Florida Sports Wire

 By Jeff Moeller, Florida SportDay HILTON HEAD - Si-Woo Kim is looking for consistency. The 29-year-old South Korean golfer topped the leaderboard at a 15-under 198 after three rounds of the RBC Heritage at Harbor Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island Saturday. Kim has a tight one-shot lead over Justin Thomas (-14) and Andrew Novak (-14). Defending champion Scottie Scheffler is four strokes off the pace at -11 and tied for seventh. Through the first two rounds, Thomas led the field with a -12, but he ended Saturday with a two-under 69. Thomas was assessed a one-shot penalty from a waste area on the par-5 second hole. He notified a rules official that his ball moved a fraction while he was removing loose ground near it.   Kim sank five birdies and had one bogey -on his final hole - on a windy, sunny afternoon, finishing with a five-under 66.   He captured the Players Championship in 2017, becoming the youngest player at 21 to win the event. However, Kim has strug...

 By Jeff Moeller, Florida Sports Wire JACKSONVILLE - Trade Trevor Lawrence? At first mention, it seems unthinkable.  But there have been some tires kicked surrounding the fourth-year quarterback, especially with a number of teams seeking someone under center. Lawrence has been linked to the Steelers, and those rumors persist. He also reportedly has been in the scope of the Giants and Jets. Jaguars officials quickly and flatly denied any trade talk for the once viewed generational player.  With new head coach and former Bucs’ offensive guru Liam Coen in place, the Jags have viewed the Lawrence-Coen connection as a perfect fit. The Jags confirmed their stance with Lawrence’s five-year, $275 million deal. The Jags finally have a general manager in 34-year-old James Gladstone, who brings a Rams’ pedigree to Florida with him. Don’t forget Jags longtime mainstay Tony Boselli, who is now the team’s VP of football operations.  It’s a revamped regime in place, and one of the...

(SportsDay photo by Nancy Beecher/Florida Sports Wire) By Jeff Moeller JACKSONVILLE (Florida Sports Wire) –  Did you hear the loud bump in the night in Jacksonville last night? You know, the one you heard last Saturday night. Elton John sang “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting,” and the Jaguars certainly have the past two weeks. They have gotten a lot of “action in.” That happens when your team is playing with unbound grit and determination as well as having some luck on their side. It’s when you have five turnovers –four interceptions– in the first half and respond with four touchdown passes in the second half. It doesn’t make sense. But when you reach a pivotal stage, it doesn’t have to. These Jaguars aren’t on the same level as the Chiefs, Bills, 49ers, or Eagles, but they are close behind. Yet, the Jags mounted comebacks against the Chiefs and Eagles in earlier losses and came within 10 points in each game. Saturday night’s epic, 31-30 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers –...

(SportsDay Photo by Nancy Beecher/FL Sports Wire) By Jeff Moeller The tremors that could be sensed and maybe felt from the raucous, white-towele waving 70,000-plus crowd at TIAA Field Saturday night will have some aftershocks all week long. The Jaguars’ 20-16 victory over Tennessee was a microcosm of their season. There were some growing pains, some blowouts, and finally some meaningful victories. From a team that was once 2-6 and reeling toward a likely four or –generous – maybe a five-win season, the Jags have come full circle to a 9-8 campaign. It is a turnaround that probably won’t be fully appreciated until the season is over. The rest of the league finally recognized them with a prime-time broadcast. This was a year that went from lap dances for a head coach to fans deliriously dancing in the parking lots. Their victory was more than a one-night football stand; it was the beginning. It’s real, and it’s far from over. Good teams have role players and have their share of timely pla...

By Jeff Moeller Note to Jaguars: Don’t mess it up. Also, this is still the time to be thankful and believe in fate. The latter is a factor I have harped on over the past two weeks. Fate is on their side. You may have to take a second look, but the first-place Jaguars have placed themselves in a position to win the AFC South or gain a Wildcard spot. At this point, they control their one destiny. The key words are “at this point.” That means, they have to go into Houston Sunday afternoon and beat the 2-12-1 Texans. Remember, this is the same Texan team that came into Jacksonville and beat a sluggish Jaguars’ team, 13-6, behind the running of Dameon Pierce, who bulldozed his way for 99 yards and scored a late fourth-quarter touchdown that won it. Trevor Lawrence had a rough day with two bad interceptions on a 25-for-47, 286-yard performance, all was listless late Sunday afternoon as the Jags sat at 2-5. It had all the making of another 3-14 or 4-13 season. From there, the Jags took a gian...

  By Jeff Moeller Thursday night’s game in the Meadowlands was billed as the showdown between the top two quarterbacks in the 2021 draft. The Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence showed up, the Jets’ Zach Wilson didn’t. Neither did the Jets on a night of steady, driving rain.  Still, the Jaguars looked like a team that already has clinched a postseason berth, a task they can achieve in two weeks. Last week, I wrote about how fate can be a factor for the Jags down the stretch, and it certainly appears possible. Jacksonville had their way with the New Yorkers most of the night until practice squad quarterback Chris Streveler provided some late spark in the second half, but the Jets couldn’t find the end zone in their 19-3 defeat. It was so bad that Streveler was their leading rusher with 54 yards. In a must-game situation for both teams, it only proved that both teams are currently heading in opposite directions. The Jags have their franchise quarterback, and again, the Jets don’t. More imp...

(SportsDay Photo by Jim Brady/Florida Sports Wire) By Jeff Moeller JACKSONVILLE (Florida Sports Wire) -The thump around Jacksonville came around 4:20 p.m. Sunday afternoon. A few minutes later, “Sweet Home Alabama” rang loudly through TIAA Bank Field. This could be fate. Better yet, call it about mettle and character. The days about wondering if they will get the top pick in next year’s draft are officially over. Welcome, Jaguars’ fans, to the beginning of the next chapter. Down 27-10, the Jaguars seemed destined to lose to the 10-3 Dallas Cowboys as a team that is still not there against a team that is there. This was supposed to be the game for the Cowboys to clinch a playoff berth and let them concentrate on their first-place showdown with Philadelphia Christmas eve. Yet, we got another glimpse of what could be. Rayshawn Jenkins’ 51-yard pick six gave the Jaguars a 40-34 overtime win over the Cowboys and sent the more than 60,000 into a state of pandemonium. Jenkins earlier had an i...

By Jeff Moeller This last one was a head scratcher. There have been a couple of those this season, especially with the Jaguars’ defense. Here was a Jaguars’ defense in Detroit last weekend that didn’t look anything like they did at home against Baltimore the previous week. Against the Ravens, the Jags’ defense was able to keep Lamar Jackson in check enough for them to pull out a last-second statement victory. Once again, the pendulum swung upward toward the anticipation most Jaguars’ fans and even brass believed where it should be. A win in Detroit against a seemingly evenly matched team could ignite a possibly late-season surge. However, once again, those hopes were dashed. Another opportunity that was wasted. The Jags will be in Tennessee Sunday against a team that is struggling to find its consistency presumably at the right time to capture the AFC South title. Tennessee is 7-5 and coming off a 35-10 thumping from the Eagles last week and a tight 20-16 loss to the Bengals the previo...

By Jeff Moeller JACKSONVILLE (Florida Sports Wire) - When the Jaguars take the field Sunday, it will be two weeks until they last played. We’ll see if it was two weeks too long when they host Baltimore Sunday at TIAA Field. They last met the Chiefs in Kansas City on Oct. 13 and managed to stay with them in the opening half before Patrick Mahomes again did his magic in a 27-17 Chiefs’ victory. It was another one of their seven losses in which they couldn’t finish. If the Jaguars truly have begun to turn the corner, they should be in a tight game with Baltimore. We’ll see what they have been working on for the past two weeks. Keep it close. This will be a true test of where they are against a team that is generally underrated. It will also come down to putting the clamps on another instantaneous game changer. And they have to be ready against a Baltimore team that many have overlooked. The resurgence of Mahomes and the Chiefs and the Bills’ latest Thanksgiving Day win have shifted the f...

(SportsDay photo by Nancy Beecher/Florida Sports Wire) By Jeff Moeller It’s time to pull out the measuring stick again for the Jaguars. And it likely won’t be the last time. Their recent victory over the Raiders reignited the embers back to a steady flame of having a respectable football team again this season.  They had been saddled in a five-game losing streak. Now, the Jags have life again. Unfortunately for them, they will travel to Kansas City Sunday to meet the upstart Chiefs, who appear to be back on track with two straight wins and four in their last five. This is another example of the Jags’ roller-coaster season. Yet, this has been a year that already has exceeded expectations. There has been progress beneath the surface. It appeared fate may have been on the Jags’ side at the start of the season when they won two of their first three games, losing a tight game to the Commanders, and then posting an impressive shutout over the Colts and a thrashing of the Chargers.  ...

By Jeff Moeller A year ago, there were big hopes for Travis Etienne. He and Trevor Lawernce were going to be the Jaguars’ new one-two offensive punch. They already had a tight link from their days at Clemson. Etienne was the Jags’ second first-round pick in 2021 with Lawrence. He was viewed as a steal in most football circles, and one who could make an immediate impact. Unfortunately, like most of his teammates, Etienne’s optimistic outlook suddenly soured. He suffered a season-ending foot injury in the preseason. It was just one sign in many that cast a dark shadow over the Jags’ season. A year later, everyone waited in anticipation to see what Etienne would do this season. The preseason vibes were strong, and the Jags realized they had their breakaway back to complement workhorse James Robinson. Seven weeks into the season, those hopes for Etienne have become a reality. He is now the Jags’ lead back with the trading of Robinson to the Jets a few days back. The Robinson trade should r...

By Jeff Moeller SportsDay Columnist The loss in Philadelphia hurt and left a stinging sensation. You can blame some of it one the rain. But the Jags’ defense couldn’t slow nor stop the Eagles’ running game.  The home loss against Houston left everyone a little numb and the second-guessing began. How good is this team? The latest loss in Indianapolis left everyone in shock. How could the Jags allow it to slip away? This time, the Jaguars’ pass defense couldn’t stop the Indianapolis passing game from which quarterback Matt Ryan 42 of 58 attempts for 398 yards, the 32-yard game winner with 17 seconds left. Defensive back Shaquill Griffin can be blamed for falling down on his single coverage on the play, but it wasn’t one person’s fault. That was a further reminder of how growth pains can be frustrating. The Jags once had a 14-3 lead and appeared ready to open up the game..but they didn’t. Ouch. They haven’t learned how to finish consistently. We’re at the half-full, half-empty stage. ...

By Jeff Moeller Trevor Lawrence couldn’t have had a worse game at a worse time. Lawrence and his team were riding the crest of the wave with two impressive wins, the latter in an unexpected, dominant stand against the Chargers. Against Philadelphia last week, Lawrence lost four fumbles and threw an interception. He did throw for a pair of scores with 174 yards. His receivers dropped five passes, and the league’s number one-ranked run defense allowed 210 yards rushing and four touchdowns. As for Lawrence’s turnovers against Philadelphia, you have to turn back a few pages to find a similar situation. As for this year, it was an anomaly. Heading into Sunday’s game against Houston at TIAA Field, Lawrence is at one of the pivotal points in his two-year career. He needs to guide his team (2-2) to a victory – really a convincing one – over a winless team (0-3-1). Good teams win the game they are supposed to win. If they’re facing a winless team, they need to put their foot on their necks. The...

By Jeff Moeller This one hurt. Heading into the Eagles’ game, the Jaguars were on top of the Florida world and part of the football world.  They arguably had played their best overall football over the past two games. Were they ready for the big time? With the Jags, it is about character at this point. Trevor Lawernce played like he was the best football prospect in years that everyone expected. Head coach Doug Pederson arrived with the coaching pedigree Jags’ fans anticipated when Urban Meyer came on board last season. Offense, defense and special teams. It all was seemingly coming together at the right time, and Jaguar fans began to think about the possibilities of being an AFC South contender. Realistically, maybe it was too early, but it was a time to enjoy the moment, Those feelings intensified in the opening quarter In Philadelphia Sunday. The Jags were crisp, clean, and intense as they built a 14-0 lead in a driving rain.  Andre Cisco’s electrifying 59-yard pick six wou...

 By Jeff Moeller Who’s the hottest pro team in the Sunshine State? Take your pick between the Miami Dolphins and the Jacksonville Jaguars. It’s not the Tampa Bay Bucs? Huh? And it isn’t a mistake due to Hurricane Ian.  Instead, it’s about having three winning teams in Florida for the first time in a while. As the NFL begins its fourth week, the Dolphins and Jaguars appear ready to do an about-face and push the mighty Bucs off the Florida mantle.  Despite their loss to the Bengals Thursday, the 3-1 Dolphins have found new life this season. Such also is the case in the Pan Handle where the Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence appears ready to climb the ladder to success. The Bucs will play in Tampa against Kansas City tonight, and they will look to get back on track after their extra-point conversion loss to Green Bay last week. Tom Brady hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down. Who WIll Be The Lead Dolphin? – Yes, Tua-gate will grab all the headlines for the time being, and there is pl...

By Jeff Moeller JACKSONVILLE (Florida Sports Wire) - Go ahead, pinch yourself. If you’re 50 or over, you know what I mean. If you’re under 50, it’s time for a reality check. Yes, your Jacksonville Jaguars currently – and can be – a good football team this season. It is only three games into the season, and it may appear early to jump on the bandwagon of a 2-1 team that entered the season winning only four of their last 29 games. Add to that a string of 18 consecutive losses on the road. They met an early litmus test last week when they dominated the Los Angeles Chargers in the exquisite confines of SoFi Stadium, one of the league’s centerpieces.  Chargers’ quarterback Justin Herbert played despite a bad rib problem, and it looked like the Jags would fall into the same trap again. Start off strong and then eventually have breakdowns that would result in a lopsided loss. However, it didn’t happen. You got a different feeling at halftime even with the Jags holding a slim 16-7 lead at...