Jaguars coach Doug Marrone takes blame for getting away from the running game

In Nick Foles’ return, the Jacksonville Jaguars suffered a lopsided loss against the Indianapolis Colts. It was a contest that saw the Jaguars seemingly move away from running the ball in the second half, finishing with a franchise-low nine rushes in the contest.

Meanwhile, Foles passed the ball 47 times in the loss. In hindsight from the game, head coach Doug Marrone put the blame on his shoulders for getting away from the running game, according to Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk.

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“That was my mistake. That was a big mistake by me. . . . I thought we needed to score points in a quicker fashion,” Marrone said, via the team’s website. “That’s what led to the increased pass attempts. That’s on me as a head coach. We need to be more balanced moving forward. Believe me, I know more than anyone that a strong rushing attack will open things up in the pass game. I know it works hand in hand, I know we’re frustrated. I know Leonard’s frustrated.”

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The Jaguars possess a strong rushing attack that is rooted by Pro Bowl running back Leonard Fournette, who is in the midst of a bounce-back campaign. The team simply fell behind in the second half and ditched their running game entirely in hopes of getting back into the contest.

Jacksonville is now in a tight spot with their playoff hopes seemingly on the fringes heading into Week 12 action. That will likely see an emphasized effort to get their ground game going to balance out the offensive game plan.