Derek Cox intercepting Peyton Manning in week one.

A common sense approach to beating the Indianapolis Colts has been control the clock to keep Peyton Manning off the field. It is a mantra spoken by Jack Del Rio in past seasons and has proven successful. One only needs to look at last years game at Lucas Oil Stadium where Jaguars held a 41:35 to 18:25 possession advantage. A 51 yard Josh Scobee field goal with 4 seconds left proved the difference in a 23-21 victory.

But how successful has it really been? Earlier this year Manning utilized less than a quarter of the game (14:53) to dismiss the Miami Dolphins. Of the Colts 14 wins, over half (8) have come when they lost the time of possession advantage. Half of those were games where the Colts won by more than a touchdown.

Manning doesn't need time. There are more than enough offensive weapons for him to strike quickly. Beating the Colts boils down to simple math: 7 is greater than 3.

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via law.marquette.edu

Herman Melville was a Jaguar fan based on his beard. He was also familiar with battling fish. OK...mammals.

I can only imagine what is was like to listen on the radio as your Jaguars fought for victory. As Josh Scobee launched that opening kick you knew a battle was commencing.  Melville could've penned this quote specifically to capture the atmosphere of this game.

At last the anchor was up, the sails were set, and off we glided. It was a sharp, cold Christmas; and as the short northern day merged into night, we found ourselves almost broad upon the wintry ocean, whose freezing spray cased us in ice, as in polished armor.

Enjoy these kernels from the "deepest" caverns of my mind.

• What some may miss is the growth of Jack Del Rio. He said all the right things in the post-game press conference. More than that his body language and tone of voice did not contradict his words. I believe he has a feel for the team and the team trusts him.
• My north endzone seats afforded me a spectacular view of David Garrard's perfect deep pass to Torry Holt. I have learned that these seats are the best if you like to really watch a play develop.
• A horse, a horse. Youthful Holt legs for a horse.
• Before catching myself, I wanted to blame any number of people for this loss. I think they just got beat be a better team. Not too much better.
• Great call on fourth and one at your own 35, but were you setting up the outside run play for three and a half quarters Dirk?
• Of all the plays, this is the one that stands out the most. What if Ernest Wilford doesn't slip on third and eight after catching the five yard pass?
• I know the chances were slim to pull out a victory but David cannot hold onto that ball and take a game clinching sack.
• The first half was a clinic on how to out muscle your opponent by the Miami offensive line.
• The second half was a clinic on how to fight back by the Jacksonville defensive line. Vince Lombardi would be proud.
• "Fatigue makes cowards of us all." Vince Lombardi
• If you ever question how important a pass rush is, watch this football game. Chad Henne was a different quarterback once he lost time to go through his progressions.
• I thought the linebacking corps played a great game today. When the front four were getting nothing done the boys behind them stepped up.
• Additionally, the Jaguar defensive backs showed that they will make plays if not asked to cover for 7-10 seconds.

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via www.jacksonville.com

Nothing ground breaking or cutting edge. I just thought it might be fun to look back and highlight some items from the Jaguars\Dolphins series.

You don't know where you might be or who you might be with, but the ability to throw out useless information has been known to impress a friend or two. It may also allow you to win an argument or lay down some serious "smack".

Some of these you may already know, some may be interesting and some may be useless. Check that. None of these are useless.

Feel free to comment your own and enjoy.

Random

• Fred Taylor (1999\18-135-1) is the only player in the series to rush for over 100 yards.
• All but one of the four games have surpassed the 70,000 attendance mark. 1998 - 74,051: 1999 - 75,173: 2003 - 66,437: 2006 - 73,160
• In games that matter, these teams have faced off four times, with the Jaguars holding a 3-1 advantage

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via tuphotos.jacksonville.com

Caption: RICK WILSON/The Times-Union--12/6/09--Jacksonville Jaguars running back #32 Maurice Jones-Drew runs through a hole in the Houston Texans defense to pick up a first down late in the game to enable the Jags to run out the clock during the Jags 23-18 victory Sunday December 6, 2009 at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium in Jacksonville, Fl.

After reading Terry's smart article on how the game was won, I wanted to gain a better understanding of what made that final play such a success. Up to that point the Texans had held Maurice Jones-Drew in check, allowing only 41 yards on 17 carries. With 4:01 on the clock and three time outs remaining there was more than enough time for the Houston defense to force a punt and give Matt Schaub an opportunity to steal this game.

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Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit.
Vince Lombardi

• Vince, I promise you I am not going to quit on this team.
• 36,000? I honestly think it was less than that. I'm sick inside and when I see Dan Hicken on TV saying this is not going to keep this team in Jacksonville I know "they" know something is being discussed.
• I hope the National Media rips this city for the lack of attendance.
• Derek Cox  was a joy to watch. There were a few plays where Andre Johnson looked like he was wearing a teal jersey.
• Along those lines, can we begin cutting the secondary, on the whole, some slack? No Rashean Mathis and we saw big plays by Alexander, Brackenridge and Nelson. Amazing what QB pressure will do.
• As usual we have at least one "wrap up Reggie" play. No reason Andre Johnson catches that ball across the middle and runs to the goal line, Nelson.
• Unless you were at the game you won't be able to appreciate how hard Matt Schaub worked to complete a good number of his passes.
• Lost my voice about mid-way through the third quarter. Feels good.
• Fourth and inches...quarterback sneak. Do not hand the ball off three yards in the backfield.
• As Grossman walks onto the field I told my friend this seals the victory. The guy behind me says, "You must not be a Gator." Thank you, sir, for validating the perception that this is a college town.
• Your best value for food in the stadium is a Burrito Gallery burrito. No, I did not get paid for that plug.
• Alabama should destroy Texas. That was a dominating performance and fun to watch. I was pulling for Florida but you have to appreciate the level of execution Saban's team exhibited.
• This is the last time I'll offer an opinion about Tebow as a college athlete. The kid loves being a Gator and he competes with his heart. Anyone who needs to kick this kid for crying needs a character check.
• I'm sure no one will knock Bobby Bowden for not addressing the media for fear he might break down.
• Oh, I like the Gators but I am a UCLA Bruin so losing is nothing new to me.
  
• I know you hated it ACC but FSU in the Gator Bowl is the right thing to do. Thank you for fielding some of the greatest teams I've ever watched, Bobby.
• For the many of you who missed the game, that was the most AWESOME fly over ever! I swear I saw the pilot touch the scoreboard with his hand.
• Yeah, it was that close.
• My heart goes out to the Texans fans. Your team is less than a handful of plays from 9-3.
• There was a guy wearing shorts and a 12th Man tank top at the game. Really?
• This stat really floored me. Only eight TD passes by David going into today's game. Only two, Lewis (2) and Walker (6), owned those.
• How about Nate Hughes and Ernest Wilford!!!!!!!
• I'd like to thank every woman who attended this weekend's game in knee high black boots. It made the game about 10 degrees warmer.
• So Oakland can travel to Pittsburgh and beat the Steelers but the Jaguars can't travel to Seattle or San Francisco and win at least one of those games?
• And on that note, I don't ever want to hear someone say one player does not make a difference on defense.Troy Polamalu picks off at least one of those Gradkowski ducks.
• If you haven't seen The Blind Side you must. I haven't been affected by a sports movie like that since Remember the Titans.
• Of all the fans I've watched games with at our stadium, Dolphin fans by far have been the worst. I expect next weekend to be nasty in the stands, and possibly a 70\30 ratio.
  
• Robert Meachem's strip and TD return of an INT by Kareem Moore was one of the better plays you'll see.
  
• I am irrationally superstitious about sports. I'll stay in the bathroom if my team does well while I'm there (2007 playoff game against the Steelers.) I've only been able to attend three home games and they've won all three. I can't explain the other two wins but remember, I'm irrational.
• Four sacks and nine QB hurries. One sack there were 4 Texans over David. So much for that offense only meeting.
• Call me crazy but I think Drew Brees stole Tom Brady's secret bag of victory magic.
• No one seems to want to cut Josh Scobee anymore.
• Mack Brown, I don't care what lip service you our your quarterback try to give us. The end of that game would have made us all forget the name Les Miles.
• The stats don't show it but Groves played bigger than two tackles and one QB hurry.
• We were small in number but we were loud and today was perfect football weather.
  
  
  

Why, as a city, do we want this?

The question is really a double entendre. Why do we want this team? Why do we want to lose this team? Recent news from Los Angeles has energized the monster. Seeing it walk and hearing its menacing voice has left the citizens distraught. Prophets on street corners, perched high on their crates, warn those who will listen of the impending doom.

Now where did I put that crate?

Being the "NFL's miscalculation" is worn like a hair shirt by the city and the fans. Groups like "Revive the Pride" and True to the Teal" are fighing hard to get this community involved in support. This weekend presented itself as an opportunity to make a statement to the league that the passion is still there. Yet the stadium will once again be hauntingly under attended.

Did you miss the memo? Controlling playoff destiny? Hated AFC South rival? 5-1 home record?

These last three home games were, I thought, a sure draw based on where this team stands in light of where they were supposed to be. Boy was I wrong. Now with the news that Los Angeles will be ready for a team, or teams, within the next two years how does the city respond? I'm not sure we'll see much above 40,000.

Don't throw away your team gear. It may be worth something.

Let me put this into perspective. Back on December 1, at Jacksonville defeated the Cincinatti Bengals 30-27 before 57,408 fans. It was a game that followed a 28-25 OT victory in Baltimore. At the time the team was 5-7 and no one was thinking playoffs. The victory would be one of five to close out the season on an unbelievable run to the AFC Championship Game.

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