HOUSTON – An angry, frustrated, disillusioned, frustrated, angry, frustrated inbox …
And all with phenomenally good reason.
The Jaguars lost 30-6 to the Houston Texans in the 2015 regular-season finale Sunday in a game that was pretty much as lopsided as the score indicated. Few areas played well; many played poorly.
That about sums it up. Unfortunately, very unfortunately.
Let's get to it …
Travis from Saint Louis, MO:
What was that? No heart. No drive. No nothing. That was by far the most depressing performance of the year. As a head coach, how can Gus Bradley not stand at the press conference with sheer fire in his eyes, and speak of anything positive about this game? They gave up and it was just a pathetic ending to what was for the most part a pretty good season. I'm just extremely annoyed that our leader and head coach won't just express his anger and frustration and show us fans he can see some negatives. And with this game, there should be no positives. It was a complete letdown on all phases of the game. I'm still a huge fan, but I have to say this one hurt more than any other loss this season.
John: Yeah, it was bad. I'm quite sure Bradley showed a different side to players and had a different perspective on the game with players privately than he did in the post-game press conference. And it was clear listening to Bradley that he wasn't happy. It's simply not his way to criticize players publicly, and he's not going to stray from that approach. But do I see how fans get frustrated with a smile after a performance like Sunday's? Yeah, absolutely.
Daniel Since Day One:
Well, it's official: we are NOT better than last year. Yes, there are some excellent young players on the roster, but David Caldwell has failed to build a competitive team in three years. The day he was hired I said "Who?" I like Gus Bradley and hope he's able to succeed next year, but Caldwell is to blame for allowing too many good players to leave and FAILING to replace them with better players. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Shad Khan hired an amazing business manager and look at what they accomplished. It's time to find a general manager who can get the job done.
John: What you want isn't going to happen this offseason. That's not said to discourage you further, but it's how it is. And David Caldwell shouldn't be fired this offseason. The roster is improving, and while the results of the last two games weren't exactly inspiring, the team overall was better. It must be a lot better next year. A lot. We have plenty of time – days, weeks and months, actually – to discuss the whens, wheres, hows and whys of how they will try to achieve that, but as I've said before and likely will say often: there's no more room to improve without winning.
Mile from Yulee:
After this game, we can finally stop having nightmares. Granted, there have been some good times but far more bad. Is it time we do away with Luke Joeckel and get a good left tackle? I know that wouldn't fix the whole team but it would sure help. And what positions do you see being addressed during free agency and then in the draft?
John: I don't think that game Sunday will mean a change at left tackle, though there is no question Joeckel struggled mightily pretty much the entire game. It was at first glance his worst performance in what overall was a decent season. There are reasons for the performance Sunday, not the least of which was that the complete lack of a running game meant that the Texans could pretty much pass rush without hesitation the entire game. When a team that rushes the passer as well as the Texans do can approach a game that way … well, you saw the results. As far as positions to be addressed … again, we have a long way to go: but a couple of pass rushers, some speed at linebacker, center, free safety, third corner … that's a start.
Mike from Eagan, MN:
Well, what a great way to start 2016. Gus Bradley … four wins, three wins, five wins. Reaffirmed for the 2016 season. Very clear that Mr. Khan does not require wins to show improvement, only moral victories. Whoever said that they wanted to use this game to set the tone for next season sure got me excited. I'd say "#DTWD" but I'm pretty sure the Jaguars already killed me...
John: It was not the way the Jaguars wanted to end the 2015 regular season.
Brett from Seattle:
Well, Gus really made the case that Khan made a good decision. Are you sure they didn't lose on purpose because I don't think anyone has showed up to work the past two games. Way to end the season on a high note!
John: It was not the way the Jaguars wanted to end the 2015 regular season.
Jason from Jacksonville:
John, put a fork in this pig because it's done. Spin it spin master. Tell us how this team has improved over the last 6 weeks. Tell us this team is headed in the right direction. Tell us our left tackle doesn't need to be replaced. Tell us Gus deserves another year. Tells us the Jags know what they're doing.
John: I'd rather cry instead.
