Jack Del Rio cited a failure to block and tackle as the reasons for the Jaguars' inability to run the ball and stop the run against the Tennessee Titans this past Sunday.
"The entire front wasn't playing up to the level we're accustomed to, on both sides of the ball. We didn't run-block and we didn't shed blocks," Del Rio said.
Del Rio and his defensive coaching staff have been accused of not making scheme adjustments that would've prevented the Titans from rushing for 282 yards, the most by a regular-season opponent in Jaguars history, in Sunday's 13-10 loss to the Titans. Del Rio emphatically denied that the problem was a scheme failure.
"There wasn't a need for any fairy dust. It was just a matter of defeating blocks and making plays," Del Rio said at his Tuesday morning press conference.
"To think we sat there and ran the same defense the whole game, I don't know where that thought would come from. Watch the tape," he added. "Football, sometimes, can be reduced to real simple things like blocking and tackling. We weren't good enough on Sunday to overcome our poor blocking and tackling."
The Jaguars head coach was asked if the team should be expected to be as successful on defense as they have been in the past, in light of injuries to defensive end Reggie Hayward and defensive tackle Marcus Stroud that are believed to have curtailed their effectiveness.
"I wouldn't try to put what happened on Sunday on Stroud and Hayward. Look at the tape a little closer," Del Rio said.
Meanwhile, a group of kickers arrived at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium on Tuesday to try out for the job Josh Scobee will vacate for a to-be-determined amount of time. Del Rio said one of "four or five" kickers will be signed for this Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons.
Del Rio confirmed that Mike Vanderjagt, Billy Cundiff and John Carney are candidates to sign with the Jaguars. The names of the other candidates were not provided.
"I don't have a time frame for Josh," Del Rio said of Scobee's expected recovery. "The doctors are assessing it."
Del Rio said Scobee's quad injury is "not a significant enough strain or tear" to require that he be placed on the injured reserve list. The Jaguars are expected to cut an offensive lineman to make room for the new kicker.
Other issues presented at Tuesday's press conference included criticism of Matt Jones' and Gerald Sensabaugh's play in Sunday's game. Jones failed to control a potential touchdown pass and Del Rio admitted concern that Sensabaugh missed several tackles.
"On Fred Taylor's longest run of the day (17 yards), both Matt and Dennis Norman got blocks that sprung him. I thought that was a good sign. The play in the end zone; it would've been a great catch. It was an opportunity that didn't go the way we'd like to see it go," Del Rio said.
"We'll play better. We must play better," he said.
