JACKSONVILLE – Jaguars 2026 Training Camp begins in two weeks(ish). Keep pushing.

Let's get to it …

Brother Dave from Orlando, FL

Zone, since we are in the dead zone, who on our current roster concerning wide receivers would you consider for Thunder ... and Lightning?

I don't know that I would look at it this way. Not to be difficult, but you are asking to compare the Jaguars' current wide receivers with the franchise's unquestioned all-time wide receiver duo from the 1990s of Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell – a.k.a., Thunder and Lightning. They were special, the best receiving duo in franchise history, as well as one of the most underrated receiving duos in NFL history. Smith was a rare combination of speed, strength and power – and he should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. McCardell's phenomenal route-running and hands were matched by uncommon toughness and confidence – and he should join Smith in the Pride of the Jaguars sooner rather than later. The thought here is that the current Jaguars receiving corps – Parker Washington, Brian Thomas Jr. and Jakobi Meyers – is the team's best group since that duo. And that's before you factor in wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter, who will factor heavily into the receiving group this season and who may be the team's best player with the ball in his hands. None remind me too much of Smith or McCardell. This isn't because they're better or worse than that duo, but because they're different. Either way, all in the current group are really good and I expect them to be major reasons this offense is good for the foreseeable future.

David from Jacksonville

My dead zone question is about the Houston Texans. On paper, they look to return and be strong again. However, I can't help but notice that quarterback C.J. Stroud took a step back last year, and they still have offensive problems. I think they are overrated coming into the 2026 season. What are your thoughts? I wouldn't be surprised if they finished in the 8-9/9-8 range.

I think it's easy for observers to overlook the Texans this offseason – and even discount them – because their stars and team strengths are on defense. It's easy to think back on their 2025 season, remember a few "not-so-pretty" offensive games – particularly for Stroud – and dismiss their chances moving forward. But remember: While the Jaguars won the AFC South in 2025 by winning their last eight regular-season games, the Texans at the same time were winning their last nine regular-season games. Remember, too: While the Jaguars lost to just one non-playoff team last season, the same was true of the Texans. They're good, and the Texans late last season did not feel at all like a fluky team. Rather, they were a very solid team with a dominant defense on par with any great NFL defense in the last few seasons. There is with any great defensive team, this Texans team included, an underlying concern over how long you can keep enough core defensive players together and healthy to make an extended contending run. But for right now? For the foreseeable future? The Texans are really good and I would be surprised if they are not competing with the Jaguars with double-digit victories for the AFC South title this season. Overlook and discount them at your peril.

Richard from Jacksonville

What's up?!

Chillin'.

Dbsuperbiker from Ormond Beach, FL

Does the NFL allow piped-in crowd noise? If so, is it regulated? Do the Jags do it?

No, the NFL does not allow "piped-in" crowd noise. It therefore is not regulated and the Jaguars do not do it.

Kenneth from Jacksonville

Who's the best player in Jaguars history to don No. 71?

I can't remember.

Jadon from North Carolina State

Out of the many, MANY, Jaguars to wear No. 71, who is the best in our team's history??

I can't remember.

Pedal Bin, IFOTY 2025 from Farnborough, Hampshire, UK

Oh Mighty 'O'/King of all Funk, Ramones "It's Alive" is indeed an amazing live album but always makes me think of when I first played it at my friend's house. After about half an hour, his girlfriend asked, "So are they ever going to play another song?" I replied, "You know every 90 to 120 seconds there's a cry of '1-2-3-4!' That's the end of one song and the beginning of a new one." She was never a fan! Have you ever read On The Road With The Ramones by Monte A. Melnick? He was their Tour Manager and saw all 2,263 shows and a whole lot more. I never realized just how much Johnny and Joey hated each other, barely speaking to each other from the early 1980s after Johnny "stole" Joey's girlfriend. A fascinating read if you have the time during the Dead Zone, after Wimbledon and the World Cup.

I haven't read Melick's book, though it's one of the more unfortunate truths in rock-and-roll history that – despite their iconic status Johnny and Joey – never could get along and never bothered to try very hard to get along through years of van rides and phenomenal shows. As for your friend's girlfriend … you sound a lot cooler than her. A lot.

P Funk from Murray Hill

You find yourself in the Big Apple in 1979 for one night. You going to CBGB or Max's Kansas City?

I'll say CBGB, though bands I consider "mine" such as the Ramones and Blondie largely had left the CBGB scene by 1979. If you could "time machine" me back to 1974-1975, when the Ramones and Blondie and the Talking Heads were starting – and playing their regularly – I would have loved to have been at CBGB's. Then again, I turned eight years old in 1974, so I may have had a tough time getting through the door.

Ken from Rabun Gap, GA

Hey, there, Cloud of Funkiness. I was thinking the other day (rare occurrence) of whether having a position such as associate or assistant head coach made it necessary for other teams to ask permission to interview such individuals for any position other than head coach. If so, do you think this is a viable strategy for teams to effectively control some of their staff? The coach now gets a cool title and some extra coin, but the team now has more control of its destiny?

NFL teams must ask permission to interview any assistant coach from another team under contract. This means coordinators, position coaches, assistant head coaches, associate head coaches, run-game coordinators, pass-game coordinators or any of the myriad coordinators the league certainly will manufacture in its ever-ending quest to expand coaching staffs. The league does not differentiate between any level of assistant coaches, with the only "levels" being head coach and assistant coach. This may not seem logical, but it's how it is.

JK from NY & Fernandina Beach, FL

Hey, John. I have to agree with Gator that Skynyrd, and for that matter the Allman Brothers Band, certainly belong at the top of any rankings of live rock groups. Both bands have deep ties to Jacksonville, the cradle of Southern Rock. I never got to see the original Skynyrd, but I do remember that my friend's older brother was shattered after the plane crash that took Ronnie and the boys in October 1977. He had tickets to a Madison Square Garden show that was scheduled a couple weeks later and subsequently cancelled. He framed the unused ticket, which was a very cool tribute. I was lucky enough to see ABB (a fan approved acronym) with Gregg and Dickie several times at the annual "Rites of Spring" run at the Beacon Theater in New York City. This past March hopefully started a new tradition with famous Jags fans the Tedeschi Trucks Band holding a very well-received 10-show residency at the Beacon. Do you have any Southern Rock memories that you would like to share with the Zone? Go Jags!

I was a teenager in Jacksonville from the late 1970s to mid-1980s, which meant Lynyrd Skynyrd was heard pretty much non-stop. I heard a loooooot of Skynyrd, Molly Hatchet, Blackfoot, .38 Special, Rossington-Collins Band and Johnny Van Zandt on the radio and owned more than my share of Molly Hatchet vinyl. I also have a copy of Wild-Eyed Southern Boys by .38 Special that I purchased at the Record Bar at Regency Square Mall. I purchased this on a day when the band was signing autographs, so on the front of my copy, it says, "To John, Keep Rocking" with the band's signatures. I grew out of this phase, and don't listen to all that much these days. The exception is Skynyrd, because Skynyrd is different. Ronnie Van Zandt was an otherworldly songwriter on the level of the greats and the band was worthy of Van Zandt. I don't know if that qualifies as a Southern Rock memory, but those who argue Skynyrd belongs among the all-time greats will get no argument here.