SALON

Wednesday, Nov 7, 2012 9:16 PM UTC

Colts, Jaguars in different phases of rebuild

By

Topics: From the Wires,

Colts, Jaguars in different phases of rebuildJacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blaine Gabbert (11) is sacked by Detroit Lions defensive end Lawrence Jackson, right, during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 4, 2012, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)(Credit: AP)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — It wasn’t that long ago that Indianapolis and Jacksonville played for the division title.

Less than two years, in fact.

Both teams have changed coaches, quarterbacks and other personnel since.

It’s pretty clear which one is further along in the rebuilding project.

The Colts (5-3) have won three straight heading into Thursday night’s game at Jacksonville, pulling out close games behind rookie quarterback Andrew Luck and playing inspired football since coach Chuck Pagano was diagnosed with leukemia.

The Jaguars (1-7), meanwhile, have dropped five in a row since winning the first meeting between the AFC South rivals.

“We’re expecting the biggest, baddest punch they’ve got because of their situation,” Colts interim coach/offensive coordinator Bruce Arians said. “We can’t sit back and pat ourselves on the back or they’ll bloody our nose.”

A lot would need to change for that to happen.

The Jaguars have the league’s worst offense — they won’t have running back Maurice Jones-Drew again — and haven’t played much better on defense. They were far from competitive in four home games, losing to Houston, Cincinnati, Chicago and Detroit by a combined score of 126-34.

Owner Shad Khan, speaking publicly for the first time this season, called it “sad and embarrassing.”

Khan will evaluate things after the season and hasn’t ruled out wholesale changes. That could mean firing general manager Gene Smith and maybe even coach Mike Mularkey after just one season.

Players have a sense that changes could be on the horizon.

“It’s just time to get this thing rolling,” defensive tackle Terrance Knighton said. “We’re way out of the playoff picture, but our coaches work way too hard and it’s a bad representation of the new owner and what he’s done for us. It’s time for the players to do their part.”

And if that doesn’t happen?

“It’s the NFL. It’s a cutthroat business,” guard Uche Nwaneri said. “You can be here one day and gone the next. It just becomes a little bit more magnified when you have a situation like this. We work with that kind of pressure on us every day, so nothing new there.”

The short week could benefit Jacksonville, which has its longest winning streak (three) in the series.

Home teams are 6-2 in Thursday night games this season, no doubt a distinct advantage after they went 7-2 in those prime-time games in 2011.

“It’s tough on the body. It’s tough on the mind,” Colts receiver Reggie Wayne said. “Especially with us having a young team, it’s going to be important that we keep guys mentally focused and make sure you take care of your body because this is going to be a shock to the body. There’s a lot of stuff you’ve got to look into and try to get fixed and get fixed fast. This is a test for us.”

It’s the first prime-time game for Luck.

The two-time Heisman Trophy runner-up has exceeded two years of hype over his first eight NFL games.

He already has three more wins than Indy did last season with three veteran quarterbacks. And against Miami on Sunday, he broke Cam Newton’s single-game rookie record for passing yards by throwing for 433 in a 23-20 victory. He also tied the rookie record set by his predecessor, Peyton Manning, for most 300-yard games in a season (four) and is on pace to shatter several other marks.

He has completed 190 of 336 passes for 2,404 yards, with 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions. At this rate, he would shatter Sam Bradford’s rookie marks for completions (354) and attempts (590) and Newton’s record for yardage (4,051). He also could challenge Manning’s rookie record for TD passes (26).

“I wouldn’t trade him for anybody in the world,” Arians said. “He has made us into a decent offense right now. There are times when we look like a bunch of rookies out there and then there’s other times when we play pretty solid. He is the one pretty consistent force. He likes to practice, he loves to learn, he loves to meet and he has an infectious personality. He kind of wills himself on those guys in the huddle so he’s brought a lot to it.”

The Jaguars can’t say the same about Gabbert, the 10th overall pick in the 2011 draft who was supposed to be the key to Jacksonville’s rebuild. Although Gabbert beat Indy with an 80-yard TD pass to Cecil Shorts III in the final minute of the first meeting, he has been mostly inconsistent all season. He really took a step back in last week’s 31-14 loss to Detroit, throwing several poor passes and two interceptions.

But if there’s one thing the Jaguars have learned after watching Gabbert for two seasons, it’s that pressure can make quarterbacks uncomfortable.

They believe that’s the key to slowing down Luck and the Colts.

“You can make anybody look like a rookie again with a few hits,” defensive end Jeremy Mincey said.

___

Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

More Mark Long.

Next Article

Related Stories

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

The week in 10 pics

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11
  • Lisa Montgomery embraces her nephew Thursday after a tornado tore apart her home in Cleburne, Texas. The twister killed six people and destroyed entire swaths of the North Texas town.
    Credit: AP/LM Otero

  • Jack McMahon, the defense attorney for abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, speaks outside the Criminal Justice Center in Philadelphia Tuesday. His client was convicted of killing three babies in his clinic, and will serve multiple life sentences.
    Credit: AP/Matt Rourke

  • A photo taken Monday captures Vice President Joe Biden's response to a Milwaukee second-grader's innovative proposal to end America's epidemic of gun violence. This guy!
    Credit: AP/Jenny Aicher

  • Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., flanked by a grouper-eyed Michele Bachmann, addresses the IRS' admission that it targeted Tea Party groups in advance of the 2012 election. In an op-ed for CNN Thursday, the Kentucky senator slammed the president for his faux outrage.
    Credit: AP/Molly Riley

  • Ousted IRS chief Steven Miller is sworn in on Capitol Hill Friday. Miller testified before the House Ways and Means Committee on the extra scrutiny the agency gave conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status.
    Credit: AP/J. Scott Applewhite

  • Attorney General Eric Holder pauses as he testifies on Capitol Hill before the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday. Holder is under fire, among other things, for the Justice Department's gathering of phone records at the Associated Press.
    Credit: AP/Carolyn Kaster

  • O.J. Simpson sits during an evidentiary hearing at Clark County District Court in Las Vegas, Nev., Thursday. Simpson, who is currently serving a nine-to-33-year sentence in state prison for armed robbery and kidnapping, is using a writ of habeas corpus to seek a new trial.
    Credit: AP/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Jeff Scheid

  • Major Tom to ground control: On Sunday astronaut Chris Hadfield recorded the first music video from space, a cover of David Bowie's "Space Oddity."
    Credit: AP/NASA/Chris Hadfield

  • When it rains it pours. President Barack Obama speaks during a news conference Thursday with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, inexplicably inspiring an #umbrellagate Twitter meme.
    Credit: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

  • A smoke plume rises high above a road block at the intersection of County A and Ross Road east of Solon Springs, Wis., Tuesday. No injuries were reported, but the the wildfire caused evacuations across northwestern Wisconsin.
    Credit: AP/The Duluth News-Tribune/Clint Austin

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11

Related Videos

Comments

 0 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: Chekhov's story mirrors Russia's own

Recommendations