JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The Jacksonville Jaguars were a mess defensively last season.
Overweight, out of position and often the main reason for losses, the Jaguars lacked an identity on that side of the ball. The unit ranked near the bottom of the league in every statistical category and was among the worst in franchise history under first-time coordinator Ryan Nielsen.
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Jacksonville Jaguars safety Antonio Johnson reacts after making an interception on a pass by Houston Texans quarterback CJ. Stroud during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd, left, collects a fumble by Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins, right, during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Houston Texans running back Nick Chubb, center, is stopped by Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Foye Oluokun (23), cornerback Jourdan Lewis (2) and safety Andrew Wingard (42) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jourdan Lewis, center, celebrates an interception with teammates safety Antonio Johnson (26) and defensive end Josh Hines-Allen during the second half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
And when then-coach Doug Pederson told owner Shad Khan he was planning no offseason staff changes, it was all Khan needed to hear to seal Pederson’s fate.
The defense has been the biggest beneficiary of Khan’s house-cleaning — and it showed in a 17-10 victory over rival Houston on Sunday.
The Jaguars (2-1) notched three takeaways in the fourth quarter, giving them nine in three games and matching their total from last season. They have closed out both victories on that side of the ball and would be 3-0 had officials seemingly not botched a pass-interference call against rookie Travis Hunter at Cincinnati in Week 2.
“Each level, guys are playing at a superstar level,” defensive end Josh-Hines Allen said. “We’ll be a tough team to beat.
It starts with Hines-Allen, who is nearing the franchise sack record (55). Down more than 10 pounds after bulking up to fulfill Nielsen’s “mass kicks ass” request, Hines-Allen dominated his matchup against rookie left tackle Aireontae Ersery. He drew two holding penalties, hit the quarterback three times and deflected C.J. Stroud’s final throw, which was intercepted.
Everyone around the defensive captain is following his lead. Travon Walker and Arik Armstead, who played out of position in 2024, have been stout up front. Linebackers Foye Oluokun and Devin Lloyd have been involved in two fumbles. And few defenders are playing as well as cornerback Jourdan Lewis and safety Eric Murray.
“There’s no flinch, really, out of that group,” coach Liam Coen said. “Last week was obviously disappointing to not finish it on the right end. To see them go out and take this win — to go take it from them — that’s what we did."
Quarterback Trevor Lawrence is mostly staying upright. Lawrence has been sacked three times in three games, which is tied for the second-fewest in the league.
Jacksonville’s revamped offensive line has been one of the few bright spots on offense, and the unit has been tested while facing Carolina’s Derrick Brown, Cincinnati’s Trey Hendrickson and Houston’s duo of Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter.
Keeping Lawrence healthy was a top priority for 2025 after he missed seven games last season.
Dropped passes continue to plague the Jags. Brian Thomas Jr. had three more against Houston, bringing his season total to five. Fellow receiver Parker Washington had two. And running back Travis Etienne had another.
Coen called it the “drop bug.” Thomas responded when it mattered most, catching a 46-yard crosser that set up the go-ahead touchdown. Nonetheless, drops are one of the most pressing concerns for Coen & Co.
Lawrence showed some moxie during and after a chippy game. Teammates pulled Lawrence away from linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair just before halftime. Lawrence, whose 2024 season ended last December with an illegal hit from Al-Shaair, took exception to Al-Shaair landing with his body weight on receiver Dyami Brown. The hit knocked Brown out of the game with a shoulder injury.
Lawrence was equally vocal afterward, a positive step for the fifth-year pro as a leader.
“We’re not going to be dirty, but we got each other’s back," Lawrence said. "And no one is going to bully us and push us around. That’s a mindset for our team, and that’s important.”
Jags fans heckled Al-Shaair throughout the game, and the defender responded at one point by blowing kisses to the crowd.
Backup defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah has one tackle in three games while playing 37% of the snaps. It’s hardly much return considering the Jags gave Ogbah a one-year, $3.25 million contract in April.
Brown’s shoulder injury is one to watch this week.
15 — Number of losses for the Jaguars in 19 trips to the West Coast. They are 0-2 in San Francisco, where they play Sunday.
Win a road game. Jacksonville has dropped 11 of its last 12 on the road.
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Jacksonville Jaguars safety Antonio Johnson reacts after making an interception on a pass by Houston Texans quarterback CJ. Stroud during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd, left, collects a fumble by Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins, right, during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Houston Texans running back Nick Chubb, center, is stopped by Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Foye Oluokun (23), cornerback Jourdan Lewis (2) and safety Andrew Wingard (42) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jourdan Lewis, center, celebrates an interception with teammates safety Antonio Johnson (26) and defensive end Josh Hines-Allen during the second half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
After crashing his SUV last week in Florida, Tiger Woods took out his phone and told a deputy, “I was just talking to the president,” according to body camera footage released Thursday showing Woods' arrest on a DUI charge.
The phone conversation was not captured on video, but Woods could be heard saying, “Thank you so much,” as he hung up and the deputy approached. It wasn't clear if Woods was referring to President Donald Trump, whose former daughter-in-law, Vanessa Trump, is dating Woods.
Shortly after the golfer's March 27 arrest, Trump was asked about Woods and told reporters: “I feel so badly. He’s got some difficulty. Very close friend of mine. He’s an amazing person. Amazing man. But, some difficulty.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Trump spoke to Woods after the crash.
The footage also shows how Woods appeared to be astonished as he was handcuffed after failing a sobriety test and a video from the back of the patrol car shows the handcuffed golfer hiccupping, yawning and repeatedly appearing to nod off during the 15-minute ride.
Woods told authorities he was looking at his phone and changing the radio station when his speeding Land Rover clipped the back of a truck and rolled onto its side on a residential road on Jupiter Island. No one was injured.
“I looked down at my phone, and all of a sudden — boom,” Woods told an officer as he knelt on a lawn, prior to his arrest.
Body camera footage shows Martin County Sheriff’s Deputy Tatiana Levenar then conducting a roadside sobriety test and telling Woods: “I do believe your normal faculties are impaired, and you’re under an unknown substance, so at this time you’re under arrest for DUI."
“I’m being arrested?” Woods responded.
“Yes, sir,” Levenar said.
After handcuffing Woods, authorities searched his pockets and found two white pills.
“That’s a Norco,” Woods said after an officer pulled out the pills, referring to a painkiller that contains acetaminophen and the opioid hydrocodone. Authorities would later confirm that Woods was in possession of hydrocodone.
In the body camera footage, Woods told Levenar that he had not drunk any alcohol and that he had taken “a few” medications earlier in the day, though Woods’ words are muted in the released video as he describes some of the drugs.
At the sheriff’s office complex, after Woods was escorted into the “DUI room” where drivers are tested for being under the influence, Woods said, “I’m not drunk. I’m on a prescription medication,” according to a supplemental sheriff’s office report released Thursday.
Woods, 50, pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to suspicion of driving under the influence. He posted a statement Tuesday night saying that he was stepping away indefinitely “to seek treatment and focus on my health.”
Woods agreed to a Breathalyzer test that showed no signs of alcohol, but he refused a urine test, authorities said. Under a change to Florida law last year, refusing an officer’s request to take a breath, blood or urine test became a misdemeanor, even for a first offense.
During the field sobriety test, deputies noticed Woods limping and that he had a compression sock over his right knee. Woods explained he had undergone seven back surgeries and over 20 surgeries on his right leg, and that his ankle seizes up while walking.
Woods, who was hiccupping during questioning, continuously moved his head during one of the sobriety tests and deputies had to tell him several times to keep his head straight, according to an arrest report.
“Based on my observations of Woods, how he performed the exercises and based on my training, knowledge, and experience, I believed that Woods normal faculties were impaired, and he was unable to safely operate the motor vehicle,” Levenar wrote.
Woods is the most influential figure in golf and has become as recognizable as any athlete in the world. The first person of Black heritage to win the Masters in 1997, he has captivated golf fans with records likely never to be broken.
His injuries have kept him from accomplishing more, including from a 2021 Los Angeles car crash that damaged his right leg so badly he said doctors considered amputation. He has not played an official event since the 2024 British Open. He was recovering from a seventh back surgery in October and was trying to return at the Masters, where he is a five-time champion.
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Associated Press writer Mike Schneider in Orlando, Florida, contributed to this report.
In this image from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods sits in an unmarked police vehicle as he speaks with law enforcement personnel following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods speaks on his cellphone following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods speaks on his cellphone as he steps out of an unmarked police vehicle following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods hangs up his cellphone and tells a sheriff deputy “I was just talking to the president" following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image from video provided by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods is strapped into a police vehicle following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods performs a field sobriety test for sheriff's deputies following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods is taken into custody by sheriff's deputies following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image from video provided by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods is strapped into a police vehicle following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image taken from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods performs a field sobriety test for sheriff's deputies following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
Golfer Tiger Woods stands by his overturned vehicle in Jupiter Island, Fla., on Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Jason Oteri)
In this image taken from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods speaks with sheriff's deputies following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image taken from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, sheriff's deputies holds two pills from a search of golfer Tiger Woods' pants following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Department via AP)
In this image taken from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods is taken into custody by sheriff's deputies following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
In this image taken from police body camera video released by the Martin County, Fla., Sheriff's Office, golfer Tiger Woods performs a field sobriety test for sheriff's deputies following a car crash in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
The Martin County Sheriff's Office welcome sign is displayed outside Friday, March 27, 2026 (AP Photo/Jim Rassol)
This handout photo provided by the Martin County Sheriff's Office shows Tiger Woods, in Stuart, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Martin County Sheriff's Office via AP)
Tiger Woods leaves the Martin County Sheriff's Office jail facility following his involvement in a car crash where he was arrested on a DUI charge on Friday, March 27, 2026 (AP Photo/Jim Rassol)
FILE- Golfer Tiger Woods stands by his overturned vehicle in Jupiter Island, Fla., March 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Jason Oteri, File)
