Jaguars fans are understandably furious after yet another embarrassing loss to the tacks on national television, in the midst of an inexplicably disappointing season.

It appeared as though the team mailed it in.  Predictably, many Jaguars fans want Marrone to be fired at least by season's end.

But despite prevailing public sentiment, I submit that firing Marrone would be the wrong move for this team right now, because injuries,, particularly to the offensive line, have derailed this team.

In the three seasons before Marrone arrived here in Jacksonville, the sack and QB hit totals were horrendous.

• In 2012 the Jaguars allowed FIFTY (50) sacks-third worst in the league-and ONE HUNDRED THREE (103) QB hits-again third worst in the league.
  
• 2013 saw the team again allow FIFTY (50) sacks-2nd worst in the league-and ONE HUNDRED (100) QB hits-tied for 5th worst in the league.
  

• in 2014, the team allowed a whopping SEVENTY ONE (71) sacks-worst in the league by far-and 118 QB hits-second worst in the league.
  

Marrone was originally hired as the team’s assistant head coach-offense/offensive line coach in January 2015, and eventually became head coach the last two weeks of the 2016 season.  Between then and last year, those totals looked like this:

• 2015 Fifty one (51) sacks and eighty nine (89) QB hits.  The sacks allowed number dropped by TWENTY (20) from the year before, and the hits allowed dropped by
  

TWENTY NINE (29)

• In 2016, the team allowed thirty four sacks (15th overall)-a 33% improvement from the year before, and 85 QB hits (17th overall).
  
• Last year, the Jaguars ranked tied for 3rd fewest QB sacks allowed with TWENTY FOUR (24) and SEVENTY EIGHT (78) QB hits, good for 11th.
  

The two above time periods show dramatic improvement from the time before Marrone's arrival to the time after Marrone arrived.  So what about this year, you ask?

After thirteen games, the totals are THIRTY EIGHT (38) sacks allowed (6th most) and 87 QB hits (4th most).

So what happened?  To me, there's a strong argument to be made that injuries caused the drop in performance. 

• In 2015, the Jaguars opening day starters along the offensive line missed a total of FIVE (5) games due to injury  https://www.pro-football-reference.com/t...roster.htm
  
• In 2016, while LG was a bit of a revolving door, with four different players getting playing time, the remaining 4 offensive linemen missed a total of three games due to injury.
  
• Last year, the starters missed a combined total of eleven (11) games due to injury.  Between 2015 and last year, Left Tackles missed a combined four (4) games due to injury.
  

This year?  By season's end, LT Cam Robinson would have missed 14 games, LG Andrew Norwell would have missed at least 5 games, and Brandon Linder will have missed seven (7) games due to injury, with all three ending the season on IR.  That's the entire left side of the offensive line, from C to LT, missing a combined 26 games!  It's so bad now, the opening day starters on the Giants' right side of the OL now comprise the starting LT and LG combo of the Jaguars' left side.  I submit those injuries, combined with the injury to Fournette, made it virtually impossible for the team to muster any semblance of consistent offense in either the run or passing game, as evidenced by the Jaguars 6th ranked offense in 2017, as opposed to the 26th ranked offense this year (in total yards).

If you are still awake and reading by this point, you may be wondering why I'm placing so much focus on the offensive line.  After all, the defense has fallen off from last year's pace as well, and ultimately, Marrone is responsible for the entire team's performance.  Indeed, the defense has fallen off from last year.  It's certainly not providing the game changing turnovers it produced so prolifically last year.  But in looking at the defense, I urge you to consider that the defense had two aberrational ten sack games last year, inflating the sack totals.  I also urge you to consider the defense is getting much less help from the offense this year than it did last year.  Finally, even with the decrease in the defensive level of play, it was still ranked 3rd overall going into Thursday night's debacle against the tacks, and managed a shut out of a red hot Colts team just a week ago.

While I advance these arguments, I am mindful there may be compelling arguments in favor of Marrone's dismissal.  From the outside looking in, there are legitimate concerns has allowed this young team to become undisciplined, as evidenced as early as training camp with the fight between Fowler and Ngakoue, and Ramsey's suspension.  There was the subsequent trade of Dante Fowler, repeatedly blown assignments, mental errors and stupid penalties, including the fight and suspension of Leonard Fournette that paint the picture of a team spiraling out of control and a locker room lost.  The benching of Bortles, the firing of Hackett, and the hideous loss to the tacks represent the cherry on top of a crap sundae that causes Marrone's detractors to urge his dismissal.

But I submit the larger overall trend for Marrone has been that of improvement and effective coaching.  While this team has problems, I still think with some health and a competent or better QB, this team can return to playoff contention next year.  Though the defense seemingly mailed it in on a short week and made business decisions in trying to stop Derrick Henry, the shutout just a few days earlier indicates the team has not quit.  Unless he has definitively lost the locker room, I think firing Marrone under these circumstances would be counterproductive and set this franchise back.

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