Historical Moments:
1989-1994: In 1989 Touchdown Jacksonville is formed with the ultimate goal of landing a NFL
team in Northern Florida. However, Jacksonville was considered along shot at
best for the planned NFL expansion. This did not deter, Touchdown Jacksonville
who was so confident in landing a team they even selected a name in fan contest
in 1991. In 1992 Jacksonville was 1 of 5 finalists for expansion in 1995,
but most still considered them a longshot. However Touchdown Jacksonville impressed
the NFL expansion committee with its organization, as well as the fact that
they were able to sell allot of application for season tickets. When the NFL
finally decided to make a vote for the 2 new teams only Carolina was selected,
as the NFL owners who were initially against a 3rd NFL team in Florida began
to come around. Eventually even these owners had to give in and on November 30th
the NFL voted to award Jacksonville an NFL franchise to begin play in 1995. While
the historic Gator Bowl is demolished so a brand new state of the art stadium
could take its place, the Jaguars begin to assemble the foundation of the franchise.
On February 21st Boston College head Coach Tom Coughlin is hired Coach,
and head of football operations. Prior to coaching at Boston College Coughlin
was one of Bill Parcells' top assistants on 2 New York Giants Super Bowl teams.
However, there were some problems in the early going the logo the Jaguars first
introduced resembled the logo trade marked by the Jaguar Automobile Company,
which created the treat of a lawsuit, and caused the Jaguars to change their
logos before ever playing a game.
1995: On September 3rd the Jaguars played their first game for keep in the brand new Jacksonville
Municipal Stadium. The Jaguars would end up losing their inaugural game
10-3 to the Houston Oilers before 72,623 fans. The Jaguars would end up losing
their first 3 games before winning a rematch with Oilers 17-16 in Houston on
October 1st. A week later the Jaguars will get their first home win by stunning
the eventual AFC Champion Pittsburgh Steelers 20-16. It was the first time ever
an expansion team has ever defeated a team that would go on to play in the
Super Bowl the same season. However the Jaguars would only win 2 more games
the rest of the season sweeping a distracted Cleveland Browns team with a win
in Cleveland on October 22nd and a season finale win in Jacksonville on December
24th to close out the season with a 4-12 record.
1996: The Jaguars get their second season started in style by beating the defending AFC
Champion Pittsburgh Steelers 24-9. It marks the first time ever that the Jaguars
do not allow a Touchdown in a game. However the young Jaguars continue to struggle
getting off to a 3-7 start, but despite the early losses QB Mark Brunnel
starts to make a name for himself with a few 300 yard plus passing games. Also
establishing themselves are WR Keenan McCardell, and Jimmy Smith in one game alone
McCardell catches 16 passes the 3rd highest single game mark in NFL history.
Despite the individual success the team continued to lose and frustration began
to mount with Coach Tom Coughlin who has a reputation as a heavy handed coach
and his players who were frustrated with losing. After a spirited team meeting
Coughlin agrees to lay off a little, and the team would respond. The Jaguars
would win their next 5 games to put them in position to make the playoffs with
a win in their final game against the Atlanta Falcons at Jacksonville Municipal
Stadium. The Jaguars would get off to a 19-17 lead but as time waned the Falcons
drove down the field to get into Field Goal range. With only 5 seconds remaining
the Falcons sent the usually automatic Morten Andersen out to kick a 30-yard
chip shot FG that would have ended the Jags hopes. However, destiny smiled
on Jacksonville as Andersen's kick sailed wide left, and the Jaguars would hold
on to win, and earn a playoff berth with a 9-7 record. Entering the playoff not
much was expected from the surprising 2nd year team as they entered a Wild Card
game against the Bills in Buffalo where no road team had ever won a postseason
game. However, led by fullback Natrone Means the Jaguars continued their hot
streak stunning the Bills 30-27 to advance to the Divisional Round. The Jaguars
next opponents where the Denver Broncos, who also had a dominant home field history
in the postseason. The Jaguars are listed as 14-point underdogs, while member
of the Denver media confuses the home city of the Jaguars identifying them
as hailing from Jackson, Mississippi. The Jaguars would fall behind early as
the Broncos jump out to a 14-3 lead. However the Jaguars would battle back to take
a lead in the 3rd Quarter, the Jaguars would expand their lead to 10 points
midway through the 4th Quarter as millions watched stunned. The Broncos would
score to get back within a FG, but the Jaguars would recover an on-side kick to
seal a stunning 30-27 win to advance to the AFC Championship Game. However, the
Jaguars Cinderella season would end with a 20-6 loss to the Patriots in frigid
New England. Turnovers would end up being the undoing of the Jaguars, as the
Patriots scored 17 points off Jacksonville mistakes.
1997: The Jaguars season almost ends before it even begins as QB Mark Brunell suffers a
knee injury in preseason. Fortunately the injury was not as serious as initially
thought and the Jaguars young QB was able to return in the 3rd week of the season.
In Brunell's absence the Jaguars were able to win their first 2 games behind
back-ups Rob Johnson, and Steve Mathews. Brunell's return on September 22nd
coincided with first ever Monday Night game in Jacksonville. Brunell threw for
306 yards, but the victory wasn't clinched until the final play, when Clyde Simmons
blocked a 40-yard game-winning field goal attempt and Chris Hudson returned
the ball 58 yards for a touchdown as time expired. The Jaguars would
end the season with an 11-5 record, that had them tied with Steelers for the AFC
Central title, but the Steelers claimed the division by a tiebreaker. The Jaguars
would find themselves in a Wild Card rematch with Denver Broncos. However,
the Broncos would not be beaten again as they hammered the Jaguars 42-17 at Denver,
beginning a run that would take them to the Super Bowl Championship.
1998: The Jaguars get off to a 5-0 start, highlighted by a 28-21 win over the Miami Dolphins
during a Monday Night game on October 12th. The win over the Dolphins is
highlighted by several big plays including a 77-yard TD run by RB Fred Taylor,
and two 4th Quarter Mark Brunell TD passes to Keenan McCardell. However, the Jaguars
would struggle the rest of the way only winning 6 of their last 11 games.
However it was good enough to give their 2nd consecutive 11-5 season, which this
time was good enough for the Jaguars to claim their first division title. In
their first-ever home playoff game, the Jaguars defeat the New England Patriots
25-10. Mark Brunell returns after missing three games with an ankle injury to
throw a TD pass and Mike Hollis kicks four field goals in the NFL 3 vs. 6 game
during Wild Card weekend. The Jaguars would then travel to the Meadowlands to
face the Jets in the Divisional Round. The Jaguars would prove to be pesky for
the favored Jets, but in the end they could not stop the Jets from scoring as the
Jaguars season ended with a 34-24 loss.
1999: The Jaguars dominate the AFC from the start of the season which began with a 41-3
win over the San Francisco 49ers at Alltel Stadium. The Jaguars would roll through
out the entire season including winning a franchise record 11 straight games,
before finishing the season with a 14-2 record. Leading the way for the Jaguars
who earn the number 1 seed in the playoffs are WR Jimmy Smith who leads the
NFL with 116 receptions, and a defense that allows only 217 points. The Jaguars
dominance continues in the Divisional Round of the playoffs as the Jaguars trounce
the Dolphins 62-7 before a crazed home crowd at Alltel Stadium. The game
which marked the end of Dan Marino, and Jimmy Johnson's careers in Miami served
notice that the Jaguars were the dominant team in the Sunshine State, as even
the Jaguars back-up QB Jay Fiedler torched the Dolphins in the 2nd half. Jacksonville's
62 points and 55-point margin are the second most ever in NFL postseason
history, and Fred Taylor's 90-yard run is the longest ever in an NFL playoff
game. In the AFC Championship Game the Jaguars were heavy favorites against the
Tennessee Titans, and even went into halftime with a 14-10 lead. However, the
Titans would shut down the Jaguars in the 2nd half on their way to a 33-14 victory
to earn a trip to Super Bowl XXXIV.
2000: The Jaguars would win 2 or their first 3 games including the teams first ever shut
out a 13-0 victory over the Bengals on September 17th. However, injuries and
poor play would lead to 5 straight losses that would end the Jaguars playoff hopes
in October. The Jaguars would rebound to get their record to 7-7, but they
were already mathematically eliminated from the postseason before losing their
final 2 games to end the season with a disappointing 7-9 record.
2001: The Jaguars got a good jump out of the gate winning their first 2 games while only
allowing 9 points. However injuries and the Jaguars lack of depth would catch
up to them quickly as they lost 8 of their next 9 to fall out of playoff contention.
The Jaguars would win their nest 3 games on the road, before finishing the
season with a disappointing 6-10 record.
2002: The Jaguars would get off to a solid start winning 3 straight after losing their
season opener to the Indianapolis Colts. However, the Jags would soon come crashing
to earth as they lost 4 straight including a 21-19 home loss to the expansion
Houston Texans. The Jaguars would rebound to get their record back to .500
by beating the Washington Redskins and the Texans in their rematch in Houston.
However, the Jags would lose 5 of their last 6 games as they finished in 3rd place
in the newly formed AFC South with a record of 6-10. After 3 consecutive disappointing
seasons, Tom Coughlin the Jaguars original coach and GM would be fired.
2003: Heading into the season with new Coach Jack Del Rio most expected the Jaguars to
go through a season of transition. Things would not get off to a good start as
the Jaguars held a 17-0 lead in Week 1 on the road against the Carolina Panthers,
but let it slip away in the final minute losing 24-3. The Jags would lose their
first 4 games as QB Mark Brunnel was shelved with a season ending elbow injury
after just 3 weeks. The loss of Brunnel only gave the Jaguars a chance to allow
their top draft pick and Quarterback of the future Byron Leftwich get his
feet wet. As with most rookies Leftwich was shaky in his first few games as the
Jags won just 1 of their next 4 games starting the season 1-7. However as the
season improved so did Leftwich and the Jaguars as they won 3 of their last 5 games
to finish the season with a 5-11 record. Following the season the transition
continued as Mark Brunnel the Jags starting QB since early in their inaugural
season was traded to the Washington Redskins.
2004: The Jaguars started the season in dramatic fashion as the beat the Buffalo Bills
on the road 13-10 on a Byron Leftwich 7-yard pass to Ernest Wilford. A week later
in their home opener Leftwich found Wilford early and let the defense do the
rest in a 7-6 win over the Denver Broncos. The Jaguars would eventually improve
to 3-0 beating the Tennessee Titans on the road 15-12 as Fred Taylor scored with
9 seconds left. After losing their next 2 the Jaguars pulled off some more
late game heroics beating the Kansas City Chiefs 22-16 as Byron Leftwich found
Cortez Hankton in the endzone with 45 seconds left. Late game heroics continued
for the Jaguars in Indianapolis as they beat the Colts 27-24 on a 53-yard Field
Goal by Josh Scobee in the final minute. After a disappointing loss to the Houston
Texans the Jaguars again won in dramatic fashion beating the Detroit Lions
in overtime 23-17 as David Garrard playing in place of an injured Byron Leftwich
connected with Jimmy Smith on a 36-yard TD pass. However, after going through
the ringer with some many dramatic finishes early in the season the Jaguars
seemed to be running out of gas as they dropped 3 in a row. After bouncing back
to beat the Chicago Bears the Jaguars traveled to a frigid Lambeau Field and stunned
the Green Bay Packers 28-25 to keep their playoff hopes alive. However it
was not meant to be as they were shutout at home by the Texans 21-0 in the next
to last game of the season. The Jags would go on to beat the Oakland Raiders
on the road 13-6, scoring all their points in the 4th Quarter in typical Jaguar
fashion as they finished with a 9-7, which was good enough for 2nd place in the
AFC South.
2005: After a solid 9-7 season the Jaguars entered the new season with renewed playoff
optimism, that optimism would be well rewarded in Week 1 as the Jaguars had an
impressive 26-14 win over the Seattle Seahawks. The following week the Jaguars
would travel to Indianapolis for a showdown with the Colts. The Jaguars tough defense
clamped down hard on Peyton Manning allowing just 122 passing yards as they
held a 3-0 lead most of the game. However, the Colts defense was just as strong
and eventually the Colts as they scored 10 unanswered points in the 4th Quarter
to beat the Jaguars 10-3. The following week the Jaguars had another tough
battle on their hands as they needed overtime to beat the New York Jets 26-20
as Byron Leftwich hit Jimmy Smith on a 36-yard TD pass. After a loss to the Denver
Broncos the Jaguars behind a 132 yard rushing game from Fred Taylor beat the
Cincinnati Bengals, then followed it up by beating a Pittsburgh Steelers team
playing without QB Ben Roethlisberger, as Rashean Mathis intercepted a pass from
Tommy Maddox and returned 41 yards for a TD in overtime to give the Jaguars
as 23-17 win. Following a disappointing setback to the St. Louis Rams, the Jaguars
took advantage of the week portion of their schedule winning 3 straight before
losing before losing Byron Leftwich to an ankle injury early in a game against
the Arizona Cardinals. The Jags would still manage to win the game as back
up David Garrard was mistake free as Derrick Winbush ran back kickoff 91 yards
for a TD as the Jaguars continued their winning streak with a 24-17 win. Despite
not having Leftwich the rest of the regular season the Jaguars led by a strong
defense and an offense that held on to the ball managed to win 4 of their remaining
5 games to earn a playoff spot with a solid record of 12-4. The Jaguars
would get Byron Leftwich back for the playoffs as they faced the tough task of
facing the two time defending champion New England Patriots in Foxboro. Leftwich
was clearly rusty as the Jaguars managed to score just 3 points as the Patriots
broke the game open late taking advantage of a Jaguars team that seemed overwhelmed
by their playoff surrounding losing 28-3.
2006: Coming off a playoff appearance, hopes were high in Jacksonville as the Jaguars had
one of the top young defenses in the NFL. The Jaguars would get off to a strong
start winning their opener 24-17 over the Dallas Cowboys, before blanking the
defending Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers 9-0 on Monday Night. However,
the Jaguars would suffer two painful losses on the road as they lost to the
Indianapolis Colts, before suffering a 36-30 overtime loss to the Washington Redskins
at the hands of former Jaguar QB Mark Brunell. The Jaguars would return
home and bounce back with a 41-0 thumping of the New York Jets. However the following
week the Jaguars would be stunned again on the road losing to the Houston
Texans 27-7. That loss would mark the end of QB Byron Leftwich's season as an
ankle injury forced him to miss the last 10 games. With back up QB David Garrard
the Jaguars would win three of their next four games. Following a 27-24 heartbreaking
loss to the Buffalo Bills, the Jaguars played their best two games of
the season beating the Miami Dolphins 24-10, before running over the Colts in
a 44-17 win at home that saw the emergence of Rookie RB Maurice Jones-Drew who
scored two rushing touchdowns with 166 yards rushing, while adding a 93-yard kickoff
return for a TD, as the Jaguars rushed for 375 yards as a team. At 8-5 the
Jaguars were in strong position for another playoff run, but it would be the
last win of the season as the injuries just caught up with them as they lost their
last three games and finished with a disappointing 8-8 record.
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