Tag: Todd Wash

Todd Wash, Doug Marrone pump the brakes on speculation about Jags moving to a 3-4

With the Jacksonville Jaguars using seven of their 12 draft picks on defense, it certainly looked like the unit could predominately use 3-4 looks and that’s the vibe many members of the media felt after talking to the staff in April. After selecting …

With the Jacksonville Jaguars using seven of their 12 draft picks on defense, it certainly looked like the unit could predominately use 3-4 looks and that’s the vibe many members of the media felt after talking to the staff in April. After selecting players like pass rusher K’Lavon Chaisson and nose tackle DaVon Hamilton, questions began to pour in about a 3-4 defense, and both Doug Marrone and Dave Caldwell spoke of it in some shape.

However, after a recent Zoom call between the media and Marrone, and a separate one with defensive coordinator Todd Wash, it appears there may not be that drastic of a change in scheme in 2020.

“We know systematically we’re based off a four down linemen scheme, but we wanted to be able to increase our multiplicity and our front mechanics, meaning that there is a lot of different things that you can do on the back end,” Marrone said to the media.

“Coverage-wise there is a lot of disguising and a lot of things we can do to create that moment of indecision. Whether we’re pressing and bailing or pressing and going into cover two, there’s a lot of things you can do and it’s so much easier to be multiple in your coverage aspect.”

Not too soon after, Wash basically echoed what Marrone said about being based off a four-man front. He added that the reason for that was because he felt the team wasn’t built for two-gapping principles, which is what a 3-4 is typically based off. Instead, he stated that the Jags were going to be a one-gap penetrating front as we’ve seen since he’s been the coordinator.

“We’re not built to be a two-gap team; we’re still going to be one-gap, single-high,” Wash said on the Zoom call. “It’s just guys playing different spots, changing some alignment. We have not installed a different front from what we’ve had in our system the past two years. Leverages and alignments are going to be a little different within our scheme.

“You’re going to see the outside linebacker on the line of scrimmage more because that’s the skill set of the guys we have. Everybody’s saying a 3-4, but if you look at our system the last two years, we’ve had three different front families based out of the 3-4, but nobody considered us a 3-4.”

This also prompted the media to ask Wash if the hype about the Jags moving to a 3-4 was overblown. He simply replied, “That would be a correct statement.”

As for being more multiple, fans should look back at their season finale in 2019 against the Indianapolis Colts. They won that game by a score of 38-20 and the Jags showcased multiple alignments. One front that fans will likely see more of from 2019 is their use of a 50 front where the strong-side linebacker plays on the line of scrimmage (as Marrone mentioned during the draft). This, of course, will be a possibility thanks to the additions of Cassius Marsh and Chaisson this offseason.

In a nutshell, this all means the Jags won’t be drastically different from last season defensively, but will utilize more alignments as they did against Indy. Hopefully for Wash’s sake it works, as the Jags can’t afford to struggle defensively as they did in 2019, because if he doesn’t, his job and Marrone’s could be lost when 2021 arrives.

NFL.com points out 3 keys for Doug Marrone to remain with Jags past 2020

Gil Brandt believes there will be three ways for Doug Marrone to keep his job in 2020. One key factor will be the growth of Gardner Minshew.

Jacksonville Jaguars coach Doug Marrone seems to have barely kept his job in 2019, which means he will be one of the league’s most notable hot-seat candidates in 2020. NFL.com’s Gil Brandt definitely would agree with those sentiments as he recently outlined how the coaches with the most questionable job security could keep their jobs.

For Marrone, Brandt felt like the three keys would be Gardner Minshew II taking another step, the defense re-establishing its dominance (especially in the trenches), and making the London game an advantage.

All three keys pointed out by Brandt are pretty valid. I agree that Marrone is going to need Minshew to reach another level, and Jay Gruden is certainly qualified to do that, however, they have to fix things around him. Adding a No. 1 tight end, some help on the offensive line, and another threat at receiver will be important this offseason, and if they are addressed, Minshew has a shot.

However, one mistake that I believe Marrone has already made was retaining Todd Wash. Wash has lacked the ability to adapt as a coordinator and it’s hard to see much changing on his end. Simply put, without the amount of blue-chip talent he had in 2017, Wash is going to lack consistency as coordinators seemingly have figured him out.

As for the London effect, I agree, the Jags must make it an advantage. It would especially help if they were two divisional games, as the Jags would catch their opponents on an unusual schedule for the week.

Ultimately, we’ll have to see how Marrone fares in 2020 but seven wins or less should be unacceptable. Then again, a seven-win season in which the Jags look competitive may be just enough in the eyes of a patient owner like Shad Khan.

Doug Marrone to make coaching staff evaluations in the coming weeks

Doug Marrone will remain the Jags’ head coach, but with coaching evaluations coming up, he may need to let some assistants go.

With Black Monday occurring just a few days ago, there are currently several teams making personnel decisions but the Jacksonville Jaguars, to the surprise of some, aren’t one of them. After meeting with various personnel members throughout the week and coach Doug Marrone and general manager Dave Caldwell on Tuesday, owner Shad Khan made the decision not to make any changes to his staff. However, with another double-digit loss season occurring, Marrone may not be as willing to overlook his staff’s shortcomings as ownership was.

In the process of meeting with the media Tuesday, Marrone revealed that he’d be meeting with his staff and making evaluations when the team returns around Jan. 13, and some have speculated that could mean another slight shake-up within the coaching staff.

Upon looking at where Marrone could make changes, the first position that comes to mind is the defensive coordinator position, which is currently held by Todd Wash. The Jags’ 2019 season was especially a rough one for him as his unit finished the season as the No. 24 ranked team in yards allowed (375.4 YPG average) and the No. 28 ranked rushing defense (139.3 YPG average). While some of his struggles were due to losing several key players in Telvin Smith, Marcell Dareus, and Myles Jack, it’s been painfully clear over the last two seasons that Wash isn’t the best at making adjustments. Some fans also felt that his success from 2017 was due to the plethora of talent the Jags had and not his coaching abilities as he struggled after the departures of players like Malik Jackson and Tashaun Gipson and could never regather himself.

Another position where Marrone may consider a change is at the offensive line coaching position where he brought in George Warhop, a former coach of his as a player, just last season. Warhop’s group got off to a decent start in the first half of the season as the Jags were able to go 4-4 and Leonard Fournette was able to record two games with over 107 yards rushing and one with over 220 yards rushing. However, after that, the unit looked very below average as the running lanes were hard to come by and the Jags had multiple games where they couldn’t score more than 12 points.

It’s absolutely no doubt that Marrone understands he’s fortunate to still have his job after how 2019 went down. For that reason, fans can’t help but wonder how unimpressed he was with the jobs Wash and Warhop did in 2019, even with the injuries that plagued the team. That said, if there is a change made, it wouldn’t be shocking to see both assistants replace though it also shouldn’t be ruled out that both could be retained.

Jags’ staff like the production they’ve received from Tre Herndon in 2019

The Jacksonville Jaguars’ defense hasn’t looked anything like the elite unit fans witnessed in 2017 as they’ve lost a lot of talent. Arguably the biggest hit the group took was the loss of Jalen Ramsey, who was traded to the Los Angeles Rams. As the …

The Jacksonville Jaguars’ defense hasn’t looked anything like the elite unit fans witnessed in 2017 as they’ve lost a lot of talent. Arguably the biggest hit the group took was the loss of Jalen Ramsey, who was traded to the Los Angeles Rams.

As the next man up, the trade forced Tre Herndon into the starting lineup, who had never started in an NFL game until that point. Of course, as any player would, he had his highs and lows, but with just one game left in the season, Jags defensive coordinator Todd Wash and head coach Doug Marrone likes where the second-year player is.

“We were talking actually this morning, [Head Coach] Doug Marrone and I, and [Herndon] is playing extremely well right now,” said Wash. “He has not given up very many explosive plays. Guys are going to catch a ball on everybody at some point in time, but we are really pleased with his progress. He does exactly what we want him to do, not only in the pass game, but the run game.”

Herndon will enter the Jags’ season finale as the team’s leader in interceptions with three. When considering he didn’t start in two of the team’s regular season games in 2019, that’s quite impressive.

Marrone’s future looks uncertain at the moment, but if he returns that would be great for Herndon as Marrone is a big fan of him. Even before he was inserted into the starting lineup, Marrone praised the second-year corner often during training camp, and if Marrone isn’t fired, it’s possible he’ll be fine with keeping Herndon in the starting lineup for 2020.

Abry Jones says fans who believe Jags have quit shouldn’t attend until 2020

At just a little under 24 hours past Sunday’s beatdown to the Los Angeles Chargers, fans of the Jacksonville Jaguars are still steaming about the team’s performance – and rightfully so. The embarrassing 45-10 loss was the Jags’ fourth of 20 points …

At just a little under 24 hours past Sunday’s beatdown to the Los Angeles Chargers, fans of the Jacksonville Jaguars are still steaming about the team’s performance — and rightfully so. The embarrassing 45-10 loss was the Jags’ fourth of 20 points or more within the last five weeks, which has led some fans to question the team’s effort.

After the game, one of the Jags’ top locker room leaders in defensive tackle Abry Jones had a message for those fans. He insisted that the team hadn’t quit and suggested that the fans who thought otherwise simply not show up until 2020.

I don’t know that it’s fair to say the players have quit, but one thing is clear: the Jags simply aren’t good and are extremely hard to watch at this point. That applies to the jobs that both the players and coaches are doing.

Atop the list of struggling coaches would definitely have to be defensive coordinator Todd Wash, who seems to be getting outmatched increasingly by the week. While he was without two starters in Myles Jack and Ronnie Harrison, the unit gave up a ridiculous total of 525 yards to Philip Rivers and company. A majority of those yards came from one person as Austin Ekler racked up 213 total yards on the day. It got to a point in the game where it looked like no player on the roster wanted to tackle him and he was pretty much the only weapon the Chargers needed.

On the offensive end, the Jags weren’t able to get much done either. Some of their struggles have been due to poor offensive line play. The unit has made it extremely difficult for Leonard Fournette to get going, which then causes John DeFilippo to struggle with play-calling. In Sunday’s game, the unit was only able to garner 10 points despite the change behind center, which is certainly something fans had a hard time sitting through just as they did while watching the defense get annihilated.

Luckily, the Jags only have one more home game for local fans to endure. They will be on the road the next two weeks, traveling to the Oakland Raiders and Atlanta Falcons. However, the season finale will take place at TIAA Bank Field against the Indianapolis Colts, but based off how the team has played as of late, it’s looking like there won’t be a strong crowd — and understandably so.

Todd Wash on Myles Jack changing positions: “He’s our mike linebacker”

Fans wanting a position change for Myles Jack can keep wishing as DC Todd Wash shot down any chances of it happening this season.

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The Jacksonville Jaguars elected to give middle linebacker Myles Jack a new contract extension in late August, and so far, it’s a move that isn’t paying off. The young linebacker has struggled mightily at the mike linebacker position, constantly finding himself out of place or failing to shed blocks. As a result, many fans have proposed the question as to whether the former first-round pick should change positions, however, that’s seemingly not even a thought in the mind of defensive coordinator Todd Wash.

At this point in the season, it’s not shocking that a position change isn’t a thought in the mind of Wash, but it definitely should be a possibility next season regardless as to who is coaching the team.

A lot of fans have been on record for saying Jack has the skillset to play at the weak-side position where Telvin Smith formerly played, however, the fourth-year linebacker has never played at the position. During his rookie campaign, he saw time solely at the strong-side linebacker position, then played a mix of strong-side and middle linebacker in 2018. That said, it seems as though Jack’s chances to move to the outside are pretty slim — at least as long as Wash is in charge.

Heading forward, Jack will have ample opportunities to prove himself at mike linebacker. That starts this week with their longtime rivals in the Tennessee Titans next on the schedule, who undoubtedly are going to test Jack and the defense in the interior.

Todd Wash discusses why Jags are having issues against the run

The Jags’ linebacking corps has been an issue all year and DC Todd Wash confirmed the main issue most fans have been pointing to all along.

The Jacksonville Jaguars team as a whole has struggled in their last two games but the fans especially have been pointing fingers at the defense, who’ve struggled mightily against the rush. Dating back to their loss to the Houston Texans in London they’ve given up 480 total yards to opposing rushers and many fans have pinned those issues on the team’s linebacking corps.

Heading into this regular season, the linebacker position was an area of concern with Telvin Smith’s retirement and Myles Jack not having a strong 2018 season. Now, the fears of the fanbase have seemingly come true, as the group is struggling with shedding blocks, which has led to some of the Jags’ issues against the rush.

Jags defensive coordinator Todd Wash pretty much confirmed what some fans were speculating about the linebacker play Thursday and admitted he has to do a better job prepping his unit in general.

“Well in our system we’re an attack front, so it’s not like we sit and try to cover up linemen and keep them off the second level, Wash said. “So, within our system that’s not what we do. Some systems they do, but for us, we’re an attack system and then when you get on a block you have to get off a block is basically the way our system is built from the front seven and nickel, or the front eight and base.”

Wash added that playing “downhill,” as some have suggested, isn’t necessarily the answer either because in today’s game that would put the linebackers out of position to help out in the passing game, too.

“Not that everybody knows, but if our linebackers just run downhill, we’re going to get killed in the passing game,” Wash added. “It’s just the way we play our system. It’s the way Gus [Bradley] plays it, it’s the way [Robert] Saleh plays it, it’s the way they play it in Seattle. Your linebackers can’t get just downhill, a lot of people don’t understand that, a lot of people don’t understand football to be honest with you. So, our scheme allows them to go east and west, but when he does see it, we need to see our linebackers getting downhill better than we have.”

Of course, all of the statements above are not to say the linebackers are solely to blame, but they’ve clearly been a big part of the defense’s issues. Add in the loss of Smith’s pursuit speed and now fans are looking at a defense that is significantly worse than 2017’s group, which led the team to the AFC Championship.

Needless to say, the Jags’ inability to get off blocks are just some of the fundamental things the team has likely emphasized in practice this week. However, with the Tennessee Titans, Derrick Henry and their powerhouse mentality up next, we’ll see just how much they have improved throughout practice as Wash’s job could hang in the balance.

Jags drop to No. 22 spot in USA TODAY power rankings

The Jags took another drop in USA Today’s power rankings after Week 11’s loss to the Colts, however, the fall was minimal.

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The Jacksonville Jaguars were pummeled by the Indianapolis Colts this past Sunday and their playoff chances declined drastically as a result. They also took a small slide down USA TODAY’s power rankings, coming in at the No. 22 spot after previously being ranked No. 20.

22. Jaguars (20): Focus has been on quarterback transition, but what about a defense burned for nearly 60 points and 800 yards over its past two appearances?

Our comrade Nate Davis is right, while Nick Foles’ day was unimpressive outside of the first quarter Sunday, the Jags’ defense gave up an embarrassing total of 264 rushing yards on the day. Colts running back Marlon Mack had a solid day, rushing fo 109 yards and a touchdown before sustaining a hand injury and having to leave the game. To make matters worse, the Colts’ No. 2 tailback, Johnathan Williams, had an even better day, accumulating a career-high of 116 yards on 13 carries.

The Jags’ struggles on defense Sunday weren’t exactly surprising because they’ve been one of the worse teams in football when it comes to stopping the run under Todd Wash in 2019. Previously, they were gashed by the Carolina Panthers and the Houston Texans in London.

As for Foles, he was 33-of-47 for just under 300 yards and a pick in his return. He had some solid moments to open the game but was clearly pressing afterward. He had several moments where he was throwing in double coverage but thankfully the Colts weren’t able to cash in on those opportunities. He’ll need to have a better day Sunday as the Titans have been very opportunistic against the Jags in the past.

The good, the bad and the ugly of the Jaguars’ 33-13 loss to the Colts

Fans feel as though there wasn’t a lot of good to take from the Jags loss to the Colts but at least Foles looked to be 100% from his injury.

Time is slowly ticking away on the Jacksonville Jaguars’ season.

The Jaguars concluded Week 11 with a brutal 33-13 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. With this loss, the Jags sit at 4-6 on the year and will move further down the standings in the AFC. This all but eradicates their chances of making the playoffs.

Sunday’s game was also a huge deal because it marked Nick Foles’ return from the collarbone injury he sustained Week 1.

How would Foles measure up to a tough division rival in the Colts? Here are the good, the bad and the ugly moments from the Jaguars loss vs. the Colts:

1. The good: Foles’ shoulder looks well and healthy

Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports

While the final result on the scoreboard wasn’t particularly desirable, Foles showed that he is perfectly healthy and appeared to show no setbacks from his injured shoulder. Foles threw 47 passes and had 33 completions, proving that he can handle a high volume of passes. He even showed off some great intermediate accuracy on his two touchdown throws to wide receiver DJ Chark Jr.

There were many questions as to rather or not Foles would be able to return to form after his injury and it seems for now that everything looks fine health-wise for him. It’s an encouraging sign for a quarterback that the Jaguars will be committed to for three more years.

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Instant analysis: Jags get embarrassed by Colts despite Nick Foles’ return

The Jags entered Sunday’s must-win game needing to show some life and did the exact opposite.

The Jacksonville Jaguars came into Week 11’s game against the Indianapolis Colts looking to capitalize on a must-win situation but that did not happen. In fact, it wasn’t even a close game as the Jags fell flat with the final score being 33-13.

The Jags were coming off their bye week almost at full strength with just one player on their injury report, while the Colts were without their top receiver, T.Y. Hilton, however, that did not matter. The Colts offense still found success on the ground as the Jags’ defense had another terrible outing against the run. By the time the clock hit 0:00 the Colts had garnered 264 rushing yards mostly thanks to Jonathan Williams, who had 116 yards and Marlon Mack, who exited the game early with an injury but had 109 yards and a touchdown. Simply put, Week 11 marked yet another poor showing from Todd Wash, which should leave the status for his job potentially in the air.

The Jags’ offense wasn’t much better, however, and that was despite the return of Nick Foles from his Week 1 collarbone injury. The veteran had a forgettable day despite the plethora of passing attempts he made (33-of-47) and passing for just under 300 yards and a pick. Of course, those stats were padded due to the Jags being behind for most of the game. Additionally, he had some poorly thrown balls throughout the game, but it’s worth noting he’s just returning from a two-month hiatus. Still, it was not a performance fans will be happy about — and rightfully so.

The Jags also had some questionable offensive play-calling by John DeFilippo. Similar to their previous loss to the Houston Texans in London, the team didn’t give Leonard Fournette a lot of carries early and it resulted in him finishing the game with just eight total carries (for 23 rushing yards) on the whole day. With him being one of the league’s top rushers many fans will question his usage, which is puzzling, to say the least.

In all probability, the Jags have played themselves out of postseason contention although the Houston Texans lost handily Week 11 as well. Still, they will have to get over this loss quickly with a trip to the Tennessee Titans coming up. Kickoff for that game will be at 4:05 EST on Nov. 24 via CBS.