HEAD COACH DOUG PEDERSON
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
MONDAY, AUGUST 12, 2024
(On his expectations for this week’s joint practices with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) “Yeah,
I mean, just to continue to work, continue to evaluate, make progress and just an
opportunity to kind of get some good quality work against another opponent besides
ourselves.”
(On if the joint practices are as important as the games) “I do. Yeah, you’re right. You get to
pick the situations, the scenarios. It’s very controlled. There’s no live tackling or anything
like that, but they’re physical practices. You can get quite a bit out of them.”
(On if he’s warned the guys about consequences of initiating fights during the joint
practices) “I haven’t talked to the team yet. I will in these next couple of days, but obviously,
that’s not tolerated. Todd [Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles] and I, we both obviously
respect the game and how we practice against each other. I know that he and I will talk, but
at the same time, I understand that you do these with guys that you know and teams that
are respected, and they’re going to play hard and practice hard. We’ve had great success
with them ourselves the last couple of years. I definitely won’t tolerate it with our guys.
That’s for sure.”
(On the challenges of planning joint practices with the Buccaneers’ staff) “These go all the
way back to the spring when the preseason scheduling and the games—you’re talking
about games and things of that nature—so we’ve been talking since May, quite honestly,
and putting everything together. Kind of sign off on it back then so that now the
coordinators can just get together and do the scripting and things of that nature.”
(On the level of physicality for today’s practice) “Yeah, today’s a little bit lighter just
because it’s, a couple hours, several hours—48 hours or so removed from the game. So,
we’ll go a little bit lighter today, still kind of working out some soreness for the guys and
then we’ll ramp it back up tomorrow.”
(On if he thinks this training camp has been more physical than in recent years) “I don’t
know if I’ve added it as much as just the way the schedule kind of fell for me when I could
have padded practices and things of that nature. You want to have as many as you can,
especially early in camp, and then once you start playing games, once we get past this
week, I think we’re down to one padded practice a week, quite frankly, because the games
now become a little bit closer together.”
(On his assessment of the team’s depth after the first preseason game) “It was pleasing to
see all the way through. It just goes back to, I think, the spring, talking about our young
players, talking about the free agents we brought in here, the draft picks, and developing
the entire roster. Obviously, you go into camp… We had 91, 90 right now, but you want
everybody to have an opportunity and to play. I was pleased the other night just that there
wasn’t that drop-off that you normally see late in games, and our guys, especially the young
guys, played well. That makes it harder when it comes to cut-downs to make sure that
you’re keeping the right guys.”
(On what went into the decision to sign S Tashaun Gipson Sr.) “When you think about
Dewey’s situation and Tashaun’s situation, they’re very similar because they’ll probably
miss about the same time. I’m saying that to say, obviously, Tashaun making the 53 and
things of that nature at the end of camp. But for us too, it’s a veteran player that we’re
familiar with, who gives us more depth, gives us an opportunity at safety that right now kind
of fills a spot. We’ve got some young safeties that are playing well. Savage [S Darnell
Savage] right now is not cleared for contact yet as much. Just gives you another veteran
body and some competition and looking forward to getting him out there.”
(On if DT Arik Armstead has been cleared to return this week) “No, probably not until
Atlanta.”
(On injuries) “Knock on wood, we didn’t have anything crazy. Esezi [DT Esezi Otomewo] just
has a shoulder. He’ll be limited a little bit this week, or at least the next couple of days.
Ventrell [LB Ventrell Miller] with his little Q-tip on his hand came out well. Yeah, Foye [LB
Foyesade Oluokun] came out after about five or six plays, a little hamstring tightness. He’ll
be fine. We’re just going to limit him. He’ll be out today. We won’t put him through anything.
Tyson [CB Tyson Campbell], we’ll work back in. He was out of the game. He’ll work back
into practice. Get Ezra [OL Ezra Cleveland] back a little bit, limited on that heel-ankle area.
Ton [OL Anton Harrison] has been cleared, so we’ll get him back out there full today, this
week. Other than that, it was just some little bumps and bruises, but nothing major.”
(On communicating with players about taking care of their bodies during the season) “We
spend a lot of time in the spring sort of onboarding our young players, meaning kind of
prepping them and what to expect in camp, and how to take care of themselves. Our team
of nutritionists and sports science and strength conditioning staff, and medical staff did a
great job at that this spring. Just educating our players, and then, for me, the message was,
‘Hey, over the summer break, you’ve got to run.’ You’ve got to run and get your lower body
ready for the strenuous of camp. The guys have really taken that to heart, and they see too
with the weather and the heat and humidity that it’s more than just a couple of Gatorade
bottles at the end of practice. They really have to rest, recover, they’ve got to eat, they’ve
got to hydrate properly, all of that.”
(On how much RB Travis Etienne Jr. is evolving as a receiver) “Yeah, he definitely has the
ability to line up in some empty formations or even routes out of the backfield, as we saw
the other night. He just continues to impress there. He’s got really good hands catching the
football and we just keep developing that and he can definitely be an asset for us outside of
the backfield.”
(On preparing for kickoff returns) “Yeah, we’ve got to continue to work it, and we’ve got to
continue to watch all the film around the league and what teams might be doing. Heath
[Special Teams Coordinator Heath Farwell] does a great job of his meetings in the
classroom and spending time diving into this new kickoff rule and this style. Obviously, it
benefited us the other night a couple of times, but we’ve just got to continue to work it. I
still think there’s some unknowns. You saw Butker [Kansas City Chiefs K Harrison Butker]
did a great job of putting the one ball on the ground. Your more experienced kickers, I think
you’re going to see more of that as maybe preseason or the regular season comes about.
Those are all things that we just have to be prepared for.”
(On the difference between receiving the ball at the 25-yard line as opposed to the 30-yard
line) “There’s not a big difference there. It might be different if it was the 35, like some of the
coaches have talked about, but the 30, I think if you look around the league, it’s been
anywhere from the 25 to the 30. I mean, we were outside the 30. Kansas City was outside
the 30 one time, I think. But there’s really not a big significance, you’re talking a five-yard
margin right there.”
(On if there are any benefits to kicking the ball out of the back of the endzone) “I think it
determines too who’s back there for the opponent, who’s returning the ball. There’s some
great returners in this league, so I think you take that into consideration too that now we’re
in a tight space and you can kind of—when you see it and you see things open up, a good
returner is going to hit that. I think you have to take all that into consideration as well.”
(On his evaluation of RB Tank Bigsby’s preseason game performance) “He did a nice job.
Nice job in the run game, protection, obviously the kickoff returns. He’s evolving, he’s
developing, he’s improving every single day. He’s one of those players that really, it means
something to him and means a lot to him, and the way he practices and prepares. He did a
nice job, did a real nice job and now something to build on.”
(On what he and Defensive Coordinator Ryan Nielsen made of CB Christian Braswell’s
effort in Saturday’s game) “Yeah, I mean, that’s just one example of many in this football
game, I think, where you saw a second effort like that and really kind of third effort for him
as he did stumble on the route, and then be able to make that type of play. It’s just a credit
to him. Really that’s been—that’s Ryan’s philosophy on defense. It’s that attack and
aggressive mentality and swarm to the football. You want to see all 11 when the coach’s
copy tightens up on the ball. You want to see 11 guys in that frame, and we saw multiple
times that was the case watching this game. That’s a great effort.”
(On signing DE Breeland Speaks and if the Jaguars’ staff often scouts the United Football
League for potential roster additions) “Yeah, our scouting department, they’re looking at
UFL, they’re looking CFL, they’re looking European, they’re just trying to scour the earth for
ball players. Obviously, he had a good season this past year, and fortunate to get him.”
(On what he saw out of the EDGE players such as DE Myles Cole and DE DJ Coleman)
“Yeah, both guys did a nice job. Some things to correct today and tomorrow, but I think
overall, you saw DJ with his physicality, you saw that playing the edge. Myles is still learning,
there were some times where he was a little bit slow coming off the ball, but I think as the
game went, he kind of settled in. He did a nice job. He did some nice things. You can see his
athleticism, his ability to run, his strength. Again, a young player, but it was encouraging to
watch both those guys play.”
(On what he saw out of WR Brian Thomas Jr.’s game film) “We had some opportunities to
get him the football. I thought he did a nice job in the run game. Something we ask our
receivers to do is to block and obviously made that really good, tough third down, third-
and-1 catch down the field. It was a good start for him to really kind of sink in. I think he’ll
just continue to improve and learn from these games.”
(On S Andrew Wingard’s timeframe for return from injury) “I don’t want to put him in a box or
label him, but it’ll definitely be some time, at least the first few games possibly.”
(On what he saw from the offensive line in the run game) “I thought they came off the ball
extremely fast, came off the ball physical. We still have to time up some things with the
running back and the offensive line. There were some opportunities there that we missed.
The game speed. Now, we’re game speed and things were a little bit different. Kansas City
does a nice job of attacking the line of scrimmage with their second-level defenders and
we’ve got to be able to come off on some blocks there. But I thought overall there were
some really good things up front and to go over a hundred yards in the game obviously is a
positive, whether it’s regular season, or preseason. Again, it’s still a work in progress, but
pleased with how we started.”
(On what he saw from DE Travon Walker and LB Chad Muma) “Both guys played physical.
Travon’s long, he was disruptive a few times. You’d like to see him get his hands up a couple
of times and maybe bat some passes down. Those are, again, all things that we continue to
work on. Then Chad, Chad made some really nice plays at linebacker. He was downhill, he
was physical, made a nice tackle in space on a pass. Then special teams, he’s just learning
how to play and learning how to play fast. You can kind of see it with those guys. When I say
play fast, it means their mind is freed up, so they can just play. They know their
responsibilities, know their assignments and both guys played good.”
CORNERBACK JARRIAN JONES
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
MONDAY, AUGUST 12, 2024
(On if putting his jersey on Saturday made being in the NFL feel more real) “When I put my
jersey on, I kind of went in the mirror, kind of making sure I wasn’t dreaming, making sure it
was serious. So, I went and looked in the mirror, I saw the 22, looked on the back, saw
Jones, and was just like, ‘Okay, I’m actually in the NFL.’ Then when I ran out, seeing all the
fans, it was kind of a surreal moment. That first play you go out there, you’re like, ‘Oh man,
I’m really in the league.’ And then after the first play, it was just back to normal.”
(On how he’s gotten better since the first day of training camp) “I’m having a lot of fun.
That’s one thing I can say: I’m having a lot of fun. I made some relationships with some guys
that I think I’ll have for the rest of my life. I’m getting really close with some of the guys, and
I learned a lot about myself, about some of the bad habits I had in college. Now coming
back to the league as far as the quarterbacks in the league are a little different than they
were in college. So, [inaudible] on the ball, looking back at the quarterback, those are some
bad habits. The quarterback is actually putting the ball on the money now. I think those are
some habits that I’m trying to break now. But just being true to myself, sticking to what I’ve
always known to be, what I put the work in to be. Just staying true to that, trusting myself
and knowing that I put the work in for it. So, I think it’s all just coming to a fold.”
(On working with WR Brian Thomas Jr. outside of practice and how building that rapport
helps him) “BT, he has a skill set you can’t really teach. For real, you can’t teach someone to
be long, fast, smooth, get in and out of his breaks, and he’s got crazy ball skills. I had that
battle, that match up with him in college. So just being able to go against him every day, we
put in work together, we came in together, we learn from each other. I tell him what I saw,
he’ll tell me what he saw. So, just the growth that he’s having through camp. At first, when
we came into camp, he was kind of quiet. He’s definitely breaking that shell now because
he’ll look at you and say something, and you’ll be like, ‘Oh, okay,’ like, he really does talk. It’s
just been a bond for real.”
(On the competition in the defensive backs room) “Yeah, there’s a lot of vets in the room.
But I don’t think you can—from our interaction with each other, I don’t think you can ever
tell that there’s any competition because ‘each one, teach one.’ I definitely think they’re
teaching me a lot. They definitely embrace me healthily, and I don’t think I could ask for a
better situation. But the competition obviously is there. This is a job. It is what it is. It’s a
business. But we definitely feed off of each other and kind of teach each other.”
(On what it’s like to work with veterans such as S Darnell Savage and CB Ronald Darby)
“Emphasis on the veteran and old guys. Darby is on Year 10 and when he told me, I was like,
‘Man.’ He was talking to me about when he was at Florida State back in 2013, and I was like,
‘Bro, in 2013, I can’t even tell you what I was doing.’ I don’t even know what I was doing back
then. But those are some great guys, Savage, Darby. They teach me a lot day-to-day. Right
now, like I just said, they’re harping on me about my eyes right now. We have some great
leaders in the room. I think we’ll only go as far as they lead us. They’re leaders on the team.
Me being a rookie, I just come in and kind of follow suit, understand the standard up here,
the standard, just kind of push it. I think they do a great job of upholding the standard and
holding us to a standard every day. They do a great job with that.”
(On if he thinks he’s shown that he belongs) “I definitely think I have. I think you see with my
confidence every day that I do believe that I’m supposed to be here. It’s going to come with
growing pains, you come to a new situation. You play DB, somebody’s probably going to
catch a ball on you here and there. As long as you continue to come back and learn from it,
grow from it, come back and make your plays, I think my future is definitely trending up as
long as I just keep the work going in every day. I think I’m going to be having a lot of fun.”
(On how long he’s been planning to wear retired Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-
Drew’s jersey to his first game) ‘It’s so crazy because it actually wasn’t planned. I went to a
store down here just looking for—I don’t have many Jaguar shirts, I mean, other than the
ones they gave us when I first got here. I was looking for something to wear to the game. I
didn’t really have anything, so I went to a store down here called The Gallery Jax. I went in
there and I saw the jersey and I was like, ‘That’s it.’ It was hanging up and I didn’t have to
walk all the way in the store. I saw it and I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s what I’m going.” Big shout
out to Maurice for sure.”
(On if he’s outgrown the Jones-Drew jersey from his youth) “Yeah, that’s like an extra small. I
don’t think it could fit on my arm now.”
(On if he had watched S Tashaun Gipson Sr. when he played on the Jaguars previously) “I
actually didn’t, but I watched him when he was with the 49ers. One of my best friends just
got drafted to the 49ers. After he got drafted, we watched a lot of tape and I kept noticing
him on film. When they said that he was coming here… I’d seen it on Twitter, and they said
that he was coming here. That’s the guy that I’m definitely going to learn from. 13 years,
yeah, a long time.”
(On which of his friends got drafted) “[49ers CB] Renardo Green.”
