ITPV » That’s all you can ask for

The Jacksonville Jaguars will go down in history as the NFL’s top rushing team in 2017.

They haven’t looked like it lately.

The Jaguars failed run the ball with much consistency during the second half of the season http://www.brownsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-austin-seibert-jersey , including a wild-card victory against Buffalo. Jacksonville found few holes against the Bills until quarterback Blake Bortles started scrambling in the second half. Still, the lack of a reliable ground attack is a major concern for the third-seeded Jaguars (11-6) heading into Sunday’s playoff game at No. 2 seed Pittsburgh (13-3).

”It starts with us up front,” rookie left tackle Cam Robinson said.

Coach Doug Marrone agreed, saying ”if they’re not doing their job up front, it’s going to be very difficult.”

”We have to figure it out and get it done in a quick fashion,” Marrone added.

Little, if anything, changed down the stretch while Jacksonville continued to struggle.

The Jaguars averaged 3.58 yards a carry over the final seven weeks of the regular season, ranking 30th in the NFL. They ran for 155 yards in a 10-3 victory against the Bills, but more than half of those came from Bortles. His 88 yards rushing were the most by a Jaguars player in nearly a month.

Rookie Leonard Fournette hasn’t looked the same since spraining his right ankle against the Los Angeles Rams in mid-October. He ran for 181 and 130 yards in consecutive weeks against the Steelers and the Rams, respectively, and broke off long touchdown runs in both games.

He’s topped the century mark twice – both barely – since.

Bortles has picked up the slack at times, but he’s not a guy the Jaguars rely on week in and week out to carry the offense.

They are built to run the ball and play stout defense.

”It’s who we are,” Bortles said. ”We want to be able to run the football and do it different ways, so we have to figure it out, whether it’s a during-the-week practice thing or execution thing on Sundays. … It’s a big part of our offense and who we are and who we want to be, so it’s important that we figure it out.”

There doesn’t seem to be an easy fix since the problem appears to stem from several factors:

-Fournette is facing more stacked lines of scrimmage than any running back in the league. Of his 268 carries in 2017 Trysten Hill Jersey , 31 percent of them (82) came against eight- and nine-man boxes, according to ESPN Stats & Info. That’s nine more than second-place

-Fournette is missing holes and assignments. He’s running with authority, but not waiting for holes or looking for cutback lanes.

-Opponents are loading up against the run because they have little respect for Bortles and a banged-up receiving corps that features two rookies. Allen Robinson (knee) was lost for the season on Jacksonville’s third offensive play, and Allen Hurns (ankle) and Marqise Lee (ankle) have been slowed lately. Although newcomers Keelan Cole and Dede Westbrook have been better than expected, they looked like rookies in recent weeks.

-Jacksonville’s offensive line has been average at best, and every starter has missed games with injuries. Brandon Linder, one of the league’s highest-paid centers, has been solid. But guards A.J. Cann and Patrick Omameh have struggled at times in a rushing attack that averaged 1.9 yards before contract (also 30th in the league) over the final seven weeks of the regular season.

”Right now, we have to do a better job,” Marrone said. ”Your performance on Sunday, that’s going to be who you are for that week until you change it or you sustain what you’re doing well.”

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Bruce Arians is back on the sideline after a year of retirement, eager to help Jameis Winston realize his potential with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.The 66-year-old coach with a track record for helping quarterbacks flourish says the opportunity to work with the No. 1 overall pick from the 2015 NFL draft is one of the reasons he accepted the challenge of trying to transform the Bucs into championship contenders.Tampa Bay hasn’t made the playoffs since 2007 and has finished last in the NFC South eight of the past 10 seasons, including three of four with Winston at quarterback.Arians has mentored Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Andrew Luck and Carson Palmer during a long coaching career. He’s known Winston since the fifth-year pro was in high school and introduced himself to the coach at a football camp in Birmingham, Alabama“It was a big part of it,” Arians said about the allure of tutoring a young passer with the potential of Winston http://www.cowboysauthorizedshops.com/authentic-connor-mcgovern-jersey , who won the Heisman Trophy at Florida State and has thrown for 14,628 yards but only won 21 of 56 career starts with the Bucs.More Tampa Bay Buccaneers newsBuccaneers make big step forward avoiding 0-2 startBucs’ running game shows signs of life with 2nd-year RB Ronald Jones II leading wayJameis Winston throws 3 INTs, Buccaneers drop season-opener to 49ersBuccaneers edge Browns 13-12 behind K Matt Gay’s game-winnerBruce Arians gets 1st win with Bucs against surprise starter Josh Rosen, Dolphins“To have all the pieces �? ownership, general manager, quarterback, coaches,” said Arians, who coached the Arizona Cardinals for five seasons before retiring in 2017. “As that all fell into place, the excitement level got higher and higher.”As excited as Arians is to have a chance to help Winston prove he’s Tampa Bay’s long-term solution at quarterback, the 25-year-old pupil is even happier to get a fresh start entering the final year of his rookie contract.“I’m going to work regardless, but it’s always a plus when your head coach believes in you,” said Winston, who also welcomes the opportunity to learn from offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich and quarterbacks coach Clyde Christensen.“Every coach brings something different. I’m just really excited to get to work with them,” Winston said. “Obviously, we’ll get to know each other more now that it’s training camp time. I think the one thing from Byron is just that he played this game, so I know he’s going to bring me a lot of great information. Coach Clyde’s (resume) speaks for itself Tony Pollard Jersey , with the great quarterbacks that he had the opportunity to coach.”Limited to nine starts a year ago, when he sat three games while serving a suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy and was also benched briefly because of ineffective play, Winston is determined to cut down on costly mistakes that have contributed to Tampa Bay’s woes.Tampa Bay led the league is passing offense a year ago, however the absence of a consistent running game and a leaky defense undermined the team’s chances of ending what’s now the second-longest playoff drought in the league.Arians said Winston has the talent and work ethic to make the Bucs relevant again.“That’s one thing you never have to question. Sometimes, you have to say: ‘Whoa, slow down, don’t overdo it’ because he is a workaholic and he wants to do everything possible to be successful. That’s all you can ask for,” the coach said.In addition to learning a new offense, Winston devoted time this offseason to improving his footwork and developing a better rapport with some of the team’s young receivers. He also knows he has to do a better job of protecting the football.While he’s thrown for a franchise-record 88 touchdowns in four seasons, he also has 58 interceptions in 56 career games.“You don’t want him playing scared. You want him playing smart. Big difference,” Arians said. “I don’t want any player playing scared. Play smart and play fast.”That’s what Winston, who feels he made strides the latter part of last season, intends to do.“I’ve just got to do my job,” the quarterback said. “The better I do my job, the better chance we give this team a chance to win.”