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Jacksonville Jaguars Wiki Information

The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team located in Jacksonville, Florida. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The Jaguars, along with the Carolina Panthers, joined the NFL as an expansion team in 1995.

The club has played all of its home games at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. The stadium is located near the St. Johns River. The team headquarters is also located in the stadium. The Jaguars practice during the season and training camp in the stadium and on adjoining fields.

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History

Pre-franchise history of football in Jacksonville

Every year the city hosts the Gator Bowl, an annual civic highlight traditionally accompanied by parties, ceremonies, parades and other events leading up to the game. The annual Florida-Georgia game is also played in Jacksonville.

The Gator Bowl stadium was built out of steel trusses during the Great Depression and was frequently built onto, with the final addition of the reinforced-concrete west upper deck coming in 1982. The stadium hosted short-lived teams in both the World Football League (Jacksonville Sharks/Express) and the United States Football League (Jacksonville Bulls) and the occasional NFL exhibition game. The city also hosted the American Football League All Star Game in 1967 and 1968. The city briefly attempted to lure the Baltimore Colts, whose owner Robert Irsay famously landed a helicopter in the stadium as thousands of Jacksonville citizens urged him to move the team there. City leaders also attempted to get the Houston Oilers to move to Jacksonville at one point in the late 1980s. Great efforts were made to lure the Oilers, including the creation of a "Jacksonville Oilers" banner and designation of a specific section of the Gator Bowl as a non-alcohol, family section for proposed home games.

Franchise history

1989–1994

In 1992, the NFL announced that it would add two new teams, originally in time for the 1993 season. The league had not expanded since the 1976 season with the addition of Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers; with the sport growing the NFL felt the time was right to add additional franchises. Five cities were ultimately chosen as finalists for the two new teams: Charlotte, North Carolina; St. Louis, Missouri; Baltimore, Maryland; Memphis, Tennessee; and Jacksonville. From the beginning, Charlotte and St. Louis were considered the heavy favorites, with Baltimore also a strong possibility. Though not as strong a bid, Memphis was still considered an outside possibility, as the NFL did not have a presence in the area.

For many reasons, Jacksonville was considered the darkest horse in the field. Florida already had two NFL teams: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who played about a four-hour ride away, and the Miami Dolphins. Any expansion team would also have to compete with Florida's three major college football teams — Florida State, Florida and Miami - and the Georgia Bulldogs. Jacksonville was also the smallest television market in the running and the only city not ranked in the top 50 Nielsen markets.

However, the biggest potential obstacle for the Jacksonville bid was nonstop turmoil and conflict surrounding the potential ownership group. It had formed even before the NFL announced its intentions to expand, in 1989. The group called itself Touchdown Jacksonville! and placed its formal application with the NFL in 1991. The original ownership group included future Governor Jeb Bush and Jacksonville developer and political kingmaker Tom Petway. In 1991 this group confidently announced that it would call its team the Jacksonville Jaguars. After some defections and mutinies, the group came to be led by J. Wayne Weaver, shoe magnate and founder of Nine West.

From the time Touchdown Jacksonville! came to being, it faced several challenges. In April 1993, the NFL indicated to Jacksonville officials that additional renovations to the Gator Bowl would be needed. ^[1] After several weeks of negotiations, and at least one breakdown, an agreement was reached that capped the city's liability for construction and was sent to the City Council for approval. However, on July 21 1993, the Council failed to approve the financing package, dooming the bid. Deposits on season tickets were refunded, and Touchdown Jacksonville!'s offices were shuttered. ^[2]

Largely due to being underwhelmed by the remaining suitors, the NFL and others encouraged Jacksonville interests to revisit the issue and resurrect their bid. About a month later negotiations between the city and Touchdown Jacksonville! resumed, and a slightly revised aid package was approved by a solid majority of the City Council. Officially back in the race, Jacksonville officials were energized, indicated by a drive to sell club seats that resulted in over 10,000 seats being sold in 10 days. The Jaguars also gained a high-profile investor when former NFL star player Deron Cherry signed on as a limited partner.

After Charlotte was unanimously granted the 29th franchise on November 1, the NFL announced they would name the 30th franchise on or before November 30, 1993. By this time, conventional wisdom was that St. Louis would get the 30th franchise. In fact, T-shirts of the "St. Louis Stallions" (the proposed new team name) briefly went on sale at some St. Louis area sporting goods shops. However, it was not meant to be.

At 4:12 p.m. (EST) on the afternoon of November 30, Jacksonville was announced as the winning franchise. ^[1] The next evening, 25,000 fans celebrated at the Gator Bowl as season ticket sales were kicked off. Within ten days, the Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville's daily newspaper) announced sales had passed the 55,000 seat mark (Incidentally, the three other finalists all eventually became the home of a relocated franchise: the Los Angeles Rams moved to St. Louis in 1995, the Cleveland Browns moved to Baltimore and were renamed the Baltimore Ravens and Memphis would briefly serve as the home of the former Houston Oilers in 1996 before the team moved into its new stadium in Nashville and was renamed the Tennessee Titans).

After the Gator Bowl game on December 31, 1993, the old stadium was essentially demolished and replaced with a reinforced concrete superstructure; all that remained of the old stadium was the west upper concourse and a portion of the ramping system. The new Jacksonville Municipal Stadium (known as Alltel Stadium from 1997–2006) opened on August 18 1995 with a preseason game against the St. Louis Rams (In 1994 and 1995, the Florida Georgia game rotated between the schools' campuses; the game returned to itsneutral-site in Jacksonville in 1996; the 1994 Gator Bowl was played at Florida Field in Gainesville, FL).

Tom Coughlin Era (1995–2002)

1995: Inaugural Season

In 1995, along with the Carolina Panthers, the Jacksonville Jaguars entered the NFL as the first expansion teams in almost 20 years. Both teams participated in the 1995 NFL Expansion Draft, with the Jaguars taking Steve Beuerlein, who quickly lost his starting job to Mark Brunell, with the first pick. The Jaguars finished their inaugural season with a record of 4–12. Both the Jaguars and the Panthers (7–9) broke the previous record for most wins by an expansion team (3) set by the Cincinnati Bengals in 1968. The inaugural season featured many of the players who would lead Jacksonville into the playoffs in the team's next four seasons, including quarterback Mark Brunell (acquired in a draft day trade from Green Bay), offensive lineman Tony Boselli (drafted with the 2nd pick overall in the 1995 NFL Draft) running back James Stewart (also drafted in 1995), and wide receiver Jimmy Smith (signed as a free agent).

The team played its first regular season game at home before a crowd of 72,363 ^[4] on September 3, 1995, a 10-3 loss against the Houston Oilers. The team picked up its first win in Week 4 as the Jaguars defeated the Oilers 17–16 on October 1 in Houston. The next week against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Jaguars earned their first home win by defeating the eventual AFC Champions 20-16. The team's other two wins came in a season sweep of the Cleveland Browns including a Week 17 24–21 victory sealed by a Mike Hollis 34-yard field goal ^[5] in the Browns' final game before the team relocated to Baltimore and was renamed the Ravens.

1996: "Jacksonville, do you believe in miracles?"

Jacksonville's 1996 season was a marked success. They won six of their last seven games of the season and finished with a record of 9–7. The credit for this midseason turnaround probably lies in the demotion of wide receiver Andre Rison in favor of Jimmy Smith after a game against the St. Louis Rams in which Brunell threw 5 interceptions. The interceptions were blamed on Rison and he was benched. In the team's final game of the regular season against the Atlanta Falcons, needing a win to earn a playoff berth, the Jaguars caught a bit of luck when Morten Andersen missed a 30 yard field goal with less than a minute remaining that would have given the Falcons the lead. ^[6] The Jaguars clinched the fifth seed in the AFC playoffs.

Their first playoff game was against the Buffalo Bills at Buffalo, a game the Jaguars won 30-27. Their next game was on the road against the Denver Broncos, who had dominated the AFC with a 13-3 record. The upstart Jaguars were not intimidated by the Broncos or their fans, and they largely dominated from the second quarter on. A late touchdown pass from Mark Brunell to Jimmy Smith gave the Jags a 30-20 lead. They held on to win in a huge upset, 30–27, in a game that many people still consider the franchise's finest hour. Upon their return home, the Jags were greeted by an estimated 40,000 fans at the stadium. Many of these fans had watched the game on the stadium JumboTron displays and had stayed into the early hours of the morning when the team arrived. In the AFC Championship Game, the Jaguars acquitted themselves very well, playing a tight and close defensive game in a hostile environment for over three quarters before finally losing 20-6 to the New England Patriots on the road. Their fellow second-year NFC expansion team, the Carolina Panthers, also got to the conference championship (in the NFC), where they lost 30-13 to the eventual Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers.

1997–1999: Playoffs, Division Champions and the end of a run

In 1997 , the franchise's third season, the Jaguars and the Steelers both finished the season with an 11-5 record, tops in the AFC Central Division. Pittsburgh won the division in a tiebreaker as a result of having higher net in division games than Jacksonville. ^[7] As a result, the Jaguars settled for 2nd place in the division, a Wild Card berth and the 5th seed in the AFC playoffs. The Jags postseason would end quickly as they fell in their first game, a 42–17 defeat against the Denver Broncos at Mile High Stadium. The Broncos, led by Terrell Davis, ran at will against the Jaguars, rushing for 5 touchdowns and over 300 yards. ^[8]

In 1998 , the Jaguars again finished 11-5 and won their first AFC Central Division title. The team became the first NFL expansion team to make the playoffs three times in its first four seasons of play. In the wild card round, the Jaguars hosted their first home playoff game, a 25–10 win over the New England Patriots. The team's season ended the next week in the Divisional Round as the New York Jets defeated the Jaguars 34–24.

In 1999 , the Jaguars compiled a league best 14-2 regular season record, the best record in franchise history. The team's two losses were to the Tennessee Titans. The Jaguars won the AFC Central Division for the second straight year and clinched the #1 seed in the AFC. The Jaguars hosted the Miami Dolphins in the AFC Divisional playoffs, a 62–7 victory in what would be Dan Marino and Jimmy Johnson's last NFL game. Jacksonville's 62 points and 55-point margin are the second most ever in NFL playoff history, and Fred Taylor's 90-yard run in the first quarter is the longest ever in an NFL playoff game. ^[9]

The Jaguars' bid for a Super Bowl title came to an end the next week in the AFC championship game. The Jags fell at home to the Titans 33–14 in a game that the Jaguars led 14–10 at halftime, before allowing 23 unanswered points in the 2nd half. The Jaguars finished the 1999 season 15–3, with all three of their losses coming against the Titans (the only time in NFL history that a 3-loss team had all of its losses to one team). The loss marked the end of an era that saw the Jaguars make the playoffs in four of the team's first five years and would be the team's last playoff appearance until the 2005 season.

2000–2002

These were the most disappointing years for the new franchise, due primarily to salary cap problems. In the 2000 season, veteran quarterback Mark Brunell and young running back Fred Taylor led the squad through a painful 7–9 season. The only highlights of the 2000 season were two wins over their division rival, the Cleveland Browns. The next two seasons in Jacksonville had worse records of 6–10 through the 2001 and 2002 seasons. This was mainly due to salary cap problems, meaning the team could not afford to keep a lot of talent. Coach Coughlin admitted that the team actually had more talent in its first year (1995) when it only won 4 games. This would be the last season he would coach the team. In a very classy act, he took out a full page ad in the Florida Times Union thanking the city of Jacksonville for "eight great seasons". Though despised by some of the fans, he drafted great talent such as Tony Boselli, Tony Brackens, Fred Taylor, Donovan Darius, John Henderson, Marcus Stroud, and David Garrard.

In 2002, the NFL split up the two leagues into 4 divisions, sending the Jacksonville Jaguars to the AFC South. This would put them in the same division as Indianapolis, Tennessee, and Houston.

Jack Del Rio era (2003–present)

2003–2005

In 2003, the Jaguars hired Jack Del Rio as head coach. Del Rio was a linebacker during the late 80s and early 90s before retiring. He was formerly the Carolina Panthers' defensive coordinator, bringing the team's defensive ranking from 30th to second. The Jaguars selected quarterback Byron Leftwich with the seventh pick of the NFL draft. The Jaguars had high hopes for their new quarterback. The team had many failures and heatbreaking moments, ending the 2003 season at 5–11 and missing the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. Despite resolving their salary cap problems, the team's rebuilding was clearly taking longer than expected.

The 2004 season, the tenth season of the Jaguars franchise, resulted in a winning record of 9–7 with road victories against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field and the Indianapolis Colts at the RCA Dome. The Jaguars' defense was a strong suit, as it included two Pro Bowl players, defensive tackles Marcus Stroud and John Henderson. Byron Leftwich enjoyed a solid year in 2004, helped by strong performances from holdovers Fred Taylor and Jimmy Smith. Unfortunately, Taylor sustained a season-ending injury at Green Bay. The very next week the Jaguars fell to the Houston Texans, which would ultimately eliminate them from playoff contention. This denied them an opportunity to play the Super Bowl at their home stadium. In 2004, the Jaguars became the first NFL team to have three black quarterbacks on their roster. The quarterbacks were Byron Leftwich, David Garrard, and Quinn Gray.

The 2005 Jaguars hoped to challenge the Colts for the division title. However, due to their scintillating 13-0 start, including two victories against the Jaguars, the Colts easily clinched the AFC South title. With a 12–4 record, the Jaguars earned a wild card and their first playoff appearance since 1999. Among these 12 wins were a 23–20 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on October 9, 2005 and a 23-17 overtime victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on October 16, 2005. While the Jaguars managed to win key games in 2005, nine of their final ten games were against opponents with losing records. Though these games were wins, key players Byron Leftwich, Mike Peterson, Akin Ayodele, Paul Spicer, and Rashean Mathis were hurt during this stretch. The Jaguars ended the season losing 28-3 to the two-time defending champion New England Patriots on January 7, 2006 in the AFC wild card playoff round.

2006

Jacksonville looked like a team on the rise coming off of their 12–4 season, and was considered a playoff contender entering the season. But injuries plagued the team. Reggie Hayward, Greg Jones, Donovin Darius, Byron Leftwich, and Mike Peterson all suffered season-ending injuries. Marcus Stroud, Matt Jones, Paul Spicer, and Fred Taylor also faced injuries during the season. The team started off 2–0, defeating the Dallas Cowboys earning the NFL's highest winning percentage on opening days at .750 with a record of 9–3), and shutting out the defending champs Pittsburgh Steelers. But the team lost its next two games, and suffered embarrassing losses to the Houston Texans over the course of the season (Surprisingly, Jacksonville has struggled against the Texans since Houston entered the league in 2002). They missed the playoffs with an 8–8 record, but there were some positives. Maurice Jones-Drew, the Jaguars' second round draft pick, was one of the most surprising rookie sensations. He averaged 5.7 yards a carry, the highest in the league, and tied for 3rd in the NFL with 16 touchdowns. This season was also the first year the team played without their standout wide receiver Jimmy Smith as he decided to retire. His production was missed for the next few years as the Jaguars struggled to find an adequate replacement.

2007

On April 28, 2007, the Jaguars used their first-round pick (21st overall) to select Florida safety Reggie Nelson, after passing on Notre Dame Quarterback Brady Quinn twice. The pick of Reggie Nelson filled a void as veteran free safety Deon Grant went to Seattle to play for the Seattle Seahawks, since Jacksonville was unwilling to match Seattle's contract offer. On June 15, 2007, the Jaguars released longtime strong safety Donovin Darius, who had seen diminished playing time in recent years due to mounting injuries. This was seen by many as a cost-cutting measure. On August 31, 2007, the Jaguars announced that long time back-up quarterback David Garrard would start for the team, ahead of former 1st round draft pick, Byron Leftwich who was released in the team's final roster cuts. Garrard led the Jaguars to an 11–5 record and the playoffs. On January 5, 2008, the Jaguars defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-29 to win their first playoff game in almost 8 years and their first road playoff win since 1997. It was also the first time in the 50+ year history of the Steelers that they had been beaten twice at home by the same team in the same season. However, in the Divisional round, the Jaguars fell to the as of then undefeated New England Patriots; the teams were tied at halftime, but the Patriots pulled ahead and won 31–20. Tom Brady completed 22 of 24 passes in this game, being pressured by the Jaguars' defense only once, on the first play. This game more than any other gave the Jaguars' front office a strong desire to upgrade the pass rush.

The team's offense in 2007 was definitely a run-first offense, with Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor putting up a lot of yards. The Jaguars had a lot of success passing the ball early on, but later in the season it was shown that if a talented defense sold out to stop the run, the Jaguars were not enough of a threat passing the ball to do that alone. Garrard, however, was shown to be an accurate passer in 2007, throwing only 3 interceptions and a few nice long passes. The Jaguars concluded that they needed to work on improving their receiving corps to add balance to the offense.

2008

The 2008 season began with high expectations for the Jaguars. The team acquired free agent wide receiver Jerry Porter and rookie defensive ends Quentin Groves of Auburn and Derrick Harvey of Florida to address the team's most glaring holes. Journalists including espn.com's Kevin Seifert predicted the Jaguars were poised to make a Super Bowl run. ^[10]

However, the Jaguars failed to live up to those expectations, struggling to a 5-11 finish, the franchise's worst record since 2003. The team's struggles were in part, the result of a rash of injuries to the team's offensive line. The Jaguars lost starting guards Vince Manuwai and Maurice Williams for the season within the first quarter of the opening game. Tackle Richard Collier's career ended in early September when he was brutally attacked and shot 14 times. ^[11] Center Brad Meester missed the first two months of the season and guard Chris Naeole, signed to the roster mid-season in response to these injuries, was injured in pregame warmups before playing a single snap. Against teams with smaller defensive linemen, the 2008 Jaguars offense resembled the 2007 offense, because the line was able to dominate. An example is the 23–21 victory in Indianapolis against the Colts that saw David Garrard drive the Jaguars into field goal range in the final minute and Josh Scobee boot the game winning 51-yard field goal with 4 seconds remaining. Another example would be the Jaguars' performance against the Broncos. However, the Jaguars struggled mostly, especially in the second half of the season as evidenced by a 19–21 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals who entered the game with an 0-8 record.

Revenue Concerns

Stadium

When they entered the League in 1995, the Jaguars were considered by Forbes' magazine to be among the most valuable Franchises, with one of the highest average ticket prices in the league, a larger-than-average stadium with 73,000 seats, including a most-in-the-league 14,000 club seats, and the largest number of luxury boxes in the league at that time. The stadium was sold out on a season-tickets basis for the next three years. It was because of their grand stadium plans and the fact that about 9,000 club seats had already been pre-sold that the league chose Jacksonville over larger cities such as St. Louis and Baltimore in 1993. Jacksonville is the second-smallest metropolitan area to have an NFL team, after Green Bay. Though there are 32 NFL teams, Jacksonville is ranked in the 50s by Nielson Media for market size. The entry of the Jaguars into the league and the amenities offered by their stadium, accompanied by the even larger stadium opened for the Carolina Panthers in 1996, set off a building boom in the league with many teams moving into stadiums with even larger club areas and greater numbers of luxury boxes, larger corridors, and greater retail space. As of 2009, every team except the Dolphins, Falcons, Saints, Chiefs, Bills, Vikings, Chargers, Raiders, and 49ers either plays in a stadium built after 1995, plays in a stadium that received major, revenue-enhancing upgrades after 1995, or has a new stadium under construction. Thus, based on built-up capacity, the Jaguars are in the bottom third of the league for revenue potential as of 2009.

Demand for Tickets

However, the overall league building boom is not the only thing affecting the Jaguars from a revenue standpoint. Demand for tickets has gone steadily downward since 1998, when the original season tickets contracts began expiring. Preseason games were being blacked out on local television starting in 1999, even as the Jaguars achieved their historic best 14-2 record in the regular season. Tickets have been given away for free to Winn-Dixie customers in the early part of the decade. Season tickets in the upper corners of the stadium were made available for $10/game around that time. After that, in 2005, sections of the stadium began to be covered to help supply meet demand and bring the capacity of the stadium closer to the league average at roughly 67,000 seats. Even so, since the capacity was reduced, only the Jaguars' 2006 matchup against the Colts saw every seat sold. As of 2008, the Jaguars had the lowest or second lowest ticket prices in the league, depending on who did the calculation, and the lowest or second lowest revenue in the league. Since 2006 when the contract with ALLTEL ended, the stadium has not had a 'name' sponsor, in spite of the efforts of both the Jaguars and the City of Jacksonville to find one.

Blacked-out 2009 Season

Since 1999, the Jaguars have suffered sporadic blackouts, but due to the economic recession and a disappointing 2008 season, the renewal rate for season tickets is so low that the Jaguars organization has declared every home game to be 'blacked out'. This means that that people living within a 90 mile radius of the stadium will not be able to see Jaguars home games on television, even with a satellite dish. The blackout policy is designed to encourage ticket sales, to get people to drive to the stadium and see the game in person. In the past, the Jaguars have sought partnerships with Winn-Dixie and the City of Jacksonville to artificially inflate the number of tickets sold and make sure the game is televised. The Jaguars have also elected to show games on TV even with a few thousand tickets remaining for sale. They continue to not count the more-expensive Club Seats in their blackout number, allowing games to be televised even as only a fraction of the club seats are sold. It is hoped that with stricter enforcement of the blackout policy, local fans will develop the habit of going to the stadium rather than watching on TV. About 5 other teams have been put into a similar situation by the economy and are facing blackouts, but none of these have ticket prices as low as the Jaguars and none of them have as many tickets left to sell.

Future Outlook

Due to a lack of major corporations in the area and slower growth both in terms of population and income compared to other metropolitan areas in the state, the decade from 1999 to 2008 has been disappointing for the Jaguars in terms of revenue. It is hoped that a stricter emphasis on the blackout rule, along with greater success on the field, will be the solution to the problem of ticket sales. Selling out the stadium, however, would be a hollow victory if the Club Seats and Luxury boxes were not also selling at high levels. Low average ticket price is also a concern from the perspective of team revenue.

Though the Jaguars are a Limited Liability Corporation and therefore not obligated to make their books public, the books have been opened to the City occasionally when a dispute arises over the stadium lease. The picture is that the Jaguars are barely breaking even as they continue to have below average ticket revenue coupled with average player costs. Owner Wayne Weaver has acknowledged in multiple interviews that he will have to sell the team before he dies (he is 74 as of August 2009) as his children have expressed no interest in inheriting the team. Each year the team fails to make a lot of money, the potential sale price of the team goes down. Wayne Weaver has promised in these same interviews not to sell to a party that is interested in moving the team, but this promise may be impossible to fulfill. After the 2010 season, the League's Collective Bargaining Agreement, Revenue Sharing agreement, and TV contracts are all up for re-negotiation. It is possible that the players will be 'locked out' and all have their contracts canceled during this process, as the league deals with a possible reduction in TV and ticket revenue due to the continuing recession. All of these circumstances may make the Jaguars' revenue picture improve with respect to the rest of the league, but they could also make it much worse. Ideas have been proposed to reduce the number of games in Jacksonville and thus the number of tickets needing to be sold. One such idea has the Jaguars playing some regular season games in Orlando's Citrus Bowl. Orlando is already considered to be in the Jaguars' "extended market" for television purposes, though polling has shown the Bucs and Dolphins to be more popular in the area. Playing 1 or 2 home games in Orlando may help change that situation and improve the Jaguars' statewide appeal. Another idea has the Jaguars play 1 or 2 games at Wembley Stadium in London which will reduce the number of tickets that Jacksonville-area fans need to buy and also help the league establish permanent international appeal. Of course, the idea of the Jaguars moving permanently to the new stadium proposed for the City of Industry in the Los Angeles area has also been mentioned in the national media, Wayne Weaver has promised to never permanently move the team nor sell the team to a person or group interested in doing so.

Team colors and mascots

Logos and uniforms

Logo

The day after the NFL awarded the expansion team to Jacksonville, a triumphant Wayne Weaver held up the Jaguars' proposed silver helmet and teal jersey at the NFL owners' meeting in Chicago. The team's colors were to be teal, gold, and silver with black accents. However, this jersey and helmet design, with a gold leaping jaguar, created controversy. Ford Motor Company, parent of the automaker Jaguar, believed that the Jaguars' logo bore too much resemblance to the automaker's logo. Though no lawsuit was brought to trial, an amicable agreement was ultimately reached where Jaguar would be named the official car of the Jaguars, and the Jaguars would redesign their uniforms.

The new logo was a snarling jaguar head with a teal tongue, which Weaver said was his wife's touch. He also claimed that the teal tongue came from "feeding Panthers to our Jaguars" — an obvious jab at their expansion brethren. During the Jaguars' first ever preseason game teal-colored candies were handed out to all the fans who attended, turning their tongues a teal color just like on the logo. Additionally, raspberry lollipops were handed out by the "Candy Man" in section 142 to also turn the home fans' tongues teal.

In 2009, Weaver announced that he wanted to 'clean up' the team's image. This meant the elimination of the full-body crawling Jaguar logo, the clawing Jaguar, and the two previous wordmarks which bent the text around these logos.

Uniform

1995-2003

Following the logo change, the redesigned uniforms feature an all-black helmet, white pants with teal, black, and gold stripes, and numbers with gold inner trim and black outer trim. The home jersey was teal with white numbers and the away jersey was white with teal numbers.

A prowling jaguar on each sleeve replaced the leaping jaguar going across both shoulders in the original design. The Jaguars in 1995 were the first NFL team to have 2-tone borders on their numbers and lettering, and the first NFL team to show a complex logo (the crawling Jaguar) on the sleeve. Teams such as the Ravens, Bucs, and Eagles copied these innovations in the late 90s, driving up the cost of their jerseys. An authentic Jaguars jersey had been among the most expensive in the league for fans to buy.

Minor modifications were introduced to the Jaguars uniform during this time, most notably the font of the jersey numbers. From 1997 to 2008, the font used for the Jaguars' numbers was unique in the league. The vertical parts were fat and straight with the horizontal parts showing curves and varying thickness. It was an attempt to mesh the traditional block look of teams like the Dolphins with the modern, curvy look of the Steelers and Ravens.

2003-2008

During these period, the Jaguars made minor changes to their uniform, each time adding more black to the look.

The team introduced an alternate black jersey in 2002. During that same year, the team also started to wear black pants, with either the white or the teal jersey. After the black pants were introduced, the white pants would only be seen for the first few games of the year, presumably due to the heat. The black pants originally included two teal stripes down each side. The fan reaction to the extra black in the alternate jersey and alternate pants was positive, so in 2004 the Jaguars went through a formal uniform change, which teams are only allowed to do once every 5 years.

These changes were mostly to the away look. Before 2004, the white away jerseys had teal numbers with black and gold trim, but after, the white jerseys had black numbers with teal and gold trim. The black pants were also changed, the teal stripes replaced with the Jaguar logo on each hip. Teal almost disappeared from the road look.

The stripes on the white pants were altered in 2008 so that the center, thickest stripe was black, and its accents were teal. The black jersey was not used in 2008. In the 2008 year, the gold in the uniforms noticeably shifted from a bright yellow metallic appearance to more beige.

For most of their short history, the Jaguars did what many other NFL teams located in subtropical climates traditionally practice: wear their white jerseys at home during the first half of the season — forcing opponents to wear their dark ones under the sweltering autumns in Jacksonville. However in 2004, the Jaguars wore their colored uniforms at home for all home games. The Jaguars again wore their colored jerseys (all in teal) for all home games in 2008. In the preseason, the Jaguars wear teal at home since these games are played at night when there is very little advantage with the heat.

2009

The Jaguars will be wearing new uniforms for the 2009 season. ^[12] ^[13] Team owner Wayne Weaver reportedly wanted to "clean up" the look, feeling that the team had too many uniform styles. The new uniforms were introduced in a press conference on April 22. ^[14] At this press conference, Weaver elaborated that different people had taken different liberties with the Jaguars' image over the years, singling out the 'All Black' look which the team wore for every prime-time home game from 2003 to 2007 as a point of regret. He also said that the team will continue to wear teal blue jerseys at home even on hot days, saying that the practice of choosing to wear white on hot days which ended in 2008 had also diluted the team's image.

Overall, the new jerseys have fewer features than the old ones. The collar and sleeve ends are now the same color as the rest of the jersey. The crawling jaguar is gone. The only feature on the sleeves that will remain is two standard Reebok logos. The numbers on the jerseys are now a simpler, block font with a thicker, single color border. After all of these subtractions, two features were added. The first is a "JAGUARS" wordmark underneath the NFL insignia on the chest; this mimics the Titans' and Eagles' uniforms, for instance. The second is two thin 'stripes' of off-color fabric which were added to each midseam of the jersey, curling up to the neckline on the front and below the number on the back. The stripe on the home jersey is a white line next to a black line, matching the color of the numbers, and the stripe on the away jersey is a black line next to a teal line, again matching the numbers. The pants have similar stripes, both for the home and away uniform. The away uniforms are still basically black pants and numbers on a white jersey, but they now have a little more teal overall; it is the only accent color. Before, gold was more prominent than teal on the away uniform.

The Jaguars' identity, in terms of colors, as of 2009 is exclusively teal and black, with gold only being used in the logo; just as the Steelers identity is gold and black, with red and blue only being used in the logo.

The final change made to the Jaguars' uniforms in 2009 was to the helmet. The new helmet and facemask are black just like the old ones, but when light hits the new ones a certain way, both the helmet and face mask will sparkle with a shiny teal appearance. These are the first helmets in professional football which change color with different angles of light. The logo and number decals also incorporate this effect.

Mascots

Since his introduction in 1996, Jaxon de Ville has served as the Jaguars' mascot. Jaxon entertains the crowd before and during games with his antics. The mascot has established a reputation for making dramatic entrances including bungee jumping off the stadium lights, sliding down a rope from the scoreboard and parachuting into the stadium.

Jackson's antics got him into trouble in 1998 and stemmed the changing of the NFL's mascot rules, and also caused him to calm down. ^[15] However, Jaxson was still seen, by some, as a mascot that gets in the way during the game. After the October 22, 2007 game against Indianapolis, Colts President Bill Polian complained to the NFL, and Jaxson was reprimanded again. ^[16] ^[17]

Jaxson's first appearance was on August 18, 1996 ^[18] and has been played by Curtis Dvorak since his inception. ^[19]

Stadium

Jacksonville Municipal Stadium, located near the banks of the St. Johns River, is the current home of the Jaguars and has been since the team's first season in 1995. The stadium has a capacity of over 76,000 but approximately 10,000 seats are covered during Jaguars' home games reducing the stadium's capacity to 67,164. The seats were covered before the 2004 season in response to declining ticket sales and the large capacity of the stadium relative to Jacksonville's population. ^[20]

The stadium served as the site of Super Bowl XXXIX in addition to three Jaguar playoff games including the 1999 AFC Championship Game. In addition, the stadium hosts the annual Florida-Georgia Game ("The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party") and the Minolta Gator Bowl.

From 1997 until 2006, the stadium was named Alltel Stadium. ^[21]

Statistics and records

Season-by-season results

This is a partial list of the last four seasons completed or in progress by the Jaguars. For the full season-by-season franchise results, see Jacksonville Jaguars seasons.

Note: The Finish, Wins, Losses, and Ties columns list regular season results and exclude any postseason play.''

Record as of January 12, 2009

Super Bowl Champions	Conference Champions	Division Champions	Wild Card Berth

Season	Team	League	Conference	Division	Regular season				Postseason Results	Awards
Season	Team	League	Conference	Division	Finish	Wins	Losses	Ties	Postseason Results	Awards
2005	2005	NFL	AFC	South	2nd	12	4	0	Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Patriots) 28-3
2006	2006	NFL	AFC	South	3rd	8	8	0
2007	2007	NFL	AFC	South	2nd	11	5	0	Won Wild Card Playoffs (Steelers) 31-29 Lost Divisional Playoffs (Patriots) 31-20
2008	2008	NFL	AFC	South	4th	5	11	0

Players of note

Current roster

Quarterbacks

9 David Garrard
17 Cleo Lemon

Running Backs

32 Maurice Jones-Drew KR/PR
24 Montell Owens RB/FB
39 Alvin Pearman
34 Chauncey Washington

Wide Receivers

86 Dennis Northcutt
81 Mike Walker
11 Reggie Williams
84 Troy Williamson

Tight Ends

85 Richard Angulo
83 Greg Estandia
89 Marcedes Lewis
87 George Wrighster

Offensive Linemen

69 Khalif Barnes T
63 Brad Meester C
61 Drew Miller G/C
62 Dennis Norman G/C
77 Uche Nwaneri G/C
78 Tutan Reyes C/G
79 Tony Pashos T
72 Charles Spencer T
70 Cameron Stephenson G

Defensive Linemen

90 Mkristo Bruce DE
99 Atiyyah Ellison DT
93 Quentin Groves DE
91 Derrick Harvey DE
97 Reggie Hayward DE
98 John Henderson DT
66 Derek Landri DT
92 Rob Meier DT
94 Jeremy Mincey DE
95 Paul Spicer DE

Linebackers

56 Justin Durant OLB
51 Clint Ingram OLB
59 Brian Iwuh OLB
54 Mike Peterson OLB
57 Tim Shaw OLB
53 Thomas Williams ILB

Defensive Backs

26 Kennard Cox CB
21 Drayton Florence CB
36 Isaiah Gardner SS
22 William James CB
37 Calvin Lowry SS
25 Reggie Nelson FS
20 Pierson Prioleau FS
43 Gerald Sensabaugh SS
29 Brian Williams CB
38 Brian Witherspoon CB/KR/PR

Special Teams

10 Josh Scobee K
6 Steve Weatherford P
88 Joe Zelenka LS/TE

Reserve Lists

76 Richard Collier OT (NF-Inj.)
44 Anthony Cotrone FB (IR)
99 Theo Horrocks DT (IR)
33 Greg Jones FB (IR)
18 Matt Jones WR (Susp.)
75 Jonathan Lewis DT (IR)
67 Vince Manuwai G (IR)
27 Rashean Mathis CB (IR)
96 Tony McDaniel DT (IR)
65 Chris Naeole G (IR)
42 Chad Nkang SS (IR)
3 Adam Podlesh P (IR)
80 Jerry Porter WR (IR)
52 Daryl Smith ILB (IR)
31 Scott Starks CB (IR)
28 Fred Taylor RB (IR)
74 Maurice Williams T/G (IR)

Practice Squad

23 Travarous Bain CB
16 Nate Hughes WR
35 Keon Lattimore RB
73 Tim Mattran C
58 Lamar Myles OLB
75 Stefan Rodgers OT
12 Paul Smith QB
14 D'Juan Woods WR

Rookies in italics
updated 2008-12-16
•
52 Active, 17 Inactive, 7 PS ? More rosters

Retired numbers

Although not officially retired, the number 71, as worn by Tony Boselli has not been worn since 2002. According to team officials the number has been "taken out of service." ^[22]

Pride of the Jaguars

The Jaguars unveiled their own "Ring of Honor" during the 2006 season at the New York Jets game on October 8, 2006. A contest was held in July 2006 to name their club's hall of fame and "Pride of the Jaguars" was chosen with 36% of the vote. ^[23] Former left tackle Tony Boselli was inducted. Team owner Wayne Weaver said that Boselli will be the only one enshrined in 2006 but "others will follow later." ^[24] Weaver also said that recently retired wide receiver Jimmy Smith would probably be the second player to be inducted. ^[25]

All-time first-round draft picks

Coaches of note

Head coaches

Note: Statistics are correct through the end of the 2008 NFL season.

Name	Term	Regular Season				Playoffs		Awards	Reference
Name	Term	W	L	T	Win%	W	L	Awards	Reference
Tom Coughlin	1995–2002	68	60	0	.531	4	4		^[26]
Jack Del Rio	2003–present	50	46	0	.521	1	2		^[27]

Offensive Coordinators

Kevin Gilbride (1995–1996)
Chris Palmer (1997–1998)
Bobby Petrino (2000–2001)
Bill Musgrave (2003–2004)
Carl Smith (2005–2006)
Dirk Koetter (2007–present)

Defensive Coordinators

Dick Jauron (1995–1998)
Dom Capers (1999–2000)
Gary Moeller (2001)
John Pease (2002)
Mike Smith (2003–2007)
Gregg Williams (2008)
Mel Tucker (2009-present)

Current staff

Front Office

Chairman/CEO - Wayne Weaver
Senior Vice President of Football Operations/General Counsel - Paul Vance
Vice President of Player Personnel - James Harris
Executive Director of College and Pro Personnel - Gene Smith
Assistant Director of Pro Personnel - Louis Clark
Assistant Director of Pro Personnel - Larry Wright

Head Coaches

Head Coach - Jack Del Rio
Assistant Head Coach/Tight Ends - Mike Tice
Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator - Gregg Williams

Offensive Coaches

Offensive Coordinator - Dirk Koetter
Quarterbacks - Mike Shula
Running Backs - Kennedy Pola
Wide Receivers - Todd Monken
Assistant Wide Receivers - Robert Prince
Offensive Line - Andy Heck

Defensive Coaches

Defensive Line - Ted Monachino
Linebackers - Mark Duffner
Defensive Backs - Donnie Henderson
Assistant Defensive Backs - Thom Kaumeyer
Defensive Assistant - Tom Williams

Special Teams Coaches

Special Teams Coordinator - Joe DeCamillis
Assistant Special Teams - Nate Kaczor

Strength and Conditioning

Strength and Conditioning - Mark Asanovich
Assistant Strength and Conditioning - Les Ebert

?
? More NFL staffs

Work in the community

The Jacksonville Jaguars Foundation was established in 1995, when the franchise deal was first announced. Since then, the Foundation has given over $20 million to area efforts in community improvement. ^[28] In recent years, there has been increasing emphasis on youth programs, such as Honor Rows and Fresh Futures. The Jaguars also have a program called Playbooks, which is designed to help stop illiteracy. Delores Barr Weaver, wife of majority owner Wayne Weaver, is Chairperson and CEO of the foundation, which grants over $1 million annually to organizations that assist "economically and socially disadvantaged youth and families", according to their mission statement. ^[29]

The Jaguar's first head coach, Tom Coughlin, established the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Foundation in 1996 to help young cancer victims and their families with emotional and financial assistance. The charity remained in Jacksonville after Coughlin left to coach the New York Giants. ^[30]

Radio and television

Since the first 1995 season, the Jaguars' flagship radio station has been WOKV.

Since 2007, WOKV simulcasts on both AM 690 and on 106.5 FM. Brian Sexton, Sports Director for WAWS-TV & WTEV-TV, and a past contestant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire , is the play-by-play announcer, Jeff Lageman is the color analyst, and WOKV's Sports Director Cole Pepper serves as the pre-game and post-game show host with former Oakland Raider Pete Banaszak serving as post-game analyst. During preseason games, telecasts not seen nationwide are on WTEV channel 47, the CBS affiliate. Since 2007, the announcers were Paul Burmeister and former Jaguars Left Tackle Tony Boselli.