Fred Taylor woke up this morning stiff and sore, but his left knee felt fine.
"I'm cool, man," Taylor said of his knee, which got its first major game test in Sunday's 26-14 win over the Seattle Seahawks.
How about the rest of your body? Taylor was asked.
"Now that's a different story. I expected to feel worse, actually," he said.
Taylor carried the ball 20 times against the Seahawks, after only four rushing attempts in the preseason. Taylor spent the offseason and most of training camp and preseason recovering from knee surgery last January. He said he'd be recovered in time for the start of the season and, after Sunday's performance, the only remaining concern was for how Taylor's knee would react to the activity.
He said there was no swelling today and he was not wearing an ice bag or a bandage on his knee when he met with reporters on Monday afternoon.
That should mean Taylor will be at full speed for this Sunday's showdown with the Colts in Indianapolis. It's a week-two game that will go a long way toward deciding the AFC South title. The Jaguars and Colts are currently tied for first place at 1-0, while the Texans and Titans are each 0-1.
"The Colts are a good team. Any good team brings out the best. Strap it up," Taylor said. "For our division, it could be the game that determines it. We said we wanted to start fast. What other way? We really want to win the first game."
Spirits were high at Alltel Stadium on Monday, following a season-opening win that was solid in all three phases of the game. The offense scored 10 points more than its average of a year ago, the defense produced four turnovers and special teams controlled field position throughout.
You want a negative? There was only one: The Jaguars were one-for-three in red-zone touchdowns and failed in a couple of short-yardage situations.
"We didn't block it well," coach Jack Del Rio said of those short-yardage plays.
Del Rio praised everything from the conditioning of his football team to the leadership qualities of his quarterback, Byron Leftwich, who threw for 252 yards, two touchdowns and a 103.2 passer rating. Del Rio also singled out defensive end Reggie Hayward for getting nine hits on the quarterback.
Hayward was moved from right end to left end to keep him away from Pro-Bowl offensive tackle Walter Jones. The strategy clearly succeeded and Del Rio said: "We're going to play him wherever we feel is the best match up for us."
Del Rio had no injuries to report from Sunday's game and he was prepared to turn his attention forward to the Colts.
"I don't believe there will be any problem selling the big game theory. They've been atop our division and are one of the top teams in the AFC," Del Rio said of the Colts.
In other news, offensive line coach Paul Boudreau was back at work Monday afternoon after becoming ill immediately following the game. Boudreau spent the night in the hospital with what are believed to have been heat-related symptoms.
