Jacksonville
Jaguars

The Jaguars got back to .500 at 4-4 for the third time this season Sunday when they beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 24-21.

They previously got to 2-2 and lost at Seattle 41-0 and got to 3-3 and lost at Tennessee, 30-13.

Now they start the second half of the season against a New York Jets team that has lost four of its last five games after a 3-0 start to post the same 4-4 record the Jaguars have.

If the Jaguars are to post the second half playoff surge that coach Jack Del Rio is touting, they have to put together a winning streak.

But the Jaguars keep coming back to .500 the past three and one-half seasons. Since the start of the 2006 season, they're exactly at .500 -- 28-28.

They started out 8-5 in 2006 but lost their last three games to finish 8-8. In 2007, they made the playoffs at 11-5 and then came back to .500 by going 5-11 last year.

Del Rio, though, is selling the idea that this year's .500 mark is different because of the overhaul the team made in the offseason.

"This organization took a very bold step, I believe, in this offseason. Really aggressively approaching what we needed to do and tried to do it all this offseason as opposed trying to spreading it out over two or three years. (We) took a very aggressive approach in terms of purging our roster and looking to have the right kind of guys back. We've got the right kind of guys here that are working hard and they're committed. I expect us to be better as the year unfolds," he said.

The game against the Jets should go a long way in telling whether they will be better this year because they're 1-3 on the road this year.

And Del Rio seems eager for the challenge of facing another 4-4 team that is also fighting for an AFC wild card spot.

"(It's exciting) anytime you get a chance to play a team of the same mindset you are. We're sitting here at 4-4. We both need to get above .500. It ought to make for a real exciting afternoon of football. Rex (Ryan, Jets coach) is a guy I spent a lot of time with in Baltimore. I have a lot of respect for Rex. We spent a lot of time working together to put together one of the best defenses that's ever been on the field," he said.

Ryan and Del Rio were both assistant coaches on the Baltimore Ravens' 2000 Super Bowl team.

"I look forward to this matchup," Del Rio said. "It's going to be a lot of fun competing there in New York against a good football team."

--Coach Jack Del Rio is upbeat about the team's chances to make a playoff run.

When Del Rio was asked if the Jaguars have the talent to get hot and make a playoff run, he said, "We're going to find out. We're sure working hard .think if you ask Maurice he'd say yes absolutely, he thinks we're no. 1 in the league. I love that about him. That's the way we should approach it. We're going to get ready to compete each week and expect to win."

He added, "Anytime you go into a season with a team, your goal is to win the division, win a championship. Right now, we're 4-4. We've got a chance to continue to improve. We're going to have a stronger challenge in the second half. The games get tougher and we're going to need to get better. That's what out there. Our best football needs to be in front of us. We need to improve. If that happens, then we have a chance and that's what we're after."

He noted that some teams are no longer in the race.

"There's some teams that don't have that. If you're part of the Jaguars, you do. We're alive. We have a shot. There's not been a lid placed on our year right now. There's an opportunity and to me that's a good thing. You don't want to arbitrarily place a lid on yourself. Why would you place a ceiling on yourself of what you're capable of? Why? Why would any team do that? I'm going to say the sky is the limit. It's up to us. We're going to play a bunch of good teams in the second half and if we earn out way into the postseason, that is the goal," he said.

Cornerback Rashean Mathis said this is the time for the Jaguars to get on a roll.

"We have to start playing consistent football. With consistent football comes more wins," he said. "It's time to surge. This is the month. November is the month where teams make their moves. The good separates from the not so good. We won our first game in November and we have to keep going."

Jones-Drew said, "This is when the great teams start that surge and open up that gap,"

--WR Mike Sims-Walker may have a shot at becoming the Jaguars most productive receiver since Jimmy Smith retired after the 2005 season. He still has a long way to go to match the five-time Pro Bowler, but he did something Sunday in the Jaguars 24-21 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs that no Jaguars receiver had done since 2000.

He had six catches for 147 receiving yards, the most by a Jaguars receiver since Smith had 147 yards against Arizona in 2000.

He caught a 61-yarder for a touchdown and a 45-yarder to set up a field goal and those two plays were the difference in the game.

On both plays, the Chiefs' coverage broke down and there wasn't a defender in his zip code when he made the catch.

He has 100 receiving yards in two of the last three games and has led the team in receptions in five the seven games he's played in.

Sims-Walker in only in his third season, but it's been a long road for him to get to this point.

"Everybody had been talking about all the potential I had and if I could just do this. But let's eliminate the ifs and let's just do it. My teammates were behind me ever since I got here. I've been through a lot of injuries and a lot of other things but nobody ever backed down from me or turned their heads away from me. That just helped me mentally, confidence wise so I kept working and it's paying off for me," he said.

Sims-Walker was awarded the offensive game ball for his effort.

--RB Montell Owens got the special teams game against the Chiefs with three tackles and three knockdowns.

--S Gerald Alexander had eight tackles against the Chiefs as he's kept the starting job once Sean Considine returned from an injury.

--DB Derek Cox continues to look good in his rookie season as he had five tackles, including one for a loss, and he defended a pass.

--DT Terrance Knighton only had two tackles, half a sack and a quarterback hit and continues to get good reviews for his rookie play.

REPORT CARD VS. CHIEFS

PASSING OFFENSE: A minus -- David Garrard threw for 264 yards, including a 61-yard touchdown pass to Mike Sims-Walker, and had a 110.7 quarterback rating against the Chiefs. Sims-Walker caught six passes for 147 yards as the Chiefs coverage broke down and he was wide open on two long catches, including the touchdown catch.

RUSHING OFFENSE: A minus -- The Jaguars put a lot of emphasis on getting the ball to Maurice Jones-Drew after he had just eight carries at Tennessee and he carried 29 times for 97 yards. Even though he averaged only 3.3 yards a carry, it was important for the Jaguars to emphasis the run.

PASS DEFENSE: B -- The Jaguars switched from the 3-4 defense to the 4-3 to get more pressure on the passer after they had just five sacks in the first seven games. They sacked Matt Cassel three times, but the Chiefs had allowed him to be sacked 24 times in the first seven games so it wasn't a true test of whether the pass rush has improved. Cassel passed for 262 yards, but much of it came late after the Jaguars had jumped to a 24-6 lead.

RUSH DEFENSE: A minus -- After allowing the Titans 305 rushing yards last week, they held the Chiefs to just 60 yards in 14 carries. Granted, the Chiefs were playing without suspended Larry Johnson, but they didn't give the Chiefs any running room.

SPECIAL TEAMS: C -- Josh Scobee was wide left on a 53-yard field goal attempt and Adam Podlesh had an average of only 39.3 yards per punt, but Mike Thomas had a 44-yard punt return. They also didn't recover the Chiefs' first onside kick in the fourth quarter but got the second half.

COACHING: C -- The Chiefs were so overmatched that coaching didn't make much of a difference. They get credit for getting out of the 3-4 defense but they should have made the move sooner. And the team didn't finish strong, giving up two touchdowns in the last two minutes.