With their regular season set to kick off on September 11th against the Washington Commanders, the Jacksonville Jaguars are making every effort to get their final roster in place before the big game. They’ve had a chance to see both new and old players throughout training camp to get an idea of what they’re working with in 2022, and in his comments to the media on Tuesday, head coach Doug Pederson reflected on his first preseason in Duval County.
“Yeah, you know this was a good camp for us,” Pederson said. “There was a lot of things we had to overcome, you know, way back in the offseason as a team and I felt like we’ve been able to do that and really bond, come together and prepare, you know, our 11 [personnel] offense, 11 defense and special teams guys ready for, regular season. So, I’m excited for that, I think the guys are in a good place, mentally and physically, and just looking forward to the start of the season.”
While the team is rebuilding, the opportunity to operate with an expanded roster is invaluable to their development, though that luxury will come to an end this week as they look to cut the team down to just 53 players ahead of the deadline this week. They’ve had their choice of players to contribute in the preseason and throughout the camp process, but now face the task of trimming the crop of talent to bare-bones.
Pederson is a seasoned coach with years of experience in roster construction and deciding how to best utilize the skillsets of players at his disposal. With some luck and input from his staff, this Jaguars team could be headed for a turnaround to .500 football as soon as the end of their 2022 campaign.
Rebuilds are an arduous process that takes time, but with his experience in a similar situation with Kansas City dating back to 2013, Pederson is the perfect coaching candidate to get it right in Jacksonville.