All about defense

Former Jaguars left tackle Tony Boselli, a five-time Pro Bowl selection and one of 15 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2018, did not play in those games in 2007 because he had retired five years earlier because of injuries. But he watched the regular-season game on television and was at Heinz Field for the wild-card playoff victory.

Boselli, now an analyst on the Jaguars Radio Network, said Jacksonville’s offense was better in 2007 because of Taylor, the 17th-leading rusher in NFL history (11,695); JonesDrew, one of the top multi-purpose backs in the league; and Garrard, a one-time Pro Bowl quarterback who had a passer rating of 102.2 that season, third best behind Tom Brady and Roethlisberger. But he said this Jaguars defense is better than the one that intercepted Roethlisberger three times and sacked him six times in the playoff victory.

“This group is 100 percent based on the defense,” Boselli said the other day. “This defense is really good, emotionally and everything else, and carries this team. When they get good to average offense, they are really tough to beat. This team can beat anyone in the NFL. You can wake up and they win the whole dang thing, their defense is that good. Or they could have lost in the first round.

“Offensively, they are hot and cold. Some weeks, they look like they have it figured out, Blake looks good in the pocket. And other days, like Buffalo, it’s, let’s just hope we can get one more point.”

But in a four-week span of the 2007 season, the Jaguars managed to do something that no other non-division team ever accomplished against the Steelers. A decade later, they will find out if history can repeat itself. Ben Roethlisberger reacts as Josh Scobee’s winning field goal goes through. Maurice Jones-Drew jump-started the Jaguars playoff win with a big kickoff return. David Garrard applied the dagger with a fourth-down run to set up Scobee’s winner.