Doug Pederson: No, I have not lost the locker room

The Jaguars have now fallen to 0-4 this season after Sunday’s last-minute loss to the Texans.

Dating back to last season, Jacksonville has won just once in its last in its last 10 games — defeating the hapless Panthers 26-0 in Week 17. And that was a game starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence missed due to injury, which means he hasn’t won since Week 12 of 2023.

With rumors floating around that Doug Pederson may have lost the locker room, the head coach was asked whether or not that is the case in his Wednesday press conference.

“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.”

When Pederson was asked about his job security after the team’s latest loss, he noted that it was a “strange” question. He noted on Wednesday that all teams will go through periods of adversity.

“But, obviously, you’re going to go through some setbacks in this league and there’s going to be some times where — you’re going to come on some hard times. That’s just part of this game,” Pederson said. “I’ve been there before. I’ve done that before. And we’ve always battled back. I mean, even when we were 3-7 in ’22, we found a way to win a game, and win multiple games. And that’s all it takes.

“I think, too, when you look at it, and if you really look at these games with a calm eye and study the tape and see — I mean, it’s, there’s mistakes, yeah, there’s mistakes. Are they critical at times? Yeah, they’re critical at times. But there’s a lot of good, as we talked about the other day. And that’s what we have to lean on and we have to just continue to work.”

Pederson added that he does feel like the team is better than its record. But he also said Jacksonville’s best players have to be at their best more consistently.

“I just feel like right now, yes, we’re a better football team on paper, obviously, than what’s on the field. And it’s something that we, even as coaches, we have to find a way to tap into that and get the most out of it,” Pederson said. “We need our elite players to play elite. And that’s it. Sometimes, that’s what it comes down to. Are they going to be elite every week? Probably not. That means the good players have to step up and play, too. But if we get enough of that and get enough guys playing that way, we’ll be better off.”