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Jaguars HC Marrone on offseason program: 'Working together always precedes winning together'

Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone is focusing on the here-and-now, choosing not to look back at the team's AFC Championship Game run.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jaguars returned to EverBank Field this week to prepare for what should be the most the highly anticipated offseason in several years.

Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone is focusing on the here-and-now, choosing not to look back at the team's AFC Championship Game run. This is a new team with several new faces.

Jacksonville wants to start from scratch, as it did last offseason. Last year's program led to a 10-6 regular-season record.

"What we're trying to focus on now is going back to building the communication between the players and coaches," Marrone said Tuesday.

"If you're communicating, obviously you're building that trust and that's one thing we're working on now. Also, working together and I think that's important. Working together always precedes winning together."

While there have been several changes on the roster this offseason, the coaching staff remains fully intact. The continuity among the staff will be important when it comes time to preach a shared message.

The staff is also working to improve the playbook to enhance the production the group receives from its players.

"We're challenging ourselves as coaches with what we can implement within our schemes to make us better, so that we feel like we can take advantage of our players' strengths and help us win football games," Marrone said.

MORE NEWS AND NOTES

- Marrone said the assistant coaches have finished their draft evaluations. Marrone is still serving as the intermediary between the staff and the front office. Football exec Tom Coughlin, general manager Dave Caldwell and the scouting staff continue to evaluate players.

- Marrone said he spoke to the team on Monday about Phase 1 only. He wants to focus on the current situation instead of looking ahead to the next phases of the offseason program.

- Marrone said he wants to create T-shirts for training camp and the preseason that read "What would Poz do?" He said he was serious about the suggestion. The head coach admitted that it will be hard to replace former middle linebacker Paul Posluszny's leadership. It may be a shared effort among the roster.

"When you're a player and things are tough and you're in training camp or wherever you may be, one of the more consistent players I've ever been around was a guy like [Poz]. It's interesting, if you said [the shirt phrase] to any player on the team that's played with him, 'What would Poz do?' You know it'd always be the right thing. It would be a whole lot easier to print those shirts than me try to tell everybody."

- Marrone said he doesn't want to force leadership. He doesn't want to pick someone to lead how he would lead because the end results would probably be disappointing.

Follow Mike Kaye on Twitter: @Mike_E_Kaye.

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