Jaguars Team Report

INSIDE SLANT

The Jaguars don’t usually root for Indianapolis.

However, the Jags wanted the Colts to win Sunday against so Indianapolis could clinch the first seed in the AFC playoffs and would have nothing to play for against Jacksonville on Sunday except to maintain its perfect record.

They were hoping the Colts would rest their starters for the game and not play Peyton Manning(notes) the whole game.

The Colts did win to clinch the top seed, but Indianapolis coach Jim Caldwell said Monday that he would play his healthy starters.

“We’re going to approach the 14th game exactly like we did 1 to 13,” he said.

That apparently means Manning will play the entire game for the 13-0 Colts.

That’s not good news for the Jaguars, who have lost seven of their last nine games against Manning, including a 14-12 loss in Indianapolis in the opener.

The Jaguars are desperate for a victory after their 14-10 loss to Miami on Sunday.

The 7-6 Jaguars can still make the playoffs if they win their final three games against the Colts, Patriots and Browns.

The Jaguars insisted they’re not concerned about whether the Colts play their regulars.

“It’s not about them, ” tight end Marcedes Lewis(notes) said. “It’s about us. It’s the NFL. Whoever is playing is capable of beating you. We have to go out there and do our job.”

One Jaguar, rookie right tackle Eben Britton(notes), said he’s happy Caldwell is playing the regulars because he said he wants a second crack at Colts defensive end Robert Mathis(notes).

Britton said he played his worst game in the season opener against Mathis and said this would be a measuring stick for him.

“I get to see how far I’ve come,” he said.

Britton called Mathis and Dwight Freeney(notes), “incredibly explosive crafty rushers,” even though the Colts had just one sack (by Freeney) in the first game. The Colts, though, kept relentless pressure on quarterback David Garrard(notes) throughout the game.

Wide receiver Torry Holt(notes) said, “I’m not concerned with (the Colts playing their regulars) at all. Recovering and getting the feel for the game plan and going out and playing (is the focus). We have to play the guys that are lined up in front of us. It’ll be fun.”

NOTES, QUOTES

—The Jaguars made two roster moves Monday, cutting kick returner Brian Witherspoon(notes) and promoting fullback Brock Bolen(notes) from the practice squad.

Bolen was signed as an undrafted free agent on April 26 and spent the first 14 weeks on the practice squad. He was a three-year letterman for Louisville and finished with 1,321 rushing yards. His promotion is a sign that FB Greg Jones(notes), who suffered an ankle injury against the Dolphins, won’t be able to play against the Colts.

Jones, linebacker Clint Ingram(notes) (shoulder) and wide receiver Mike Sims-Walker(notes) (calf) were listed as not practicing Monday.

The players had a light drill Monday without helmets or pads that was virtually a walkthrough.

The Colts listed 29 players who didn’t practice, including Peyton Manning, who was listed with a glute injury.

The Jaguars also listed eight players as limited, including cornerback Rashean Mathis(notes) (groin), defensive tackle John Henderson(notes) (shoulder) and running back Maurice Jones-Drew(notes) (knee).

• The Jaguars had some costly mental errors against the Dolphins. They twice had 12 men on the field, although they called a timeout to avoid a penalty, and they had only 10 men on offense on a critical fourth-quarter, fourth-down play.

Miami safety Yeremiah Bell(notes) said he didn’t have a receiver to cover because the Jaguars were short a player, and he freelanced and knocked down a pass to Mike Sims-Walker.

Tight end Marcedes Lewis said, “Our attention to detail is not good. We have to focus on every play. That should never happen. I think as an offense, we’re embarrassed it did happen.”

Of having 10 men on the field, Lewis said, “I don’t know how it happened. We can’t have things like that, especially when the game is on the line.”

Wide receiver Torry Holt said, “We have to do a better job of communicating. At this point in the season, it’s a little disheartening. But you can’t take it back now. You move forward and make sure that mistake doesn’t happen again.”

The Jaguars had another gaffe after Holt caught a 63-yard pass at the Miami 11 in the third period. The Jaguars didn’t get lined up in time for the next play, and the play clock expired. The penalty moved them back to the 16, and they wound up with third-and-7 instead of third-and-2. Garrard threw an incomplete pass, and Jacksonville settled for a field goal.

Holt said, “It pushed us back to the 16. That’s a big difference in the red zone. Every yard in the red zone counts. It’s tough to get down there anyway, and then when you get down there, it’s tough to score. We still got to push the ball in the end zone. Still got to score. We didn’t. That was ultimately our best chance (to tie the game). It cost us.”

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

Player Notes  

• KR Brian Witherspoon was waived by the Jaguars.

• FB Brock Bolen was promoted from the practice squad.

• FB Greg Jones didn’t practice Monday because of an ankle injury. The promotion of FB Brock Bolen from the practice squad probably means Jones won’t play against the Colts.

• LB Clint Ingram didn’t practice because of a shoulder injury he suffered Sunday against the Dolphins. His status for the Colts game will be determined later in the week.

• WR Mike Sims-Walker was listed as not practicing Monday because of a calf injury. He was listed as doubtful on the injury report last week because of the injury and still started.

Report Card Vs  . DOLPHINS

Passing Offense:   D—QB David Garrard had a 59.6 passer rating. He completed only 11 of 26 passes for 139 yards and was sacked three times. Garrard had the ball three times in Miami territory in the last eight minutes and couldn’t score.

Rushing Offense:   D—Maurice Jones-Drew was held under 100 yards for the fourth consecutive game. He had 59 yards on 18 carries. Two of the runs went for 13 and 12 yards, and he had 16 carries for 34 yards—just over 2 yards a carry—the rest of the game. Jones-Drew is averaging 69 yards the last four games. The first nine games he had a 5.08-yard average; he’s at 3.36 the last four games.

Pass Defense:   C—Chad Henne(notes) completed 17 passes in a row against the Jaguars, but the defense made adjustments, and he wound up with only a 78.7 passer rating. He was sacked twice and intercepted once. The Jaguars have only 14 sacks and have allowed 37 this year.

Rush Defense:   C minus—The Jaguars allowed the Dolphins to run 40 times for 146 yards, as Ricky Williams(notes) led the way with 28 carries for 108 yards. Williams is only the second running back to rush for more than 100 yards against Jacksonville this year. The other is Tennessee’s Chris Johnson, who rushed for 228 yards against the Jags.

Special Teams:   B—The Jaguars did a good job of limiting the Dolphins return game, but they weren’t very effective returning kicks. They put Jones-Drew back on two punt returns at the end, and he gained a combined 19 yards. Brian Witherspoon averaged only 19 yards on two kick returns and was benched. He was cut Monday.

Coaching:   D—The Jaguars didn’t look prepared, as they fell behind 14-0 before they regrouped. They also made some silly errors for this stage in the season, twice having 12 men on the field, although a timeout saved them a penalty, and once only having 10 men on offense for a critical fourth-down play in the fourth quarter. And when Torry Holt caught a 63-yard pass in the third period, they were so busy celebrating, they didn’t get the next play off in time to avoid a delay-of-game penalty.