Following a 35-16 blowout loss to the Chicago Bears in London on Sunday, Jacksonville Jaguars safety Andre Cisco criticized the team's level of effort, saying that he saw quit from his teammates and players not making a 100% effort as the game progressed. The loss dropped the Jaguars to 1-5, and was particularly dispiriting after the Jaguars had gotten off the mat with their first win of the season against the Indianapolis Colts a week prior.
Speaking to Action Sports Jax following the game, Cisco considered his words carefully before evaluating the performance of the Jaguars, saying that he felt like there was "a lot of quit" on the field, before going on to call the lack of effort "concerning" and "dangerous" given the position it puts players in.
"As the last line of defense in a situation like that, you can feel when we're playing as one and when we're not," Cisco said. "I felt very early in the game ... maybe out of halftime, that we weren't playing as one.
"... We're laying our bodies on the line, and guys have got to understand that when you go out there, you're really playing for your brother. You're putting guys in vulnerable positions, whether that's physically or just from a career aspect. Like, take care of each other when we're out there at the least, even if things start to get bad. Just not a good product at all."
Insinuations that players on the Jaguars aren't making a complete effort will do little to alleviate criticism of coach Doug Pederson and questions about his job status, as the former Super Bowl-winning coach has had to fight off reports over the past several weeks that he has lost the locker room. Pederson and general manager Trent Baalke had earned a public vote of confidence from team owner Shad Khan prior to their loss to the Bears, with Khan claiming that he believes in his chosen leadership in an interview on Saturday.
There is little escape for the Jaguars from their current predicament, as they will remain in London this week before playing the New England Patriots in a second-straight international game in Week 7.