Attending the Jacksonville Jaguars team practice
By Andy Davies
The Jacksonville Jaguars had their practice open to the media today ahead of their game against the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
In a rare opportunity, the media got to witness an NFL team practicing plays as they prepare for Sunday. Head Coach Doug Pederson and quarterback Trevor Lawrence also spoke to the media as they hope for a second successive win.
Trevor Lawrence: “We are where we as a team and we need to win”
The Jaguars went into last year’s back-to-back games in London off the back of two successive losses. They won both games in 2023 and they will be hoping for more of the same in 2024, especially after a disappointing 1-4 start.
I asked Lawrence about what confidence this could give the team for the rest of the season if they were to win their next two games. He said: “It’s no secret. We are where we as a team and we need to win. We need to win most of the rest of our games. Obviously you can’t look ahead but just looking at where we are at, I’m just being honest.”
“We understand where we are at as a team and the best way to do that is to focus on one week at a time. We’d love to come away from London 2-0 but first of all, we need to put out best foot forward so we can beat Chicago. That’s our plan Sunday and beyond that you can’t worry about that until that time gets here. Just keeping ourselves in the moment, not chasing these wins, focusing one week at a time is how you get there.”
Doug Pederson: “It’s the reason we drafted him”
In the Jags’ win over the Indianapolis Colts last Sunday, this saw Lawrence have his best game of the season so far, throwing for 371 yards and two touchdowns with an 82.4% completion percentage from 34 attempts. This was largely helped by the performance of rookie wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. he recorded 122 receiving yards and one touchdown.
At time of writing, he has the second most receiving yards for any rookie, and is third for catches, first for yards per catch and is tied for second for touchdowns amongst all other rookies.
Thomas Jr. has shown his ability to go deep as well as catch in traffic. I asked Pederson about how impressed he has been with their newest weapon for Lawrence. He said: “It’s the reason we drafted him. He’s been explosive for us. The more ways we can find opportunities, we need to do that as a staff offensively.”
“I think Press (Taylor) has done a great job of dialling up the shots when we needed them. His speed is real, we talked about that. It shows on tape. He’s a great learner, he practices well, is a tough kid. We’re excited that we have him and we’ve got to continue to find ways to keep giving him the ball.”
Doug Pederson: “It’s one of the things you appreciate about Caleb”
During the aforementioned win over the Colts, the Jags defense forced a turnover. Former first overall pick Travon Walker forced a fumble and Josh Hines-Allen recovered the ball.
The latter recorded three sacks against the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley last season and with Caleb Williams tied for the third most sacked quarterback in 2024, I asked Pederson about whether this has been on the team’s mind this week. He said: “It’s surprising but at the same time it’s one of the things you appreciate about Caleb, his athleticism. He has escaped a lot of pressures as well. He has been able to convert some needy third downs with his legs and outside of the pocket the ability to throw the ball.”
“It’s kind of twofold. If you get a chance to sack him, obviously you’ve got to get him on the ground. When you’re outside the pocket, you’ve got to make sure you cover downfield. It’s a challenge for our front and we’ve got to stay disciplined.”
ANDY DAVIES
NFL ANALYST
ANDY IS A SPORTS JOURNALISM GRADUATE WITH OVER FOUR YEARS EXPERIENCE OF NFL WRITING AND PODCASTING. ANDY HAS BEEN TO EVERY NFL STADIUM AND IS THE HOST OF THE ACROSS THE POD PODCAST. HE HAS PRESS PASS EXPERIENCE AT THE LONDON GAMES AND MANY OTHER NFL BASED EVENTS, HAVING INTERVIEWED THE LIKES OF AARON RODGERS, JASON BELL, OSI UMENYIORA, DOUG PEDERSON, DERRICK HENRY, TREVOR LAWRENCE AND MIKE VRABEL