Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blaine Gabbert threw a pass during practice on June 13 in Jacksonville, Fla. (John Raoux / AP Photo)

Editor's note: This is part of a series on the Patriots scheduled opponents in the upcoming season. The following are questions that have been posed to the beat writers of each particular team. In this case, the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Five questions about the Jaguars heading into training camp with Tania Ganguli, the beat writer from the Florida Times-Union.

Link: jacksonville.com/jaguars
Twitter: @taniaganguli

Date: Dec. 23
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: EverBank Field

2011 record: 5-11.
Playoffs: None.

1. What is going to be the strength of this team?
Defense should be the team's strength as the league's sixth-ranked unit returns almost completely intact.

2. Where are they looking to get better?
The Jaguars hired an offensive-minded coach in Mike Mularkey to help turn around the league's worst passing offense last year. The talent in the receiving corps has grown dramatically and they say they're seeing improvement from quarterback Blaine Gabbert.

3. Players on the spot?
QB Blaine Gabbert, WR Justin Blackmon, WR Laurent Robinson, RB Maurice Jones-Drew (currently holding out)

4. What needs to happen for this team to win big?
Gabbert has to make a significant transformation.

5. Realistic expectations for this team at this point?
It's impossible to tell until we know if Gabbert really has improved. Improvement in shorts and T-shirts doesn't tell us much.