JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …

David K from Broward County

They got the W, O Man – ugly though it may have been, very ugly at times. Enough plays on D and O to get it done.

This is precisely what happened for the Jaguars in a 17-10 victory over the Houston Texans at EverBank Stadium Sunday. The Jaguars struggled a lot on offense. They had way too many drops and no one involved described the offense as pretty. A lot of observers described the whole day as very ugly. Which was true – in a sense. But in just as real a sense the Jaguars on Sunday won in impressive fashion. In that sense, they made big plays in key moments late. They forced timely takeaways, got pass rush when it mattered and continued to play very good run defense. They turned in a critical drive offensively at a critical time and wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. capped a very difficult game with one of the most important plays of his short career, setting up the game-winning touchdown with a 46-yard reception in the final 2:00. The NFL is not a 17-game walk of perfection or double-digit victories. It's about finding a way to win under that game's circumstances, and moving onto the next week and finding a way to win in what might be very different circumstances. This is particularly true early in the season, a time a team must find its way and stay afloat until an identity is found. The Jaguars are 2-1 and 1-0 in the AFC South. I'm sure there will be plenty of complaining and criticism in the inbox, but this has been a good start with plenty of reason for optimism. On to San Francisco.

Noel from Saint Augustine, FL

Guess those butterfingers are contagious!

Thomas has dropped too many passes all season. The Jaguars as a team dropped way too many passes Sunday. I wrote Sunday in O-Zone Late Night that I can't explain this, just as I'm not sure anyone can explain dropped passes. It's a maddening issue that must get fixed. It's just weird at this point.

Keith from an East Arlington Bar

No question, I just want to welcome Brian Thomas, Jr. to 2025 NFL Football season....

Fair.

Brendan from The Banana Patch

Alright, Hines-Allen has officially shut me up for now. Houston's left tackle was holding on for dear life the entire game. Is it too early to say Jags D is making an identity as a play-making, aggressive unit? I love it.

Jaguars defensive end Josh Hines-Allen is usually very good. He was very, very good Sunday. It is not too early to say the Jaguars' defense is making an identity as a playmaking, aggressive unit. The unit has nine takeaways in three games and forced three turnovers in the fourth quarter Sunday. That's playmaking in aggressive fashion. It has been impressive.

Chris from Mandarin

I'll be the first to admit Josh Hines-Allen had a monster game today – and it's a good thing, too. They would not have won without him.

Look at 'ol Chris out here spitting facts.

Brad from The Avenues

Today was a good day. We won, and the chicken was excellent. What more can a man want?

Strings has a really good fried chicken sandwich that has become my "go-to." I enjoy that almost as much as I enjoy Bullet Bob and I really enjoy Bullet Bob. I wish they would bring back flatbread pizza. I enjoyed that, too.

Bob from Coosawatchie, SC

This team has had more than enough ugly losses. I'll take an ugly win anytime.

Yep.

James from Socorro, NM

What's the deal with all the dropped passes?

I know, right?

Anita from Springfield

After the Collins TD, I was reminded of Miami last year. After the Devin Lloyd fumble recovery, I knew this was a different team.

This is a good assessment. The Jaguars allowed the Texans to tie the game 10-10 early in the fourth quarter on a 50-yard touchdown pass from quarterback C.J. Stroud to wide receiver Nico Collins – a play that last season almost certainly would have led to a Jaguars loss. The resiliency the Jaguars showed after that play Sunday was the storyline of the game. Pretty much all NFL teams give up leads and give up maddening plays. The good ones respond and win anyway.

Brian from DuvalDrops

Why can't they catch?

I know, right?

Mark from Des Moines

To start off, what a great win. It was ugly and sometimes downright terrible but the Jags held it together and got the win. However, this offense has got to start getting it together. Too many penalties, too many plays they weren't on the same page, and too many DROPS. We lead the league in drops and that can't continue if we want to take the AFC South. What do you think will be the emphasis this week in practice?

The NFL is a week-to-week league – and it's also a league of adjustment and adjusting to adjustments. The Jaguars averaged 26.5 points in the first two games of the season in large part because they led the NFL in rushing at 169.5 yards per game. The Texans started Sunday in what Jaguars Head Coach Liam Coen later called "an unscouted look" designed to counter the Jaguars' running game. After rushing for 11 first-half yards, Coen adjusted and the Jaguars rushed for 75 second-half yards. This is perhaps a too-detailed way of saying the offense had a slow day in Week 3 after two really good games to start the season – and perhaps a long-winded way of saying I expect this offense to be more what we saw in Weeks 1 and 2 than what we saw in Weeks 3. It would have been unusual if this offense was great every week to start the season. It's a new scheme and new schemes take time to be consistent. There's no reason to think this offense won't be productive more often than not moving forward. Stay tuned.

Andy from Halifax

Hines-Allen is so overpaid.

Andy's got jokes.

Clayton from Shawnee, OK

Wow. Just wow.

Sunday wasn't particularly pretty. It was a rough watch. If you're a Jaguars and like seeing your team win games in a way that you have to win sometimes, it was pretty beautiful late in the fourth quarter.

Benjamin from Jacksonville, FL BWO Upstate SC

I take it all back. That was one of the worst performances I've ever seen. Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence still struggling to throw accurately, every receiver with multiple drops, first-round pick is invisible (crazy since he plays both ways), offensive line suddenly can't block. The silver lining was another very solid performance by the defense. It doesn't matter which quarterback, draft pick, head coach, general manager or owner... Jags gonna Jag things up. Being a fan is miserable. Yeah, they won, but no one with any sense can feel good moving forward.

This is ridiculous.

Bill from Hawthorn Woods, IL

I don't know, John. Penalties, inaccurate passes, more drops, a dumb sack. Just as I was beginning to believe this offense was possibly different, we saw a re-run of 2024. What's the deal?

The Jaguars scored 26.5 points in their first two games and had a rough Sunday against a good defensive team. This is the NFL. There are going to be slow halves, slow games and slow weeks, particularly early in a new offense. The Jaguars won Sunday on a day when the offense is going bad much of the game. That's what good, resilient teams do in September.

Gary from Fleming Island

Winning Ugly!

You go, girl.

CJ from Yardley, PA

We won't continue to be lucky and win close games if our receivers can't catch. How do we fix this moving forward, particularly for our so called #1 receiver, who's at Best playing like our #4.

I don't know what "lucky" means in relation to Sunday's victory. I know the Jaguars made plays at the end. I know the Jaguars' receivers – and particularly Thomas – must play more consistently. I also know Thomas made a big play late – and in the NFL, good players negate otherwise forgettable/regrettable games by making big plays late.

Tom from the mean streets of Nocatee

That wasn't pretty but I'll take it.

Cool beans.

James from Socorro, NM

I thought for sure the Jaguars were going to lose when the Texans tied it up after the Lawrence interception. Nice to be on the other end of it for once!

It has been sort of an O-Zone consensus since the end of Sunday's game that this was a game that recent Jaguars teams – i.e., the last season and a half or so – would have lost. This is a case where the O-Zone consensus feels right.

JT from Palm Coast

There clearly is a lot to work on offensively, but I cannot and will not say the "same old Jags" again this year. Last year's Jags lost that game. Ugly as hell offensively, but a masterpiece on defense. Go Jags!

This season's Jaguars are not the "same old Jags." If you can't see that, you're missing it.