In their 20-year history, the Jacksonville Jaguars have never finished .500 or better after getting off to an 0-2 start.
Unless they come away with a victory Sunday over the Washington Redskins in their second consecutive road game against a team from the NFC East, the Jaguars will open a season with back-to-back losses for the fifth time in the last seven years. That's a statistic which is almost as alarming as the one about only 12 percent of 0-2 teams going on to make the NFL playoffs since 1990.
Neither the Jaguars nor the Redskins were regarded as playoff contenders heading into their openers. But with Chad Henne hooking up twice with rookie wide receiver Allen Hurns for touchdowns in the first quarter at Philadelphia, the Jaguars looked for one half like a team ready to take a step forward.
The same could not be said for the Redskins, who rolled up 372 yards of total offense against the Houston Texas but -- like the Jaguars -- went scoreless in the second half to spoil the regular-season coaching debut of Jay Gruden.
Gruden and Jaguars coach Gus Bradley worked together as assistant coaches with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2008, with Gruden serving as an offensive assistant and Bradley as linebackers coach. Given their backgrounds, you might think the outcome could rest on how well the Jaguars can hold Robert Griffin III, DeSean Jackson and especially Alfred Morris in check.
That's not necessarily so.
MATCHUP TO WATCH
Jaguars offensive line against Redskins 3-4 defensive front of Jarvis Jenkins, Chris Baker and Jason Hatcher.
The Jaguars averaged only 1.9 yards a carry in the first half and 2.6 yards for the game against the Eagles, who also employed a 3-4 front. Their struggles were established on the third play of the game when, even after bringing in an extra offensive lineman with a yard to go for a first down, Toby Gerhart was stuffed before reaching the line of scrimmage.
A sign of encouragement could be that the Redskins gave up 103 yards on 27 carries to Texans running back Arian Foster, although his longest gain was for only 10 yards. Jaguars offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch said anywhere between 26 and 30 rushing plays would be an acceptable number for him, which could mean both Jordan Todman and Denard Robinson will see greater use after combining for only six carries last week.
The game will also mark the second consecutive start at center for Jacques McClendon. Although he had problems with a couple of shotgun snaps to Henne, McClendon played the entire game at a position where he was not expected to start when the preseason began. The combination of McClendon, rookie right guard Brandon Linder and right tackle Cameron Bradfield, who continues to fill in for the injured Austin Pasztor (hand), will need to do better against a Redskins defense which will be without usual starting nose tackle Barry Cofield (ankle).
TRENDING UP
Jaguars: The five sacks which they recorded in the first half were more than their defense had in any full game last season and the most since a five-sack game in November 2011 in a win at Indianapolis. The only other team in Week 1 with as many as five was the Minnesota Vikings.
Redskins: Coming off a season in which he led the NFL with 113 receptions, Pierre Garcon caught 10 passes for 77 yards. Garcon has at least five receptions in his last 17 games. The league record is held by former Jaguars great Jimmy Smith (21).
TRENDING DOWN
Jaguars: Only the Kansas City Chiefs have a worse third-down efficiency than the 2-for-14 rate turned in by their offense. The Jaguars finished last season at the bottom of the league in that category (31.1 percent).
Redskins: Griffin was credited with only three rushing plays against the Texans, and two of those were plays on which he fumbled. Even after undergoing reconstructive knee surgery in January 2013, he ran the ball 86 times for 489 yards in 2013.
INJURY REPORT
Jaguars: S Johnathan Cyprien (concussion), RB Storm Johnson (ankle), T Austin Pasztor (hand) and TE Clay Harbor (calf) are out. WR Cecil Shorts (hamstring) is doubtful. CB Alan Ball (abdominal) is questionable. TE Marcedes Lewis (knee), CB Dwayne Gratz (ankle), RB Toby Gerhart (ankle), WR Marqise Lee (hamstring) and DT Abry Jones (abdominal) are probable.
Redskins: LB Akeem Jordan (knee), CB Tracy Porter (hamstring) and TE Jordan Reed (hamstring) are out. DE Kedrick Golston (groin) is doubtful. K Kai Forbath (groin), S Duke Ihenacho (ankle), LB Brian Orakpo (ankle) and T Tyler Polumbus (ankle) are questionable. T Trent Williams (shoulder) is probable.
DID YOU KNOW?
The Jaguars and Redskins were two of only three teams -- the other being the Baltimore Ravens -- in Week 1 which allowed multiple red-zone possessions but did not give up a touchdown. Alan Ball had an interception in the end zone on the first one, and the defense held the Eagles to a 28-yard field goal on the second.
QUOTEBOARD
"This summer I took a golf lesson and was slicing and couldn't hit it to the left. And the pro said, 'You're not too far off now. Just tweak the head of the club a little bit, and you'll see it'll go straight.' That's kind of the analogy. It's feels like, 'Oh, shoot, what happened? We're a ways away.' But we're really close." -- Jaguars coach Gus Bradley on the promise shown by his team in taking a 17-0 lead at Philadelphia before losing to the Eagles 34-17.
"That's our challenge as a team -- how do we go from halftime and come back out with the same intensity, how do we finish and how do we keep doing from what we started. That's something we're going to have to work on." -- Jaguars defensive tackle Sen'Derrick Marks.
"Every time one person messes up, there's kind of a trickle effect." -- Jaguars running back Toby Gerhart on an offense which managed only 129 total yards over the final two quarters.
"They want to get after the quarterback and stop the run. That's every defense's goal. They did an extremely good job of that against Philly. That's why it was a close game. We've just got to make sure we protect and run the ball." -- Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III on the Jaguars' defensive line, which forced two fumbles on sacks of Nick Foles in the first quarter.
You can follow Ken Hornack on Twitter @HornackFSFla or email him at khornack32176@gmail.com.
