Doug Pederson Has Not Lost Jaguars Locker Room According to Doug Pederson
The Jacksonville Jaguars are in some serious trouble after a 0-4 start to this season, which comes on the heels of a monumental collapse that led the team to miss out on the playoffs after starting the year looking like one of the AFC's top contenders.
Earlier this week, a report from NFL insider Jordan Schultz claimed after speaking to some players on the team that Jags head coach Doug Pederson — who led the Philadelphia Eagles to victory in Super Bowl LII — had lost the team's locker room.
Man, tough to find the locker room again once you've lost it, however, Pederson himself is refuting Schultz's report.
"I would know. I talk to those guys every day. I see them every day. And no, I have not lost the locker room," Pederson said. "I think these guys have done everything I've asked. They continue to play and practice hard and battle. And it's a good group — the right leaders in there. They know — they know what we need to do. They're not making excuses for it. I'm not making excuses. We've just got to go do it."
We've got to take him at his word, but if he has lost the locker room, why would he cop to it at a news conference?
If you're trying to get to the bottom of whether or not a coach has lost the locker room, you're not going to get the definitive answer from the coach himself.
The likelihood of a coach standing at the podium, getting asked whether or not he has lost the room, and them answering, "You bet your sweet ass I have. Not a single guy in that will listen to a word I've got to say. I see them paying more attention to the wallpaper than they do to many," is low.
Regardless of who is right — Schultz or Pederson — there's no denying that things in Jacksonville need to turn around in a hurry if he wants to keep his job.
The first opportunity to do that comes this weekend when they play host to the Indianapolis Colts.