JACKSONVILLE, Fla.--Yes, the Jacksonville Jaguars are 1-6 and seemingly going nowhere in a hurry after their fourth straight loss in Green Bay, but I think the arrow is pointing up! The last two weeks the defense has shown shades of the top 10 defense from last year. They are forcing turnovers and developing some depth on the defensive line. John Chick played for the first time in a year and the play of C.J. Mosley is pushing defensive tackle Terrance Knighton to win back his starting spot in a contract year. They held MVP Aaron Rodgers to 22 of 35 for 186 yards and 2 touchdowns. They did it with their two starting cornerbacks on the sideline. Yes, William Middleton had a couple of bad penalties in pass coverage, but Middleton and Aaron Ross played in place of Derek Cox and Rashean Mathis and were part of a defense that held it's own against one of the top offenses in the league. To be fair Rodgers went without Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson.
On the other side of the ball Blaine Gabbert played outstanding in a week where he was nursing a sore left shoulder. Gabbert went 27 of 49, for 304 yards with a touchdown pass and no interceptions. It's his first 300 yard passing game and follows a great start in Oakland. The offense played without Maurice Jones-Drew. Rushing yards were hard to come by for both teams. Rashad Jennings ran it 17 times for 59 yards and had a costly fumble inside the 20 yard line, but Jennings is more than capable of carrying the load. The Packers ground game came up with 7 more yards than Jennings.
The blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown was a killer, but the Jaguars are making progress. "There are no moral victories in the NFL," Blaine Gabbert said after the game. I disagree but also agree with Mike Mularkey when he says,"we are 2 plays from being 3-3 and one play from 0-6." Truer words have never been said, but I can't wait for the Detroit game to see if right tackle Guy Whimper can run his games with a touchdown reception to 2!
