AFC Notes: Joe Mixon, Calvin Ridley, Jaguars, Texans, Titans

Jaguars

Jaguars HC Doug Pederson said he’s operated with a sense of urgency after the team’s late-season collapse in 2023.

“I don’t know if I’ll ever get over it,” Pederson said, via ESPN’s Michael DiRocco. “I think for me it’s going to be my motivation, my fuel moving forward and I’m not going to let it cloud the vision, but at the same time it’s going to be close in my mind as I move forward with the team this spring.”

Pederson added that the team brought in a certain group of guys who have played in big games and who can bring championship-caliber experience to the franchise.

“I guess now we’re going back to the hunter [in the AFC South] again, right?” Pederson said. “But this is the culture that I want to establish in Jacksonville and this is the reason why you go get guys like Mitch Morse and Arik Armstead and the Darnell Savages and guys that have been to the postseason. These guys have been captains on their teams and they’ve been to Super Bowls, they’ve been to AFC Championship Games, so these guys know how to win and that’s kind of the influx of talent that we want to bring onto [our roster]. Guys who have been there, done that. Again, I’ve got to continue to message the team in the right way and there’s got to be a sort of confidence about you that when you take the field on game day, there’s going to be games you’re going to get beat, I understand that. But you’ve got to have that confidence and that swagger that you’re going to get the job done on game day. I think bringing in some of these free agents we did this spring are going to help that.”

Texans

Texans HC DeMeco Ryans isn’t worried about a potential drop-off in RB Joe Mixon‘s production and believes he can still help the team win.

“So I’m not thinking about a drop-off,” Ryans said, via PFT. “I’m thinking about the positives and the things that [Mixon has] done in his career. He’s been consistent throughout his entire career — a guy who can move the chains for you, a guy who can open up the passing game with his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. He just opens up the things that we can do offensively.”

Titans

• New Titans HC Brian Callahan discussed how they were able to acquire WR Calvin Ridley in free agency: “Truthfully, we had two or three other targets that were out there that we had allocated some money for that ended up going to other places, and all of a sudden, we had more to offer. That’s the beauty of free agency; that’s what makes it fun. Your ability to pivot and your ability, when you miss on something, to go and do something else with it.” (Mike Giardi)