Jaguars vs Colts: Winners and losers from Week 18

What a becoming finish to that season.

The Jacksonville Jaguars ended their 2024-25 marketing campaign with an additional time loss to the Indianapolis Colts, 26-23. It was the workforce’s tenth one-score lack of the season marking the primary time since 1966 an NFL workforce had ever achieved the feat.

Jacksonville completed its yr with a 4-13 document and can go into the offseason with the fifth general decide. Division rival Tennessee Titans personal the No. 1 general spot.

Of the seasons to overlook, this one was up there with a few of the worst. The Jags by no means really recovered from Travis Etienne’s fumble in Miami and consequently fumbled away the remainder of their time on the sector.

There’ll hopefully be sweeping modifications on Black Monday that assist put this workforce again on some kind of monitor. As a result of no matter we noticed these final couple weeks was about as off-track as this franchise may get.

WINNERS

Brian Thomas Jr.

Whereas this previous season as a complete has been one to erase from reminiscence, the emergence of Brian Thomas Jr. ought to stand as one of many lone issues to recollect. The LSU rookie ended his season with 87 catches, 1,282 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns. He may have had an eleventh landing Sunday however let’s transfer ahead.

He set the franchise information for receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns for a rookie. He’s high amongst his draft class when it comes to receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. Lastly, Thomas completed as one in every of simply 4 rookies within the Tremendous Bowl Period (1966 and past) to publish 1,100 receiving yards and 10 receiving touchdowns. This was all completed with a principally hobbled Trevor Lawrence and Mac Jones below heart.

The Jacksonville Jaguars don’t hit on draft picks usually. They hit on first-rounders even much less. Nevertheless, by some divine intervention, the workforce moved again and acquired Thomas Jr. And for that, we owe Trent Baalke a small thanks.

Particular Teamers

On a lesser, however nonetheless important observe, the Jaguars have some stable particular teamers.

Duval County will ship two Professional Bowlers to compete in Orlando as starters in lengthy snapper Ross Matiscik and punter Logan Cooke, whereas the workforce does have some alternates.

It’s the second consecutive Professional Bowl for Matiscik and eventually the primary for Cooke. Each gamers are about as stable as they arrive at their positions and had been rewarded as such.

Even on Sunday, Cooke did all he may by knocking one in every of his punts inside the 10-yard line. He has had seven straight seasons placing a minimum of 11 punts inside the 10 and is one in every of simply 4 gamers to take action since 2000.

The workforce’s different kicker, rookie Cam Little, has additionally been an absolute stud. Little went 3-3 on Sunday with a protracted of 53. Little linked on 92.3% of his subject purpose tries and was 100% on further factors. The three positions the Jags completely don’t want to fret about this offseason are lengthy snapper, punter and kicker that are at all times the spine items of all franchises.

Draft Place

In a kind of morbid means, it’s good the Jags didn’t win. By dropping, the workforce secured the fifth general spot behind Tennessee, Cleveland, the Giants and New England. All of these groups aside from most likely the Patriots could possibly be taking a look at quarterbacks so the Jags are in a agency place to land primarily any participant they need.

Clearly Travis Hunter’s title involves thoughts when it comes to who the Jags ought to choose adopted by guys like Arizona receiver Tetairoa McMillan and Michigan nook Will Johnson.

Nook is what followers assume the workforce wants most and after seeing Buster Brown get burnt by Alec Pierce it’s arduous to argue that.

Had the Jags gained, they might have been drafting within the 7-9 vary and sure far out of pole place for a high general participant. Clearly this workforce has a laundry record of issues so with the ability to draft excessive, or commerce again for a haul, will seemingly solely stand to assist the workforce sooner or later. If in fact this workforce has employed a brand new normal supervisor.

LOSERS

All the pieces else

Fairly actually exterior of these three issues– and possibly the emergence of rookie nook Jarrian Jones– has been a whole and utter waste.

Half of the workforce’s core gamers acquired harm, together with franchise quarterback Lawrence. Rookie sensation proper deal with Anton Harrison took a step again, hiring Ryan Nielsen was a catastrophe, Arik Armstead didn’t assist in any respect, the run sport labored rarely, buying Mac Jones backfired and the record goes on and on.

The Monday after the ultimate common season NFL sport is named Black Monday and for good motive. It’s the reckoning day throughout the league for firings and hopefully Jacksonville finds itself in that information.

New England has already moved on from first-year head coach Jerod Mayo. Jacksonville must observe go well with with the firings of Peterson and Baalke. With Pederson out, most of his workers too shall be gone. That ought to be high quality with everybody. Nielsen ought to be a toss-up given his first-year standing and injury-plagued workforce. Baalke’s firing, or retiring, ought to be a no brainer.

This was presupposed to be probably the most proficient workforce the Jacksonville Jaguars had ever assembled. As a substitute, it grew to become probably the most unclutch workforce in NFL historical past. What was presupposed to be a workforce that would problem for an AFC title beat workforce’s quarterbacked by Joe Flacco, Drake Maye, Will Levis and Mason Rudolph.

Like they’ve all yr, the Jags discovered themselves down early in Indy, made a robust comeback, tied issues up late and threw up throughout themselves when it got here to truly successful the sport.

The Jags gained their 4 video games this yr by a mixed 30 factors. Lower than 5 whole touchdowns separated this workforce from being winless and 16 of these 30 factors got here in a single win.

In the end we will lastly cease pushing the collective boulder of Jaguar fandom up its endless hill. However we should march that boulder again to the underside, solely to begin anew as soon as April rolls round.