JAGUARS FIFTH SEASON ENDS IN AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Jan 23, 2000 at 07:00 PM

In each of their five seasons in the NFL, the Jacksonville Jaguars have taken a step forward, and 1999 was no different. Although the Jaguars' season came to an end with a loss to the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Championship game, the Jaguars did have another stellar season. They won their second consecutive AFC Central Division championship and completed the regular season with the best record in the NFL and a defense that allowed the fewest points in the league.
The Jaguars are not only the most successful expansion franchise in NFL history, but in the last three-and-a-half seasons they have won more games than any other NFL team. The Jaguars finished 15-3 in 1999, defeating every team they faced except one - the Tennessee Titans, who won all three games against the Jaguars and became AFC champions.
Here are just a few of the milestones reached by the 1999 Jaguars:

ABOUT THOSE 14 VICTORIES: With 14 wins during the regular season, the Jaguars tied for the fourth-most victories in NFL history:
15 Wins - 1984 San Francisco, 1985 Chicago, 1998 Minnesota
14 Wins - 1926 Frankford, 1972 Miami, 1978 Pittsburgh, 1983 Washington, 1984 Miami, 1986 Chicago, 1986 N.Y. Giants, 1989 San Francisco, 1990 San Francisco, 1991 Washington, 1992 San Francisco, 1998 Atlanta, 1998 Denver, 1999 Jacksonville

2000 SCHEDULE: The Jaguars will play the following schedule in 2000 (dates and times will be announced in April):

   <table border="0">
     <tr> 
       <td>**HOME**</td>
       <td>**AWAY**</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td>Baltimore Ravens</td>
       <td>Baltimore Ravens</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td>Cincinnati Bengals</td>
       <td>Cincinnati Bengals</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td>Cleveland Browns</td>
       <td>Cleveland Browns</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td>Pittsburgh Steelers</td>
       <td>Pittsburgh Steelers</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td>Tennessee Titans</td>
       <td>Tennessee Titans</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td>Seattle Seahawks</td>
       <td>Indianapolis Colts</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td>Washington Redskins</td>
       <td>Dallas Cowboys</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td>Arizona Cardinals</td>
       <td>New York Giants</td>
     </tr>
     <tr> 
       <td> </td>
       <td> </td>
     </tr>
   </table>

The game vs. the Cardinals will be the first meeting between the two teams. After the 2000 season, the only team the Jaguars will never have faced will be the San Diego Chargers. In the 2000 preseason, the Jaguars will host the New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons, and they will travel to face the Carolina Panthers and Kansas City Chiefs. Dates and times have not been set.

FINAL 1999 AFC CENTRAL DIVISION STANDINGS: The Jaguars finished the 1999 regular season with a 14-2 record - the best mark in the NFL - and won their second consecutive AFC Central Division championship. They also became one of only two teams to have qualified for the playoffs each of the last four years (along with Minnesota). Here are the final 1999 AFC Central Division standings:

TEAM W L T PCT. PTS.OPP VS DIVISION VS AFC HOME AWAY Jacksonville 14 2 0 .875 396 217 8-2 0-2 7-1 7-1 Tennessee 13 3 0 .813 392 324 9-1 10-2 8-0 5-3 Baltimore 8 8 0 .500 324 277 6-4 6-7 4-4 4-4 Pittsburgh 6 10 0 .375 317 320 3-7 3-10 2-6 4-4 Cincinnati 4 12 0 .250 283 460 3-7 3-10 2-6 2-6 Cleveland 2 14 0 .125 217 437 1-9 1-12 0-8 2-6

INJURY UPDATE: Eight players ended the 1999 season on injured reserve. The team's offseason conditioning program will begin in March. The eight players are: RB Tavian Banks, OT Tony Boselli, DE Eric Curry, G/OT Todd Fordham, S Mike Logan, MLB Tom McManus, MLB Bryan Schwartz and LB Erik Storz.

THE COACH: Jacksonville head coach Tom Coughlin (49-31 in regular season, 4-4 in postseason) has led the Jaguars to two consecutive AFC Central Division championships and two appearances in the AFC Championship game. The Jaguars have made the playoffs each of the last four seasons - a first for an NFL expansion team and one of only two teams in the NFL to do so (along with Minnesota). In 1998, Coughlin guided them to the AFC Central Division championship with an 11-5 record. They defeated the New England Patriots in a Wild-Card game before losing to the New York Jets in the Divisional playoffs. In 1997, the Jaguars were 11-5 and finished second in the AFC Central, and they were defeated by Denver in the Wild-Card playoffs. In their second season in 1996, the Jaguars advanced all the way to the AFC Championship game, finishing the regular season in second place in the division with a 9-7 record. In the playoffs, the Jaguars upset the Bills and Broncos on the road before losing at New England. In 1995, the Jaguars finished with four victories in their inaugural season. Coughlin became head coach of the Jaguars on February 21, 1994 following three successful seasons as head coach at Boston College. He compiled a record of 21-13-1 from 1991 to '93 at Boston College, and had two appearances in bowl games and a ranking of 13th in the final AP poll of 1993. A veteran of 30 years of coaching, he was previously an NFL assistant coach with the New York Giants (wide receivers, 1988-90), Green Bay Packers (wide receivers and passing game coordinator 1986-87) and Philadelphia Eagles (wide receivers, 1984-85).

THE LAST FIVE YEARS: Beginning as an expansion franchise in 1995, the Jaguars have quickly joined several impressive postseason lists:

1995-1999
Playoff Appearances Division Titles Conference Championship Appearances Jacksonville 4 Green Bay 3 Green Bay 3 Buffalo 4 Pittsburgh 3 Jacksonville 2 Dallas 4 Dallas 3 Pittsburgh 2 Miami 4 Jacksonville 2 Denver 2 Minnesota 4 Denver 2 Atlanta 1 San Francisco 4 Kansas City 2 Carolina 1 New England 2 Dallas 1 San Francisco 2 Indianapolis 1
11 teams 1 Minnesota 1 New England 1 New York Jets 1 St. Louis 1 San Francisco 1 Tennessee 1

JAGUARS ARE NFL'S WINNINGEST TEAM: The Jaguars have the highest winning percentage of the 31 current teams in the NFL. The Jaguars currently have a lifetime record of 49-31 for a .613 winning percentage. The Jaguars began the 1999 season in ninth place on the list, and they moved up eight spots to their current No. 1 ranking. (Regular-season games only, through end of 1999 regular season)

* RANK TEAM W L T PCT *1. Jacksonville Jaguars 49 31 0 .613 2. Miami Dolphins 308 200 4 .605 3. Dallas Cowboys 352 235 6 .599 4. Oakland Raiders 347 237 11 .592 5. Chicago Bears 611 428 42 .585 6. Cleveland Browns 376 279 10 .573 7. San Francisco 49ers 397 304 13 .565 8. Minnesota Vikings 323 250 9 .564 9. Green Bay Packers 559 453 36 .551 10. New York Giants 538 445 33 .546 11. Kansas City Chiefs 314 269 12 .538 12. Washington Redskins 472 415 27 .531 13. St. Louis Rams 432 394 20 .522 14. Denver Broncos 300 285 10 .513 15. San Diego Chargers 290 294 11 .497 16. Pittsburgh Steelers 426 438 19 .493 17. Detroit Lions 448 464 32 .492 18. Buffalo Bills 287 300 8 .489 19. Indianapolis Colts 325 345 7 .485 20. Tennessee Titans 279 310 6 .474 Carolina Panthers 37 42 0 .474 22. New England Patriots 275 311 9 .470 23. Seattle Seahawks 173 198 0 .466 24. Philadelphia Eagles 390 475 24 .452 25. Cincinnati Bengals 214 269 1 .443 26. New York Jets 259 328 8 .442 27. Arizona Cardinals 421 571 39 .427 28. Atlanta Falcons 201 305 5 .398 29. New Orleans Saints 192 300 5 .391 30. Baltimore Ravens 23 39 1 .373 31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 129 241 1 .349

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