German_Force » The team announced

Jacksonville’s locker room was abuzz late last season. Four guys played table tennis while others crowded around a small table for dominoes. Two 80-inch televisions were tuned to a sports highlight show Lukas Dostal Ducks Jersey , and music blared from one corner of the room.

Doug Marrone, the team’s offensive line coach at the time, walked through and shook his head.

”Can you believe this?” Marrone whispered.

The Jaguars were in the middle of a nine-game losing streak that would ultimately cost coach Gus Bradley his job. Marrone had watched from afar for two years, witnessing an atmosphere he felt was too loose, too laid-back and too lenient amid losing.

So when Marrone was hired to replace Bradley last January, high on his to-do list was to change the culture in Jacksonville. His success is one reason the Jaguars (12-6) are in the AFC championship game against New England (14-3).

The ping pong table was the first to go. Dominoes followed. The locker room stalls were overhauled, too, with Marrone mixing and matching position groups and putting certain players next to veteran leaders and/or NFL role models.

”We definitely threw a tantrum,” Pro Bowl defensive tackle Malik Jackson said. ”Went in there and talked to him about it. Definitely wasn’t happy. I learned just to be quiet, you know, and go with the flow. He’s been at it longer than I have, and I’m just the football player. He says do this and I go do it. Just learn to follow him, and I’m glad I did.”

Marrone saved the most significant changes for the practice fields.

Marrone, top executive Tom Coughlin and general manager Dave Caldwell wanted a much tougher and more physical team. They drafted bruising running back Leonard Fournette and fiery left tackle Cam Robinson to complement a defense that was significantly beefed up in free agency with the addition of All-Pro pass-rusher Calais Campbell, Pro Bowl cornerback A.J. Bouye and veteran safety Barry Church.

They also designed an offseason program that was more grueling than most players had experienced. Marrone’s message was clear: Go hard or go home.

”You remember guys in camp talking about this took a few years off their lives,” Jackson said. ”It’s pretty funny just to see us now. I guess he does know what he’s doing.”

The Jaguars were in full pads nearly every day during training camp Jeremy Kerley Jersey Elite , a tortuous stretch in draining heat and humidity that left rookies and veterans questioning the process and wondering if it would pay off. It was the NFL’s version of boot camp. Break them down, then build them up.

It ultimately brought players closer, making them accountable to each other and causing them to care more for each other. Winning was the final piece, and thumping Houston 29-7 in the season opener was all the proof players needed.

”It was the toughest training camp I’ve ever been a part of,” said linebacker Paul Posluszny, in his 11th season. ”Coach Marrone would talk to us and say, `Listen, I have a plan and you have to trust me.’ With that, guys were able to say, `OK, we haven’t gotten what we wanted in years past doing things a certain way, so we have to buy in, trust the head man and know that that’ll bring us success when it’s time.’

”It was difficult just because of so many changes from what we were used to. I think the most important thing is we always said, `Well, if it helps us win, then it’s all good.'”

Jacksonville had lost 63 of 80 games over the previous five seasons – the worst record in the NFL during that span – and had been through two coaching changes.

Coughlin’s return was a key part of the team’s revival Authentic Barkevious Mingo Jersey , and although the two-time Super Bowl-winning coach with the New York Giants gets much of the outside credit for the team’s turnaround, the reality is Marrone was the one pushing all the right buttons.

Marrone has been other places where players resisted, prompting personnel moves that would slow progress. That wasn’t the case in Jacksonville, and he credited his players for being open to change.

”They gave our staff the opportunity to say, `This is what we want to do. This is what we believe in as coaches or as an organization. This is how we want to handle ourselves,”’ Marrone said. ”We are still working toward that. It is not perfect by any means.”

It’s clearly working, though. The Jaguars are in the title game for the third time in franchise history, one victory away from their first Super Bowl appearance.

”They say (stuff) rolls downhill,” Jackson said. ”Well, the good stuff rolls downhill, too. … It’s all worth it when you win.”

—

Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay took his team across the country in an effort to escape the typically mundane NFL training camp practice that's all too commonplace in August.

He got exactly what he wanted Monday during a two-hour joint session with the Baltimore Ravens.

"It was a good first day," McVay said. "Guys practiced smart, we were able to get a lot out of it."

It was hot. It was humid. There was hard hitting.

And not a single scuffle.

"That was definitely the message," McVay said. "We don't need any of that, especially because some of the things that can happen injury-wise. We always talk about what the intent of practice is out here, and it's to get better and go against another really good football team."

The Rams and Ravens got all the benefits of competition Eagles Avonte Maddox Jersey , with less risk of injury because tackling was not allowed.

"I felt like the two teams cooperated very well," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "Quite a bit of physicality and just a good, strong football practice."

The teams will do it again Tuesday, then take a break on Wednesday before getting together for a preseason game on Thursday night.

A joint practice provides a welcome relief for players who are tired of banging helmets or throwing passes against their teammates during the dog days of summer.

"It's tough really, what to make of it, but I think it is a good test," Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco said. "You get used to going up against your defense, seeing what they do every day, so it's good to see something else."

McVay knew he was in for something different when he got his first glimpse of the Ravens recently expanded training facility.

"I love it. It's really impressive," he said. "You feel like you're pulling up to a country club."

Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti poured plenty of money into the complex, and he was on hand Monday to watch the practice. So was Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, who wore shorts but made the mistake of pairing that with a black shirt under a sizzling sun in 90 degree temperatures.

"It's definitely sticky," McVay said. "You feel the difference coming out here. We get spoiled in that California weather where there's no humidity, but I think it's great work for us. The fields are in great condition; today was a good day for us all."

After both teams dressed, the Rams and Ravens warmed up on adjacent fields before pairing off 鈥?Rams offense vs. Ravens defense, Baltimore offense vs. Los Angeles defense.

Special teams got some work Adidas Shayne Gostisbehere Jersey , too.

It was so comprehensive, that McVay may change the way he uses his personnel on Thursday night.

Asked if quarterback Jared Goff would see action, the coach replied, "There's a good chance a handful of guys, if we feel like we get the work that we want, will sit out on Thursday. That's a big part of being able to get good work in here and kind of limit the risk of injuries."

Defensive end Aaron Donald remained a no-show at camp, and McVay said there was no progress on the holdout.

"I don't think anything is going to change with that in the near future," McVay said. "I've had a little bit of dialogue with Aaron, and we're hopeful to get something done. But things remain the same."

Ravens guard Marshal Yanda, however, practiced for the first time since last September, going through individual drills over the first section of practice. He missed the last 14 games of the 2017 season with a fractured ankle and sat out the early part of training camp following shoulder surgery.

.