Doug Marrone Says He 'Wasn't Thinking About' Benching Minshew Vs. Chargers
Despite rumors about the job security of Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew II swirling due to a national report on Sunday, the Jaguars quarterback was never in danger of being pulled by his head coach in Week 7.
Early Sunday morning before the game, an NFL Network report via Ian Rapoport suggested Minshew was in danger of being benched if he struggled. But despite the Jaguars dropping their sixth consecutive game, head coach Doug Marrone said benching Minshew wasn't a consideration during the 39-29 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
"No, I wasn't thinking about that," Marrone said following the game when asked if he thought about benching Minshew on Sunday.
The Jaguars struggled in a major way to start Sunday's contest against the Los Angeles Chargers, falling into a 16-0 deficit after four three-and-outs to start the game. But the Jaguars battled their way back into the game, with Minshew throwing two touchdowns in the loss and helping lead the Jaguars to several scoring drives in a back-and-forth contest.
Minshew finished the game completing 14-of-27 passes (51.9%) for 173 yards and the two scores. He recorded 6.4 yards per attempt and finished with a passer rating of 96.7. Through seven games this season, Minshew has completed 176 of 267 passes for 1,855 yards and 13 touchdowns with five interceptions for a 94.4 QB rating.
"No, that was never mentioned," Minshew said after the game when asked about the reports of his potential benching and whether coaches have indicated he would be benched.
With the loss to the Chargers, the Jaguars now sit at 1-6 entering their bye week and are in last place in the AFC South. Following a Week 1 upset of the Indianapolis Colts in which Minshew threw just one incompletion and the defense allowed only 20 points, the Jaguars have slipped in all areas.
Minshew has been a major point of focus due to the position he plays, but it is worth noting the Jaguars' historically bad defense is the biggest reason they have lost six straight. With that said, bad starts like the one on Sunday have doomed the team all season.
"Yeah, we were frustrated. We had four three-and-outs; that's about as bad as you can start," Minshew said.
"One thing I was proud of was how we didn't fold or send it in right there. [We] kept fighting, kept working, defense kept battling their tail off to keep us in it and we managed to find somewhat of a groove. Then, we obviously couldn't find a way."
With the Jaguars limping into their bye week with their season on life support, questions about the job status of both Minshew and Marrone will likely continue to swirly. Following Sunday's game, Minshew has a 7-12 record as the starting quarterback while Marrone is 23-34 as Jacksonville's head coach.
While Marrone did not consider pulling the plug on Minshew in Week 7, he knows he may not have the same luck with his own future. The Jaguars are in the second six-game losing streak of Marrone's tenure, and there are legitimate questions of whether he will enter Week 9's game against the Houston Texans as the head coach, regardless of if Minshew continues as the starter or not.
"I think that any time you're losing like this and you're not performing well on Sundays, I think it's naïve. It can happen. I just work and do the best job I can for the coaches and players," Marrone said Sunday.
"I know those questions come, and you guys know me, I understand that. That's just what this game is — work as hard as you possibly can, and at the end of the day, you have to hold your head up high knowing that you did everything you possibly could to try to win games, while at the same time, know that you did your best for the coaches and the players."
