Head coach Liam Coen and his players are using the Jaguars' loss at Denver as motivation to improve.
The Jacksonville Jaguars are heading into their Week 3 showdown against the New England Patriots in an unfamiliar situation.
They are coming off a loss.
Jacksonville fell on the road on Sunday to the Denver Broncos, snapping a nine-game regular-season winning streak. For most of the game, it looked like the Jaguars were on their way to their 10th consecutive win.
Jacksonville had a 13-3 lead well into the third quarter and seemed in control. However, a Trevor Lawrence interception with the score at 13-6 completely turned the game. From that point on, it was all Denver, who pulled out a hard-fought 20-13 victory.
The Jaguars haven't done much losing under head coach Liam Coen. With another tough team like the Patriots on deck, Jacksonville must be able to quickly put the loss in the rearview mirror.
That is the message given on Monday by Coen. Speaking to the media, he talked about the Jaguars needing to put the loss behind them and find a way to win the next one.
"We have to move on and respond; that's what it really comes down to."
Coen's Players Agree
After Coen was finished, a couple of his players took turns at the podium and echoed their coach's sentiments.
Cornerback Jarrian Jones spoke about the importance of responding to the loss and believes dropping the game at Denver can be turned into a positive.
"I think that it was good for this to happen," Jones said. "Now we have to hone in on us. It's all about us, and if we execute and commit to our play style and things we do, it's going to be hard to beat us. I think it was good we had a wake-up call like this."
If Jacksonville reacts the right away, the loss could prove to be beneficial in the long run.
However, losing to a team like Denver, which is competing for the same AFC playoff spots as the Jaguars, is not a good thing. Not only does Jacksonville lose a potential tiebreaker with the Broncos, but it also cost the team a chance to start 2-0 with all three other AFC South teams 0-2.
That said, Jones is responding exactly the way one would hope after a loss.
Center Ron Hainsey is also looking at the loss as a way to get better. He says losses are expected, but they show a team what it needs to work on.
"It's the NFL; you're not going to win every game. And what you can take from it is, 'Where can we get better? Where can we improve the plan? Where can we improve as individuals? Where can we improve our play style and our effort and our finish, those things?'
Final Thoughts
The loss to Denver was tough, but Coen and his players appear to be trying to squeeze out any good that could possibly come from it.
The Jaguars will need to recover fast, as they have another game against one of the AFC's top squads next Sunday. The Patriots, like the Jaguars, come into the contest 1-1 and haven't looked like the team that made the Super Bowl a year ago.
However, they are still going to be a huge challenge for Jacksonville. Nothing will be a better response after the Jaguars' loss than beating another of the NFL's top teams.
