The Jaguars snapped their losing skid to begin the 2024 season with a 37-34 win at home over the Colts in Week 5, a victory that lifted “a weight off everybody’s shoulders” after the club began the campaign 0-4, Jacksonville head coach Doug Pederson expressed after the game.
Find everything Pederson said in his post-game press conference following the win below.
On why the Jaguars’ offense executed at a high level:
DOUG PEDERSON: “It’s obviously things we work on during the week. To me, it’s not necessarily a surprise. I just think it’s a culmination of a lot of things. The way we work, the way we practice, the things we do during the week. It translated today. Proud of the guys for obviously the way we finished. Great team effort today.”
On if it’s hard to celebrate too much as a head coach given Jacksonville’s defensive issues late in the game:
DOUG PEDERSON: “Any win, any loss is hard to celebrate because you’re right back to work tomorrow, less than 24 hours. We’re going to enjoy this one. We’re going to look at the tape, make corrections, and move forward.”
On if running back Tank Bigsby will see increased carries over running back Travis Etienne Jr.:
DOUG PEDERSON: “No. Travis is our guy. Tank had a good game. That’s just the way games go. Happy for Tank. Great for the offensive line, obviously, in some of those situations there. Travis is our guy. Tank had a good game today, though.”
On what was different about quarterback Trevor Lawrence Sunday:
DOUG PEDERSON: “You know, Trevor’s the same guy every day. Honestly. I didn’t really see anything other than him working through some of the issues that we’ve had the first month of the season. And, listen, Trevor’s a professional, and he’s our guy, and we continue to help him and support him and do everything we can for him. I think he just has to understand that we’re going to do that, right? And as a quarterback, you just go out and do your job. And he did that today. He ran the offense, and he saw the field well. Gosh, there were some big throws in there. So, I think it was just a great effort by everybody. But to me, Trevor was the same guy he’s always been.”
On what prompted Pederson to challenge the spot in the first quarter:
DOUG PEDERSON: “No, it was clear that his knee was down prior to the line to gain.
On who observed that Colts running back Trey Sermon’s knee was down:
DOUG PEDERSON: “The guys upstairs were on top of that with the replays that we got, so it was pretty easy for me. It was a pretty easy challenge.”
On the performance of Jacksonville’s offensive line:
DOUG PEDERSON: “This is the second week in a row our O-line has played good as a unit. Listen, it’s been the same five guys now, right? So, when I say there’s continuity keeping those five together, there’s continuity, and they start learning to play together, and that’s what you’re seeing. I think these last couple of weeks, you’re seeing that. It was just a great game by those guys again today. They do have a good pass rush. I know they’re missing some guys. But still, even their second guys that come in can get after the pass. I thought our guys did a good job there, and in the run game as well. So, there’s consistency with playing together and working through your issues that helped us win this game today.”
On if Pederson feels there is a weight off Lawrence’s shoulders:
DOUG PEDERSON: “Well, I think there’s a weight off everybody’s shoulders. Right? Not just him. It’s a weight off of my shoulders too. Now you guys can get off my tail for at least a week. Listen, that’s what I told the guys, I mean, if they just continue to stick together and work hard and trust what we’re doing and trust each other. That’s what you’re seeing, right? Is it perfect? No. It’s never going to be perfect. But the other thing you have to realize too, we’ve had five games. Four of them have been one-score games, right? So that’s another thing we have to get used to. These games are going to come down to the last drive or two of a game. And that’s something, as a team, we’ve got to embrace, and we’ve got to learn to do. And today was a good step.”
On if wide receiver Christian Kirk or Etienne were dealing with injury:
DOUG PEDERSON: “Sometimes, it’s the [Colts Defensive Coordinator] Gus Bradley defense. Sometimes it’s going to happen that way. It’s where the ball goes sometimes. And I’ll tell you this, Christian made a heck of a play late in the game, and he made another one later in the game here in the fourth quarter that set up that game-winning kick. So, it’s just kind of the way the ebb and flow of a game goes. But as far as T.J. [Etienne], I’ve got to check with Ferg [Jaguars Vice President of Player Health and Performance Jeff Ferguson]. Nothing was said during the game. I know there was one time he got hit on the sideline. He had to come out a play or two, maybe to catch his wind. Other than that, I’ve got to find out.”
On how big of a step it was to see the Jaguars’ offense finish out the game:
DOUG PEDERSON: “It’s huge. It’s huge. It’s an opportunity to go win the game, and the sideline was into it. The guys were into it. They wanted the ball in their hands. The O-line wanted the ball. It’s good for us to do that as a football team. I thought today was a really good complementary football game. Three aspects. We had a nice punt return in there. Cam [kicker Cam Little] with his kicks. Logan [punter Logan Cooke] had a nice punt in there. Special teams did their part. The defense, obviously, came up huge. Travon [defensive Travon Walker], the three sacks today. The offense did their part. This is a really good complementary game today.”
On Walker’s three-sack performance against the Colts:
DOUG PEDERSON: “He was big. It was good to see him take that step forward. He and the D-line have been really close to getting to the quarterbacks during this first month of the season. I’m proud of those guys for the way they’ve stuck together and continued to work.”
On Pederson’s faith in Little and the pressure on a rookie kicker:
DOUG PEDERSON: “I think it’s — I mean, it’s pressure. But if you know Cam like we do, like I do, he kind of embraces that, honestly. And just an excellent kick. Happy for him to be able to do that. I think it’s the reason why we drafted him, and that’s the reason why he’s here. So, hats off to him and the field goal team for finishing the game.”
On how gratifying it was to have short drives result in points:
DOUG PEDERSON: “I mean, it’s a lot. Again, it just goes to the credit of the team, the credit of the players. The way they work during the week, the amount of time they spend with each other, and just to be able to finally kind of see it all kind of come together. We’ve been extremely close, right, in these games. And today it all came together, and proud of the guys for pulling this one out.”