JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …
Tyler from Loretto Road from Jacksonville
O-Zone. From listening to a recent Josh Hines-Allen interview, I sensed a confidence and trust in the new regime that seemed to be lacking in recent years. Is this enough reason to be all in and standing united in 2025?
Loyal O-Zone readers – and he knows who he is – know that discussed confidence and trust in this new regime extensively here in the O-Zone lately. But the dead zone is nothing if not a place for a little repetition – so at the risk of being a bit repetitive, I'll repeat here that there absolutely is confidence and trust among players for this new regime headed by Head Coach Liam Coen, General Manager James Gladstone and Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tony Boselli. Such feelings from players matter because that belief is tested often through the inevitable adversity that comes with the regular season. The more belief, the better a team's chances to navigate uncertainty and emerge successful with playoff chances late in the season. This regime is doing things the right way, operating as one and making sound decisions. That sets a foundation that gives an organization a chance to be successful in the short run and grow in the long run. I believe your question is asking all if this is reason for fans to be enthusiastic about the season. The only way I know how to respond to this is to say, "Yes, Why not be enthusiastic? Why not be all in?" What's the fun of following sports and being a fan of a team if you're not optimistic? We don't know the future of anything in sports, but my sense is the future has a chance to be better around here than the past. Why not hope?
Bill from Ponte Vedra, FL
Looks like the Jags have three potentially game-breaking receivers, but who gets the most targets when it's third and five?
The Jaguars indeed appear to have three wide receivers – Brian Thomas Jr., rookie Travis Hunter and Dyami Brown – who not only qualify as game-breakers, but who could be front-line starters and core-type receivers. Thomas is the most proven of the group, having made the Pro Bowl last season. He's the biggest of the group. He is, from this view, the most polished and reliable. He's the one I would target most on third and five.
Kevin from Jacksonville
Is it the dead zone yet?
We're right in the thick of it, baby.
Bryan from Stumptown
Yo, Grizz! Sad that you missed David Garrard's Jags career while you were on your Indy sojourn. For me, DG is the most underrated and underrealized of all Jags players. He could spin it, but would also run 80 yards downfield to throw a block for wide receiver Jimmy Smith en route to a score. He never had the coaching to maximize his talents. In today's game, maybe he'd be elite. OK, question time: what did you miss most (besides Garrard) while you were in Indy?
Former Jaguars quarterback David Garrard by any measure had a nice NFL career. A fourth-round selection by the Jaguars in the 2002 NFL Draft, he had a 39-37 record as a starter. He was critical in two memorable Jaguars seasons, 2005 and 2007, and he correctly is remembered fondly by many Jaguars fans of that era. It's easy for some to lump 2003 through 2010 – the era in which Jack Del Rio was the head coach – with the last 15 or so seasons and write the 2000s off as a bad era of Jaguars football. That's not accurate, and Garrard was a key part of some good teams. I don't know that he would be elite in this era, but at minimum he would fit well in an era that emphasizes a quarterback's running ability. Why did I miss most about Jacksonville while in Indianapolis from 2001-2010? I don't know that there are any specifics, necessarily. Mostly, I just realized that Jacksonville was home. Sometimes you must go away before you realize such things.
Rodney from Jacksonville
I lost a shoe. Has anyone seen my shoe?
It's in the back.
Steve from Nashville, TN
How is Trevor Lawrence's golf game looking heading into this weekend's American Century Championship in Tahoe?
Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence indeed is among the celebrities entered in this weekend's American Century Championship in Tahoe. Among other celebrities: Charles Barkley, Albert Pujols and – of course, this guy.
Roscoe from Southside
O-Zone: We've got a corral full of talented running backs, and each seems to have generally good qualities. One area of interest is their pass-catching ability. Last year, as the offensive coordinator with the Tampa Bay Bucs, Coen called seven pass attempts per game to running backs (mostly to Bucky Irving and Rachaad White). We know that Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. has great "hands" and could easily fit into that type of scheme. But of the other three running backs on the roster, who would you say has those kinds of pass-catching skills?
You're correct that Etienne's receiving skills could make him a nice fit for Coen's offense – nice enough that it could make him crucial to this offense more than if he were "just" a runner. As for the other running backs on the roster … while Tank Bigsby has just eight NFL receptions in two seasons, I wouldn't call him deficient as a receiver. I confess I didn't get a great feel for rookies Bhayshul Tuten or LeQuint Allen as receivers in the offseason program. Their collegiate statistics – Tuten with 50 receptions for 320 yards and four touchdowns in the past two seasons; Allen with 119 receptions for 848 yards and eight touchdowns – suggest that Allen is the best receiving option after Etienne. I expect that will make him an important part of the offense in 2025.
Scott from Fernandina Beach, FL
As far as Dead Zone reads go, "A Land Remembered" by Patrick D. Smith is pretty good.
As long as it's not Tolkien.
Stuart from Cottonwood AZ
Since we have digressed to primary readers, Green Eggs and Ham was the best evvvvvver!
As long as it's not Tolkien.
Al from Orange Park, FL
To Roscoe's question on Tuesday, I've always attributed Trever's injuries to too much "hero ball," never giving up on a play, rather than living to fight another day (or play). Your thought on that, sir?
There certainly has been an element of this in Lawrence's play at times in five NFL seasons. While there is a negative connotation to "hero ball," the thought here is Lawrence's tendency to never give up on a play comes from the right place. His history throughout high school and college told him that his physical skills could allow him to make plays that win games. That has happened at times in the NFL, but it is harder for that to happen consistently against speed and NFL athleticism. And when speed and athleticism doesn't allow a player to win, the physicality of the NFL – a dramatically different physicality than collegiate physicality – often leads to injury and wear and tear. This is the risk whenever quarterbacks run. All mobile NFL quarterbacks, including Lawrence, must learn to effectively balance that risk with the reward of trying to make a play.
JK from NY & Fernandina Beach in the Northeast corner of the Free State of Florida
Hey, Johnny O. Bless Gator's heart. Can y'all let Gator know that I done thought twice about his request and seein' as we both be Jags fans, I'm a gonna let him in on the secret. He can get any tape he wants from Boselli who got the key to the tape room after the big promo. But as with everything, there's a price. He needs to hook up Boselli with a teal Engel 65 cooler full a fresh gator tail, frog legs, and catfish, then I reckon Boselli just might just give Gator any tape he done wants, except for that one of the basketball game against that kid Gladstone. Yes Sir!
You go, girl.
Michael from Orange Park, FL
It's two weeks until training camp. I'm supposed to be excited. Why am I not excited?
I can't explain the excitement of others – or the lack thereof. A lot of Jaguars fans are excited about 2025 Training Camp, which indeed will begin in two weeks at the Miller Electric Center. Some, perhaps just as many, are apprehensive. This is normal as training camp approaches, I suppose. We talk and analyze and project for months, then suddenly … the real stuff is at hand. And none of the talk matters anymore. My advice if you're not enthusiastic: Wait until the regular season. I expect you will feel excitement entering Week 1. And if the Jaguars win, you will feel a lot more. If they lose? Well, we have about two months until we have to worry about that.
