OAKLAND, Calif. – Gus Bradley said the challenging will continue.
As much as anything, that was the focus of Bradley's post-game comments following the Jaguars' second consecutive loss to start the season, a second consecutive game in which the offense struggled and in which the Jaguars made too many mistakes.
The Jaguars lost to the Oakland Raiders, 19-9, at O.co Coliseum Sunday, and while the always-optimistic Bradley did talk about positives afterward, he said this, too:
The penalties that gave the Raiders too many opportunities?
The mental mistakes that tripped up too many Jaguars chances?
They must stop. Plain and simple.
"We have to clean those things up," Bradley, the first-year head coach said after the Jaguars fell behind 10-3 at halftime and never got within 10 points after early in the third quarter.
"We have to hold everybody accountable, because it's about execution and mindset. We'll challenge those guys in that area and get those things taken care of. It's frustrating, because things like that hold you back."
The Jaguars (0-2) trailed 7-3 after Josh Scobee converted a 27-yard field goal with 7:45 remaining in the second quarter, but Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski converted field goals of 46, 30, 29 and 29 yards to push Oakland's lead to 19-3 with six minutes remaining.
The Jaguars managed six yards offense in the third quarter, and half of the team's yards – 124 of 248 total yards – came after Oakland took its 16-point fourth-quarter lead.
A 13-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Chad Henne to tight end Clay Harbor with 2:53 remaining gave the Jaguars their first touchdown of the season, but Henne's conversion pass sailed high and a final drive ended on downs.
"It was a little bit softer coverage, but you still need to execute," Bradley said of the offensive production late. "Guys made some plays."
The Jaguars committed 10 penalties for 70 yards for the game, with a 15-yard unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty on defensive end Jason Babin giving the Raiders an early first down and leading to the Raiders' only touchdown. A penalty on D.J. Williams for lining up offside on an Oakland punt gave the Raiders a first down and led to Janikowski's first field goal after halftime.
"They see that; they know it," Bradley said. "It's hard to go in the locker room and talk to a team after a game like that because they did play hard and they're wondering why. But they know why. They know it's the little things like that. We paid attention to the details on many things but on that one area – the penalties – we didn't. We have to get that corrected in order to improve."
Bradley talked a lot in his post-game comments about discipline, and said that was a factor in the main area of struggle for the Jaguars' defensively.
The Jaguars held Oakland (1-1) to 19 points, and for a second consecutive game they did not allow an offensive touchdown in the second half, but the Raiders rushed for 226 yards. Running back Darren McFadden rushed for 129 yards on 19 carries and quarterback Terrelle Pryor rushed for 50 yards on nine carries.
"It's that trust issue," Bradley said. "It's not lack of effort or lack of trying. It's just being disciplined and trusting the guy who's playing with you."
INJURY REPORT
Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew sustained a sprained ankle when tackled by Raiders safety Charles Woodson late in the first half. He left the game and did not return. X-Rays were negative, Bradley said.
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QUOTABLE**
- Bradley: "I believe in those guys in the locker room."
- Bradley: "I do feel like we need to somehow establish the run. It's just going to help us on the offensive end. That's what we tried to do today."
- Bradley: "We can't afford to go there (using injuries as an excuse). I don't want our guys to go there. We're all professionals. We're all in the NFL. Because of that, we're held to a high standard. We have to execute at that high standard."
- Wide receiver Cecil Shorts III: "Today, we could have done a lot better. We're professionals. Guys have to step up and make plays. That's the nature of the game. We killed ourselves a lot out there. We've got to get better."
- Henne: "There were some miscues and there were a bunch of things that went on, but what I'm really proud about was we kept fighting to the end. I'm real proud of the guys to keep fighting, to keep pushing through."
- Center Brad Meester: "We've got a great group of guys in here that are going to keep fighting, and that's a great thing to have. We've just got to stay positive. We're blessed with the opportunity to play another week here, and we're going to come out ready to fight. We're going to come back tomorrow, get better from that film and keep working, just keep getting better and go out there and get it next week."
NOTABLE
- The game was the first NFL game for Jaguars wide receiver Jeremy Ebert, activated from the practice squad on Saturday. It was the first NFL start for cornerback Will Blackmon since 2008.
- The Jaguars held the Raiders to 4 of 14 third-down conversions.
- Jones-Drew rushed for 27 yards on 10 carries, but as a team the Jaguars finished with 34 yards rushing on 19 carries, a 1.8-yards-per-carry average.
- The Jaguars did not commit a turnover.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Jaguars will visit the Seattle Seahawks in the third game of the 2013 regular season Sunday, September 22.
