JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …
Randy from Jax
The New England Patriots/Buffalo Bills played the NFC South (26-34) this season, the Denver Broncos/Los Angeles Chargers played the NFC East (22-37) while the Jaguars/Houston Texans played the NFC West (37-22). To be the best you have to beat the best (or at least play them).
The Jaguars are 11-4 in first place in the AFC South as they prepare to play the 8-7 Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis Sunday – and they indeed have had to navigate a difficult schedule thus far this season. They have victories over teams with winning records such as the Carolina Panthers, Texans, Colts, San Francisco 49ers, Broncos and Chargers. They have losses to power teams such as the Texans, Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks. This team will be as big-game tested as possible when the playoffs begin.
The Original Dave from Jax
I think it's important to maintain some balance. Trevor wasn't awful at the beginning of the season, and he's not "fixed" now. He will have good games and bad games, and right now he's on a good streak. "Full consistency" is a myth, no matter the team or player.
There's some truth to this, and it's true that Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence moving forward won't maintain his pace of 12 passing touchdowns, two rushing touchdowns with no interceptions over the last four games. But while he isn't necessarily "fixed" now, it's not right to simply say he's on a good streak. He has improved and he's playing with a different confidence than he has shown before. He feels like a different, improved player and the guess here is he will show that more often than not moving forward.
Jami from Claxton, GA
John, if the season were to end today, would the Jaguars host the Bills in the first round of the playoffs?
Yes.
Bradford from Orange Park, FL
I can't say that at 17-4 "I can die happy." I can say that "it would be a significant leg of the trip."
Seventeen and four for the Jaguars would be cool. Fans would like it. Sixteen and four also would be cool. Fans would like that, too.
Steve from Wonderwood raceway
What Jaguars Head Coach Liam Coen has accomplished this year is no less than amazing and – lest we forget – they are loaded with draft picks. And next year cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter will be back. Outstanding!
The future looks bright. Day by day, week by week.
Verne from Duval, Iowa
Zone, I've been a fan since 1996. I just want to say I'm happy to see Big Bo back in the building. No one I trust more with our Jags than Tony. The staff they've assembled has done a great job.
Jaguars Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tony Boselli as much as anyone has helped instill a culture and identity around this franchise in the last 11 months. Jaguars fans are correct to trust him. He understands the organization – past and present – as much as anyone. The staff indeed has done a great job.
EJ from Jacksonville
Quarterback statistics are a fraud. A touchdown pass from the 3-yard line or a swing to the back who runs 65 yards are both touchdowns. The yardage doesn't mean you've hit the receiver in stride on a 40-yard bomb. The only statistic that counts is winning, and Trevor has it!
Longtime O-Zone readers – and he knows who he is – know I'm not big on statistics as a measure of much of anything in the NFL. This is because the sport doesn't lend itself to being analyzed statistically as cleanly as, say, baseball. The eye test and victories are far better measures of quality quarterback play than statistics, and Lawrence in the last five or six weeks clearly meets any standards of high-level quarterback play. Sometimes statistics are a decent measure, though, and Lawrence's 12 touchdowns passing, two rushing and no interceptions in four games measure up damned well.
Rob from the duuuuuuuuuuuu
Is Lewis out for season? Can you elaborate on the specific injury?
Jaguars cornerback Jourdan Lewis indeed reportedly will miss the rest of the season with a foot injury sustained against the Denver Broncos last Sunday.
Fred from Naples, FL
How concerned should we be with Jourdan Lewis going on injured reserve and lost for the year? We seemed to handle OK when he was out for a good part of the middle of the season.
The Jaguars are better with Lewis than without. If they weren't, someone else would have been playing over him. But teams win Super Bowls with key players injured all the time and this team has been very good playing though injuries all season. There's no reason to think that will change.
Jay from Jacksonville NC
Hey, O. I enjoy seeing the pregame videos with the "inside look" in the locker room. It got me thinking, though: Where do the coaches/staff get ready and dressed for the game? In the locker room? Office? Do they get dressed at HOME?
Coaches and staff typically have their own locker room and/or space in or connected to the players' locker room.
Matt from Plainfield, IN
Jags are in the playoffs and I can't imagine any other teams will be happy to play them there.
True that.
Big Jags Fan from Jacksonville
John, the improvement and ascension throughout the season of many Jaguars players has been evident and a major reason for the level of play we have witnessed in November and December. In an interview earlier this season, Liam Coen stated that he built his staff by hiring coaches who were great teachers as well. Liam is special and coaches with great intelligence, maturity and leadership. The players speak of how much they love playing for him. We are very fortunate that Owner Shad Khan, with input from Tony Boselli, got it right.
True that, too.
Sean from Oakleaf, FL
Seems like there is little chance the Week 18 game versus the Tennessee Titans at the Bank will be meaningless to the Jaguars. Do you believe Coen will keep the pedal down if there is a chance at a higher playoff seeding in the last regular-season game (versus resting starters)?
NFL teams don't rest starters when playoff seeding is undecided. If the Jaguars' aren't locked into a seed when they play the Titans at EverBank Stadium in Week 18 – and they almost certainly won't be – they will play their starters in a full effort to win. That game will matter. A lot.
Chris from Mandarin
An overlooked area where the Jaguars have been very good and vastly improved this season is scoring in the last two minutes of the first half. It seems like if the Jaguars have received the ball with 30 seconds or more, they've more often than not converted at least a field goal on the final drive of first halves.
Indeed.
Randy from Jax
The Texans have scored 26-plus points only five times this season and went 5-0 (Jags and 49ers, the only team with winning record). The Jags have scored 26-plus points 11 times and went 9-2 (two fourth-quarter road losses), beating five winning teams (Panthers, 49ers, Chargers, Colts and Broncos). The Jags have played seven games against the top 10 scoring defenses (points per game allowed) and are now ranked 8th in scoring.
The Jaguars have a really good offense. It matches up well against pretty much any NFL defense right now. The Texans have a really good defense. It matches up well against pretty much any NFL offense right now.
James from Titusville, NJ
Aqib Talib was a phenomenal talent at cornerback in the NFL. As a commentator though … well, I was informed on the importance of being nice. However, if you're calling Talib the best, then if we're staying in his era, give me Darrelle Revis after you take Talib and next I'll be laughing all the way down to Broadway.
I never called him that.
Ed from Jax by Lionel Playworld
For most of this season you've said this was a good team. Were the Jags a good team in 2023 when we were 8-3? Please, expound on the differences between the second-half 2022-first-half-2023 team and this 2025 team.
Yes, that was a good team. This is a better team. Remember, too: The 2023 team was heading to the playoffs when wide receiver Christian Kirk was lost for the season and Lawrence began sustaining injuries. That season almost certainly would have ended differently had those two players remained healthy.
Yeti Daddy from Somewhere and yet no where
Ooooo, for years I have been conditioned to look forward to the draft. What am I supposed to do now? LOOK FORWARD TO THE PLAYOFFS! Oh, and worse, now I may even have to wait way, way, way later into the draft, like late second round! Man, this winning has really gotten tough!
We have all our burdens to carry.
