The Jacksonville Jaguars are an American professional football franchise based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team plays its home games at EverBank Field.

The Jaguars and the Carolina Panthers joined the NFL as expansion teams for the 1995 season. Since their inception, the Jaguars have won division championships in 1998 and 1999 (as members of the defunct AFC Central) and have qualified for the playoffs six times, most recently in 2007.

From their inception until 2011, the Jacksonville Jaguars' majority owner was Wayne Weaver. The team was then purchased by Pakistani-born businessman Shahid Khan for an estimated $770 million.

Franchise history

Jacksonville and the NFL (1989–1994)

In 1989, the prospective ownership group Touchdown Jacksonville! was organized. The group initially included future Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Jacksonville developer Tom Petway, and came to be led by shoe magnate Wayne Weaver, founder of Nine West. In 1991, the NFL announced plans to add two expansion teams in 1994 (later delayed until 1995), its first expansion since the 1976 addition of the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Touchdown Jacksonville! announced its bid for a team, and Jacksonville was ultimately chosen as one of five finalists, along with Charlotte, St. Louis, Baltimore, and Memphis.

The 2009 Jacksonville Jaguars season was the 15th season for the team in the National Football League. This was the first season for new general manager Gene Smith, who hoped to usher in a "rebuilding" era for the Jaguars franchise. The Jaguars improved upon their 5–11 record in 2008, however did not make the playoffs.

The team got new uniforms for the 2009 season. Team owner Wayne Weaver reportedly wanted to "clean up" the look, feeling that the team had too many uniform styles.

2009 NFL Draft

Staff

Final roster

Local television blackouts

In 2009, the Jaguars had 7 of their 8 regular season home games blacked out on local TV. Due to an NFL rule, in order for a home game to be televised in a team's market, all tickets must be sold within 72 hours of kickoff. Many factors lead to a decrease in ticket sales for the Jaguars, including Jacksonville being a small market, a bad local economy, and low expectations for the team coming into the season. The Jaguars drew attendances under 50,000 in their first six home games. The only game that was televised in the Jacksonville market in 2009 was the final home game of the season when the Jaguars played the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday Night Football. Through the 2015 season, the Jaguars have not had any games blacked out since.