JAGUARS HEAD COACH DOUG MARRONE
(On hopes that CB CJ Henderson will play again this season) “Yeah, we do have hope. Hopefully—it depends on how he progresses. But that’s our intent, to get him back at some point.”
(On the difficulty of beating a team like the Pittsburgh Steelers, referring to beating them in 2017) “Yeah, it’s especially difficult when you go up there and play games up there. And especially difficult, even more difficult, when you go up there late and beat them—which we did. I think it was something that we had, a lot of good players, a lot of people that had a lot of confidence, believed in themselves, a defense that created turnovers. And then in the second game when we needed to score, we were able to score and run the football. So, it was a great moment for those players and those coaches that were there. It’s not an easy task. I’ve played up there a bunch of times and it’s always tough to win up there. It’s always tough to win against them anywhere, but especially up there. It was—it felt good.”
(On the consistency of Pittsburgh compared to the issues that the Jaguars have had since the 2017 season) “No, no it doesn’t. I think that they’ve been solid for so long and what they’ve been doing. I mean, they’re a team that you always have to recon with each year—as long as the quarterback is healthy, as long as Ben [Roethlisberger] is healthy. Defensively, they’ve always been a strength. And then when the offense starts going, then they become a team that’s obviously going to be a contender and contend each year. Mike [Tomlin] does a great job and I consider him a friend. So, he just keeps that thing rolling and that’s why they’ve been good for a long time.”
(On the status of QB Gardner Minshew II and expectation for next week) “Yeah, just keep progressing. I mean, he’s throwing a little bit more. We just keep increasing it each day and then I think next week comes, we’ll just see where he’s at. He’s not 100 percent, which is why he’s listed as questionable, 50-50. So, I would probably have an issue putting him in now, unless it was just to go in there and hand the ball off, or maybe a couple throws. But right now, it’s not 100 percent.”
(On the plan for the cornerback position) “Yeah, I think if Sidney [Jones IV] doesn’t go, then obviously, we’ll have Tre [Herndon] and [Chris] Claybrooks on the outside. So, that’s what we’re looking at. Those are the two guys that have the most experience. And then, D.J. [Hayden] obviously at nickel.”
(On hopes for CB D.J. Hayden coming in to play after a 3-week hiatus) “We tried to increase it a little bit. You know, you’re always rusty when you come back, but D.J. has played a long time. So, he looks good running and we’re just trying to get him some extra work during the week, for him to be ready. He’s been working a ton on the side and all of that. So, he’s 100 percent from a physical standpoint. Now, it’s just a matter of going out there and playing. And he’s always played well for us, we trust him.”
(On confidence on CB Josiah Scott and CB Luq Barcoo) “Yeah, they’ll have to be ready to play. So, I guess we’ll see. We’ll put them out there and this is a great challenge for them—it’s a great challenge for all of us, even if we were 100 percent healthy back there. They’re really playing well in their passing game, schematically they’re doing a good job, and those guys are making plays. So, it’s going to be a challenge for whoever is out there. And if it gets down to that, we’ll see if those guys can play or they can’t play.”
(On NFL being under intensive protocol for the rest of the season) “Yeah, I think it’s—you know, we’ve done it before, Mark. So, in other words, I think it’s a little bit easier of a transition as far as scheduling. I think—I’m sure it’ll probably continue. I can see other things happening too, that you just have to be ready for, the way the season has been going. So, we know that we feel comfortable in going back to the intensive protocol because it’s something that we’ve done before. I don’t think it’s as much of a transition as maybe a team that maybe hasn’t done that before. It’ll just affect things for a while, until everybody gets into that rhythm or schedule. I mean, I think with this year, changes [are] the norm. If anything comes up, I’m sure we’ll just all adjust to it.”
