For the past decade or so around this time, there’s been very little to be thankful for when it comes to the Jacksonville Jaguars. There was fleeting hope that was subsequently farted away in the twilight of David Garrard’s career. Gus Bradley reinvigorated our fanbase only to piss it away in what became the worst coaching tenure in NFL history.
And then training camp started and Allen Robinson was cursing in anger at his quarterback in joint practices, the head coach said the ideal number of pass attempts for Blake Bortles in a game was zero, and there was a quarterback competition (a quarterback competition!) two weeks before the regular season opener.
It all served to confirm the fears I had in April — this is a bad team with a ceiling of five or six wins in 2017. How could it not? Seriously, how could it not?
And then the defensive line decided to set franchise records in terms of sacks and pressures.
And then the secondary turned into the top unit in the NFL.
And then our offensive line just, well, started playing well. Really well.
And then Leonard Fournette played even better than expected.
And then Todd Wash turned into a defensive mastermind, scheming perfectly to this team’s strengths.
And then the front office got aggressive and smart and went after the missing piece in the run-stuffing Marcell Dareus.
This Thanksgiving, I’m thankful I was wrong. Dead wrong. Peacock all over my cold, lifeless body. Own me #online. Dance on my grave. I couldn’t be happier.
For the first time in a decade, the Jaguars are on pace to finish with a winning record and play in a playoff game. We might even get to host a playoff game, something we haven’t done since 1999. We control our own destiny 10 games in and our schedule looks very, very favorable.
If a few things bounce our way, we could even...
*crouches down*
*whispers*
...get a first round bye in the playoffs.
And it’s all because this defense is playing out of their minds. And the coaching staff is pushing all the right buttons. And the offensive line is leading the way for a run game that is doing better than any other team in the league.
I was so, so wrong about what this year would be. And I’m really, really thankful about that.
Happy Thanksgiving.