Doug Pederson Mixes Up Jaguars Minicamp, Gives Veterans Time Off

The Jacksonville Jaguars will still hold their scheduled minicamp next week, but it is going to look a bit different than previously anticipated.

“I’m still having the mandatory minicamp, mandatory three days, but I’m only doing the rookies, selected veterans and our injured players," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said on Thursday as the Jaguars concluded OTAs.

"The injured players are guys that maybe finished the season with an injury that worked all offseason. I just require them to stay here and still get treatment and rehab. So, it’s a chance to really work with our young players and some of the selected vets on a little more of a one-on-one basis. We’re going to do that next week, so the veterans are done. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday.”

The Jaguars have spent the last three weeks in OTAs on the practice fields. In that time, the Jaguars' roster has impressed Pederson through their ability to absorb everything Pederson and his staff have thrown at them.

And the theme at TIAA Bank Field on Thursday was that the Jaguars have thrown an awful lot.

“It’s all based on what they’ve done. I’ve done this kind of thing in the past, but at the same time, I wanted to see this group work and work together. It wasn’t final until just within the last week or so for me to make the decision," Pederson said. "Again, these guys have worked extremely hard. They’ve earned it. They deserve it. We got done, as a staff, what we needed to get done and we’re getting ready for camp.”

This is a change from the approach the Jaguars have entered the offseason with in the past. Not many players remain from the 2018 season, but the Jaguars are just a few years removed from players being criticized by team leaders for not coming to voluntary workouts, let alone mandatory practices.

Pederson also is giving the team's veterans good news while he is setting a new culture, a culture looking to erase the mistakes of the Urban Meyer era.

"I think it goes hand and hand. It’s one of the key message points [I made] back April 11th when I started with this group," Pederson said.

"We talked about the healing process and trust and all this stuff, and I’ve seen this team grow from April 11th to today and how they’ve come together. [There’s] a good group of leaders on this football team and how they’ve handled things, it’s just the right time.”

Pederson said there will be fewer than 30 players at next week's minicamp, indicating it will be mostly rookie draft picks and undrafted free agents who are on the 90-man roster. With over 66% of the roster unlikely to be on the field, this means the Jaguars are going to use next week to get an increase in one-on-one coaching for their young guys.

Pederson says the Jaguars also opted for trips to Top Golf today instead of practice, showing the steps the new head coach is making to form bonds with his locker room ahead of training camp.

"[They’ve been] very receptive to what we’ve passed along to them. They’ve really embraced the challenge of learning," Pederson said.

"They’ve taken it from the classroom to the field. There’s obviously going to be mistakes and everything, but we haven’t seen just like the same guys make the same mistake day in, day out. They’re learning from their mistakes. They’re correcting their mistakes and that’s the sign of a good team, a team that’s kind of hungry. That’s the accountability that each player has.”

The Jaguars have standards and expectations they expect their players to meet over the next plus-month. Among those have to do with taking important time off, while other facts include following trends the Jaguars want to see their players adhere to.

“I expect them to take time off, but at the same time, I do expect them to stay active. We’ll give them a workout book, a plan, a nutrition plan for the next six weeks that they can follow," Pederson said.

"Guys that are living in town can obviously come by and use the facility and lift. Our guys will be down there instructing. I expect them to come back into camp in great shape. It’s something that now when we do come back in a few weeks, it’s for real and we’re competing for roster spots. It kind of behooves them to make sure that they’re in great shape.”