Countdown to Kickoff: Fred Taylor - Jaguars vs. Colts

Pride of the Jaguars running back Fred Taylor previews the Week 17 game against the Colts with J.P. Shadrick on Countdown to Kickoff on the Jaguars Radio Network.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Countdown to Kickoff continues the Jaguars and the Indianapolis Colts
at four five Eastern time today in week seventeen. As
always on the program, it's Pride of the Jaguars running
back Fred Taylor. Good afternoon, Fred, JP is a little
odd to UH have a fof especially just late in
the season. Hopefully going forward in a fuge rafters skiing

(00:22):
their first pick and UH drafting a Trevor Lawrence if
that's the guy you know, hopefully we can have a
few more of these games. You wanted to play meaningful
games in December. This is not quite what we were
thinking of, but that's what happens. Games get flexed, and yes,
I think you're right. If the team is better in
the future, then you get better time slots and Sunday

(00:43):
Night football and Monday Night football and four o'clock CBS games.
This is the one o'clock special, at least in for
the Jacksonville Jaguars, because they haven't proven anything over the
last couple of years too to earn those spots, and
this year they certainly have a fourteen game losing skid
now one and four team record, just trying to wrap
up the season. It's Week seventeen, finally here, but they're

(01:04):
playing a Colts team today that has to win. They
are up against it in the playoff chase. And it's
odd that that Week one win for the Jaguars is
what's really holding them back right now, one of the
few losses they've had this year. But it comes down
to Week seventeen for the Colts, and the Jags have
a chance to spoil the Colts playoff chances and and
that has to be something to hang your hat on.

(01:26):
That's exactly what this game is about today. I mean,
other than guys getting out there naturally competing, you know,
trying to leave one last vision, you know in the
eyes of the of the front office, the people that
are making decisions and determining who's gonna be back next year,
you know, in the building. So this is a you know,

(01:48):
one shot for these guys that go out there and
just put everything on tape. You know, no matter what
it is. You've got a lot of young guys that
you know, are excited that one the season is about
to be over. Let's let's be realistic. There's no playoffs
in their future. But they can you know, play spoiler
and and and uh with the confidence knowing that they

(02:08):
beat this team in week one, you know that's sitting
in the back of their mind and hopefully, uh they
can get that done today. Uh, the Coats aren't going
to back down. You know a lot of guys over
there saying, man, this team hasn't won the game since
they beat us. We gotta be better. And then there
are a group couple of guys over there saying, um,

(02:28):
this team is sorry. Maybe they're looking past Jacksonville, you know,
looking past Jacksonville. Uh, getting ready for next week. Who knows,
But this won't be an easy game. Uh the guys,
I think they're gonna get after them, and uh try
to close this thing out with a win. The first
pickets occurred, so there's no need to not play solve,

(02:51):
no need to not have gadgets lined up, there's no
need to not blitz the you know, mess out of
Philip Rivers. So just just throw the kitchen table to sink,
everything you can imagine, throw it at those guys and
try to keep them out of the playoffs. The table
to sink, the dining room table, the chairs, everything dishes

(03:12):
solverwhere we're throwing everything at Philip Rivers today Fred Taylor
with us prior to the Jaguars running back. But it
has to be only natural for certainly a player in
for the Jaguars. What is a game that doesn't have
a lot of meaning in terms of standings and all
that to look ahead to the off season because Monday

(03:33):
is the start of really one season in a lot
of ways. As a player's mindset, at what point do
you take some time away, When do you get back
in the weight room, When do you get back in
football mode? If you will? For you know, I'm I'm
pretty sure j P. There are some guys in the building,
you know for the past two weeks at least maybe three, Uh,

(03:59):
the guys that have to travel away, Guys that don't
live local, or maybe some of the veteran guys that
have homes and you know, other states. For me, what
I would do two days prior to that last game
if we didn't make the playoffs, I would just make
U haul reservations for my wardrobe and and just thrown

(04:19):
on the back of my truck back there. We would
drive down here to Miami for five hours and that
would be the start of my off season. But I
would I would typically do that about two days after
the exit physical, which will take place tomorrow. For these guys. Uh,
it's gonna suck for the guys that are injured because
they can't check out. They have to make sure that

(04:42):
they're fully recovered before they signed that release form uh
stating that they're okay. So they're gonna have to stay
behind and rehab. And it's not the end of the world.
I mean, some guys want to hurry up and get out.
Some guys they realized, look, this is an opportunity for
me to hit the ground running. I'm ready to get
back training. And as I got older and when I

(05:03):
as I became more tuned in with this being my job,
I did everything in my power to treat it as such.
So I was training with my trainer here. I rushed
to get here because I wanted to hurry up and
get to Pete by Merito so I can get my
body back and tiptop recovery mode. I would also get

(05:24):
my massages chiropractice. I would just realign my body so
I can get strong again because the season takes it told. Uh,
And I'm pretty sure a lot of these guys are
ready to get back to their whatever their destinations are,
rebuild themselves and look forward to the next season. Because
this season is done. Season is done for sure, and

(05:46):
it feels that that way a lot of ways to
Obviously in the standings it's officially done really out of race,
but in the front office side of things too, they're
already interviewing general manager candidates for paying and beyond. And
I mean I would expect Fred for something in that
realm to be announced fairly quick if they're already doing interviews,

(06:08):
I think, and this is just me thinking that you'd
like to have some leadership in place very soon in
the offseason to set a course and set a direction
for the future. Well, without a doubt, JP, I can
tell you that the meetings aren't done until I get
my interview. Wink wink, uh. But no, seriously, I I
you know, being that you know, Shot is all business.

(06:32):
I think he's been in it long enough to kind
of understand the process, you know, understand the timing of things.
We have to make sure they have somebody in place now.
The draft isn't gonna wait on anyone. Uh. Looking at
roster collegiate rosters to see, you know, who's who's announcing. Uh,
you want to look at you know, the senior guys

(06:53):
that are out there. It's such a big uh piece
of evaluation that these guys have to do that at
g M will have to do. Uh so making sure
Uh the GM. I don't know if they're gonna decide
if you know, the GYM is gonna hire a coach,
or if they're gonna retain Doug. You know, I I
don't know what's going on in that room, but I

(07:15):
think you make a decision here possibly within the next
uh two weeks, um, and you get them in, get
them comfortable, get them familiar with everything, with everybody in
the building, so they can feel comfortable knowing this is
my job, and this is the job that I have
in front of me. Uh, this is the challenge. They

(07:36):
need to learn the roster. If they don't know the
roster already, I'd be surprised if the GM comes in
and not know the roster. That's just not being prepared.
But they have to make sure that they're just on
point with everything and now it's the time to get
it done. So uh, it's a sense of urgency so
we can get back to what we need to be

(07:56):
what was that for four or five years ago? All right?
When they make the a f C Championship, Bryan, So,
I think all the pieces of the pubs will need
to get in place now, Fred, great stuff. As always,
We will talk to you in the post game after
Week seventeen, looking forward to as always JP Back in
a moment, we'll have the final word with head coach
Doug Baron before kickoff. The Jaguars and the Colts coming

(08:19):
up at Lucas Oil Stadium, and this is countdown to
kickoff on Jaguars Radio.