JACKSONVILLE. – Week 12 was the time for rest. And as Mitch Morse saw it, it’s the right time as the Jaguars move forward from one of the worst losses in franchise history. He wasn’t alone. “If you asked everyone around this building, this bye week has come at the perfect time,” Morse said. Morse, the Jaguars’ veteran center, was among multiple players speaking to the media early last week in the wake of a 52-6 loss to the Detroit Lions at Ford Field in Detroit, Mich. It marked the most one-sided loss in franchise history, with the Jaguars (2-9) having lost the fi nal four games entering this week’s Week 12 bye. Head Coach Doug Pederson on Monday last week spoke of a tired team, fatigued not only from 11 consecutive games but from a series of diffi cult losses. “We’re not winning,” Pederson said. “We’re not executing. We’re not winning games. I think all of that, from a team perspective, not just the defense, but a team perspective, the guys are tired. The guys are mentally and physically fatigued. This is a good time to step away and take a break, and recharge for the last six games.” The Jaguars this season have lost six games by fi ve or fewer points, with all six games decided in the fi nal two minutes. They lost three consecutive games in that fashion entering Sunday’s loss, all to NFC contenders – 30-27 to the Green Bay Packers, 28-23 to the Philadelphia Eagles and 12-7 to the Minnesota Vikings. “It gets very frustrating when you feel like you should’ve won some of the games,” rookie wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. said. “You feel like some of the games, being one-score games, you could’ve had a different outcome if only one play or something like it would have been better. It gets really frustrating, but we have to keep our head down, keep fi ghting, stay focused.” “We just want to fi nish these last six games strong, just come back with more focus than ever and fi nish the season out strong.” Right tackle Anton Harrison called the situation “tough” – and echoed the sentiments of Thomas and multiple players when he spoke of the opportunity in the fi nal six games after the bye. “Obviously, it’d be tough for anybody, 11 straight weeks of what we do. It’s hard, but it’s what we signed up for,” he said. “It’s not really an excuse, but it’s defi nitely something that is true and something that we have to just have to come back stronger and better.” The Jaguars will play host to the AFC South- leading Houston Texans today, then fi nish the season at the Tennessee Titans (2-8), home against the New York Jets (3-8), at the Las Vegas Raiders (2-8), home against the Titans (2-8) and at the Indianapolis Colts (5-6). Morse this week spoke of the bye as a chance for “not just time away from the building, but self-refl ection, getting your bodies back.” “It’s everything, a mental and physical reset, and then we get to come out of this with six weeks of being able to just push and see what we can do,” he said. “We put our foot on the gas. We have nothing to lose, be professionals, and do that to the best of our ability.
