The end could be nigh for Doug Pederson as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Pederson's Jaguars were blown out in embarrassing fashion by the Detroit Lions, 52-6, on Sunday fewer than 24 hours after NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported that a regime change could be in Jacksonville's future following a potential loss in Motown.
That loss transpired in historic fashion -- the Jaguars gave up touchdowns on seven consecutive possessions to open the game to drop to 2-9 on the season -- and Pederson was asked if Sunday could have been his final game in Duval.
"I can't control that," Pederson told reporters. "Listen, I've been around this league a long time. If it's going to happen, it's going to happen. But at the same time, I still have a job to do, and that's to get ready for a good division opponent here in two weeks."
Pederson arrived in Jacksonville in 2022 looking to bring order to a franchise that had fallen into disarray during its one year with Urban Meyer as head coach.
The Pederson era started strong as the Jaguars rallied to win the AFC South and advance to the Divisional Round during his first season. But since starting the 2023 season 8-3, Jacksonville has fallen apart.
The Jaguars closed last year 1-5 and missed the playoffs, and the 2024 season has fallen way short of owner Shad Khan's lofty expectations with Sunday's performance in Detroit as the nadir.
"Frustrated, angry," Pederson said following the game. "It's the emotion of how much you put into the week and then playing like we did. So it's frustrating. Our break obviously comes at a right time. Our guys need some time away. They need to refresh, recharge; coaches, players. But we do need to take the first part of the week and really reflect and go back and study as coaches to see what's been good and what hasn't been good.
"That's the great opportunity that we have. Six games left and it'll be exciting because most of those -- four of the six -- are division games. Still an opportunity there."
Pederson would not rule out potential changes to this staff during the Week 12 bye and said that it was too soon to say when quarterback Trevor Lawrence (left shoulder) could be back in the lineup.
The Jaguars host the Houston Texans on Dec. 1.
