Week 14 scouting report: Vikings at Jacksonville

December 8, 2016 at 1:59AM

Sunday: Noon at EverBank Field (Ch. 9, 100.3-FM, 1130-AM)

ABOUT THE JAGUARS

• The Jaguars (2-10) are guaranteed a sixth consecutive season of 10-plus losses.

• They're propped up by a talented defense, including top-five overall draft picks CB Jalen Ramsey and DE Dante Fowler, ranking in the NFL's top five in yards per play and yards per game.

• Rookie third-round pick DE Yannick Ngakoue leads the Jaguars with six sacks.

• QB Blake Bortles has seen a dip in his production during a third NFL season as he's on pace for a career-worst 20 interceptions.

• Jacksonville changed offensive coordinators midseason, promoting QBs coach Nathaniel Hackett in October to replace fired Greg Olsen.

• The defense hasn't been able to generate many takeaways, so Jacksonville has the league's worst turnover margin (minus-18).

• Tenth-year veteran LB Paul Posluszny leads the Jaguars with 97 combined tackles.

PLAYER SPEAK | QB Blake Bortles

• Bortles, the third overall draft pick in 2014, leads the league with 15 interceptions while throwing as much as any quarterback (40.2 attempts per game, ranking fourth).

• Bortles' 50 interceptions are the most in the NFL since he was drafted.

• On his third season: "Not the results we've wanted, not the personal play I've wanted, but we're headed in the right direction. We have the right people in the right places."

• On changing coordinators: "I think Hackett has done a really good job of putting a plan together and he does a really good job of installing. What he does really well is making sure the offense understands the objective of each play."

• On his turnovers: "There's been some of everything. It's figuring out how do you eliminate that stuff. The tipped balls and stuff, that's going to happen, but how do you eliminate the boneheaded turnovers?"

COACH SPEAK | Gus Bradley

• Bradley is in his fourth NFL season as Jaguars head coach with a 14-46 record overall.

• The Zumbrota, Minn., native, North Dakota State graduate and former Seahawks defensive coordinator has improved the Jaguars' yards allowed in each of his four seasons — all losing campaigns.

• On taking stock of his fourth season as coach: "Obviously this year is disappointing. ... I think we all had higher expectations, but we kind of created this. There are no excuses."

• On Bortles' third season at the helm: "We think so highly of him, and it's almost hurtful some of the things you're seeing him go through, whether it's he's pressing, trying to make a play happen."

• On Vikings CB Xavier Rhodes: "We had a chance to spend a lot of time with him coming out of Florida State. He's everything we looked for. It's not surprising he's doing very well."

Andrew Krammer

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