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The National Football League’s choice to expand the League in 1995 by adding two new teams was an exciting time for football fans everywhere. With the creation with the Carolina Panthers along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, even so, nobody expected that they would achieve immediate success, on the other hand. Expansion teams generally take years to locate their way within the NFL, as they must struggle with a host of factors in their attempt to build durable and lasting franchises. For the Jacksonville Jaguars, that trend was overcome due to their early choice at quarterback.

 

Grabbing Brunell

 

The 1995 Expansion Draft saw the Jaguars select quarterback Steve Beurlein to be their field general. At the time, the Jaguars also traded several draft selections to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for Mark Brunell – who was backing up the legendary Brett Favre at the time. Brunell was eager to leave the city, since it was obvious that he would receive little if any playing time behind a quarterback who was currently showing signs of being as durable as any who came ahead of. Once in Jacksonville, it did not take long for Brunell to get the starting nod over Beurlein, whose miserable performance on the field elicited no confidence from his teammates or coaching staff.

 

1st season

 

As the primary year’s campaign winded down, the Jaguars broke the previous record for new expansion teams by winning four of their sixteen games. They were joined inside the expansion success by the Panthers who won seven. The Bengals had previously set the expansion first-season mark with three victories nearly 3 decades ahead of. Brunell’s cool leadership was currently in evidence, nevertheless, as he compiled more than two thousand passing yards on the season, with an additional four hundred yards of rushing.

 

Finding good results

 

The 1996 season was a complete turnaround for the team, along with the start off of a four year stretch that would see the Jaguars within the playoffs each year, win their division in 1998 and 1999, and storm into the AFC Championship in both 1996 and 1999. This was the period of Jacksonville’s greatest success, as Brunell and the team set a new benchmark for expansion teams that will be tough for future teams to beat. In both 1996 and 1999, the team was one victory away from a Super Bowl appearance – despite missing the large game, the Jaguars had sent a clear signal for the rest with the teams from the NFL that their franchise was not willing to wait for its time inside the sun.

 

Brunell’s legacy

 

The Jaguars were indeed fortunate to have the steady-handed Brunell guide them through their initial seasons of play. As a three-time Jaguar Pro-Bowler, Brunell’s calm leadership was instrumental from the Jaguars’ ability to discover the early franchise success that eludes most teams. In fact, his trade after the 2003 season marked the begin with the Jaguars’ current period of decline, as they have descended from the heights of AFC prominence to become just an additional team among the crowd inside NFL.

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