JACKSONVILLE – A day later, Gus Bradley didn't deny the obvious.
The Jaguars' head coach spent much of his next-day press conference Monday discussing a game-defining fourth quarter that cost the Jaguars a chance to end a season-defining losing streak.
Bradley said it was the fourth quarter that decided a 25-16 loss to the Minnesota Vikings at EverBank Field Sunday, and he said something else was equally evident when assessing this 2016 season.
Yes, it's disappointing – really disappointing.
But with three games remaining, there's little to do but move on to the next game.
"I haven't sat back and put it all together," Bradley said a day after the Jaguars squandered a fourth-quarter lead en route to their sixth consecutive loss at EverBank Field and their eighth consecutive loss overall.
"It is disappointing. I would say without a doubt, it has been disappointing. It is where we are at right now. We have to go. We have another game coming up and we have to get ready for it."
While a variety of issues contributed to Sunday's loss, Bradley said a fourth period in which little went right and a lot went wrong stood out.
"There were a lot of things that took place, but what it really came down to was the fourth quarter," Bradley said. "We had a chance. We were in the lead."
The Jaguars entered the fourth quarter leading, 16-12. It was their third lead entering the fourth quarter this season, a lead that disappeared with the defense allowing two touchdowns, the offense failing to score and the special teams committing a slew of penalties.
"Each unit took turns not fulfilling their responsibility," Bradley said.
The Jaguars' offense twice in the fourth quarter went three-and-out while trailing 18-16, and the defense allowed touchdown drives of 62 and 54 yards – though the 62-yard drive began in the third quarter. The special teams not only allowed a punt and field goal to be blocked during the quarter, it had a 15-yard roughing-the-kicker penalty and a penalty for illegally touching a punt.
"Each unit took responsibility," Bradley said. "When you have a lead like that going into the fourth quarter against a good team like Minnesota, you have to take advantage of those opportunities. Each unit has to come through and we didn't do that [Sunday]."
Bradley on Monday also addressed the defense, a unit that entered the game ranked No. 4 in the NFL in yards allowed. The unit twice kept the Vikings from scoring after Minnesota reached the Jaguars 1, but Minnesota also produced six scoring drives and 377 total yards.
The Vikings entered the game ranked 31st in the NFL in total defense at 296.8 yards per game.
"With our standard, where we want the defense to go, I didn't feel like the defense played great," Bradley said. "They had a couple of goal-line stands, but when we needed it there were a couple of [extended] drives – and in situations like that it's the defense's job to go out there and get quick stops and get the offense opportunities. We didn't do that."
Bradley said the defense on Sunday also allowed "far too many explosive plays." The Jaguars allowed three pass plays of 40 or more yards – all in the first half – and Minnesota had seven plays of 20 more yards.
"Defensively, that's just not up to our standard," Bradley said.
The Jaguars also on Sunday missed 14 tackles.
"It wasn't one of our better tackling days," Bradley said. "We haven't been in double-digit missed tackles in a while."
