converting a key 10-yard pass on 3rd down enroute to a short flip for a TD to Lee and a 13-0 lead. With Chad playing well, he’ll solidify his spot at the starting quarterback and quieting some of the critics. Kind of. There continues to be calls for Blake Bortles to start NOW and take his lumps but the Jaguars are pretty confident in their plan of Henne playing till they think Bortles is ready. I will say Bortles has been impressive in the preseason, if only in his demeanor and his execution of what they’re asking him to do. I like the Jaguars plan, but if Bortles has to play for some reason, it won’t be a disaster like putting Gabbert in the game was.

As the preseason progresses, it’s obvious the league is trying to subtly change how the game is played. The illegal hits and leading with your head penalties have been minimized, as the players understand that’s now illegal. This year it’s the “Illegal hands to the face” and a “crack back” block that are the points of emphasis for the officials. Flags got plenty of work calling those penalties and will continue to do so until the players figure out what’s legal and what isn’t.

Another solid performance across the board for the Jaguars. Offensive line still needs work with some decisions in the middle but overall, a better game than last week. Second straight road game against Detroit next week and the starters will probably play through three quarters. We’ll see if Bortles gets any late time with the 1’s in the third quarter. And lots of decisions to be made shortly as the first cuts are due after the trip to the Motor City.

Competition is what it’s about for Jaguars Head Coach Gus Bradley. It doesn’t start at a specific time, and it’s obvious with him, it never ends.

“Everything counts,” Bradley said after practice. “Everything. They way they walk on the field, they way you handle yourselves in the huddle, the way you talk to your teammates, all those things. Everything counts.”

So it was no surprise that in their first Organized Team Activity (OTA) the Jaguars had loud music, an up-tempo pace and a fairly stressful environment from start to finish.

“We went two periods of no huddle” the Head Coach explained regarding the tempo. “That really strained them. We’re trying to get to the point where we can execute under strain.”

The players run from one drill to the other, in between periods and whenever they’re not in the play, they’re fully engaged. In fact, Bradley and the coaching staff have instituted a couple of “flexibility” periods. It’s a chance to see where guys could play a couple of positions if necessary.

“You saw some of the younger guys are playing multiple positions. We’re looing for position flexibility,” was the explanation when Bradley was asked about moving players around. Offensive linemen were put in multiple positions. Linebackers were moved all over the place. JT Thomas played middle linebacker.

While doing that, Bradley said “the guys with their helmets off” were challenged to become coaches. You saw veteran players teaching and learning from the process. “It didn’t go as well as we would have liked, but we’ll get there,” Gus explained.

As far as the tempo, it’s part of the learning but part of the conditioning process as well.

“That heat, it’s no joke,” DL Red Bryant said in the locker room peeling off his practice uniform.

“It’s a race to maturity,” according to Bradley. “We’re trying to speed up the learning curve.”

Four players sat out of practice today, including Josh Evans who had a procedure for a bone spur on his foot. Bradley says he’ll be back for training camp. Chris Clemons was not at the “voluntary” practice, the only veteran not in attendance. He had “an issue” according to Bradley and is expected soon.

All four quarterbacks saw action today. All seemed well suited for what they’re being asked to do. “We’re trying to speed it up and by keeping it simple, we can do that,” Bradley said when asked about the QB’s. Blake Bortles looked like a rookie with a lot of talent, but still a rookie. “It’ll all settle down for him when he knows the offense,” Bradley explained.

The Jaguars also signed fifth round draft pick LB Telvin Smith from FSU. He’s the fifth of nine draftees under contract. That leaves Blake Bortles, Marqise Lee, Allen Robinson and Brandon Linder unsigned.

There was one dust-up in today’s workout. OL Sam Young and Bryant got into a minor skirmish when Young’s helmet went flying in the middle of a play. Both were separated and nothing seemed to come of it.

OTA’s are Wednesday and Thursday of this week and Monday, Tuesday and Thursday of next week with Thursday, June 5th open to the public. The Jaguars are still waiting on an official time for that day (there have been conflicting reports) but right now it’s set for 10:50-12:50.