Not two years ago, the Jacksonville Jaguars were a quarter away from dethroning the New England Patriots and making it to the Super Bowl. They ended up losing that game, but the future looked incredibly bright.
Enter 2018, and many felt the Jaguars would be a legitimate Super Bowl contender. They had an improving quarterback, a bruising young running back and a shutdown defense that seemed poised to dominate the AFC.
What ended up happening was something far beyond anyone expected, as Jacksonville wound up winning just five games as its offense sputtered and its defense lost a bit of the luster that made it so terrific in 2017.
Now, the Jaguars are entering a new season with a whole new set of expectations, and while most are maintaining a level of caution about the team heading into 2019, there are some reasons for optimism.
Here are three things that need to happen for the Jags to make the playoffs.
3. Jalen Ramsey and the Defense Need to Regain Focus
It kind of felt like Jalen Ramsey was feeling himself a bit too much following all of the media attention he received in 2017, and, as a result, he came up a bit short along with the rest of Jacksonville's defense this past season.
That's not to say that Ramsey was bad, as he still made the Pro Bowl, but he wasn't nearly as good as he was the previous year. As for the Jaguars' defense? It actually ranked fifth in the league, but it was a far cry from its impenetrable 2017 unit that allowed just 16.8 points per game.
Perhaps all of the expectations got to Ramsey's head, as the most memorable moment of his season was when he got burnt by Odell Beckham Jr. back in Week 1, as Beckham toasted him for 11 receptions and 111 yards.
Ramsey and the Jaguars' defense need to get back to what made them so great in 2017. Yes, they've lost some pieces, but the foundation is still there.
2. Leonard Fournette Has to Stay in Shape
While I do think people made a bit too much of Leonard Fournette's rookie campaign in which he averaged just 3.9 yards per carry, there is also no question that he fell off a cliff this past year, totaling 439 yards while posting a meager 3.3 yards per carry in eight games.
Fournette dealt with leg injuries throughout the 2018 campaign, but it was also blatantly obvious that his conditioning just wasn't there, and Tom Coughlin ripped him for it after the season.
Part of what made the Jaguars so good in 2017 was being able to hand the ball to Fournette in short-yardage situations and watching him bowl over defenders to move the chains, but that just wasn't there this past year.
The good news is that Fournette seems very motivated to get back to his old self, and now, he has a chip on his shoulder and something to prove.
1. Nick Foles Needs to Prove He isn't a Fluke
Nick Foles has one of the strangest career trajectories you will ever see.
He looked like nothing more than a backup quarterback before 2017, when Carson Wentz got hurt and Foles stepped in and proceeded to lead the Philadelphia Eagles to their first ever Super Bowl title.
Other than that run, Foles' resume is very thin. He had a solid year as a starter in Philadelphia early on in his career, but that's about it.
Now, Foles is being asked to be the Jags' franchise quarterback, and with an offense that is incredibly thin on weapons and doesn't exactly have the best offensive line, that's a tall order.
Foles should be better than Blake Bortles, but again, we don't really know what to expect from the guy. He could come in and play like he did during the winter of 2017-18, or he could fall flat on his face.
His performance will likely be what dictates whether or not the Jaguars make the playoffs in 2019.
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