JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …
JK from NY & Fernandina Beach, FL
Hey, John. Jaguars General Manager James Gladstone exhibited his customary calm confidence when discussing the composition of the Jags' final roster. His instincts have been right before, even when others have doubted him. When looking up and down the roster, there are no glaring holes, several elite and very good players, and lots of apparent depth on both sides of the ball. During the O-Zone Era, is this the Jags' best final 53 you have seen going into Week 1?
I wouldn't be so bold as to call the last 15 years an "O-Zone Era" – though as reigns of ineptitude and sadness go, I supposed it more than holds its own among the elite. The Jaguars 2026 initial 53-player regular-season roster indeed appears to be very good at the top – and deeper overall than was the case entering last season. Here's what's far more important. The Jaguars entering 2026 feel very good about the team. They feel good about the depth and versatility at wide receiver. They feel good about the secondary and running game, two areas of focus in the offseason. They feel good about the improvements made in the last few weeks of 2026 Training Camp. And they feel good about how their health is trending as the regular-season opener against the Cleveland Browns on September 13 approaches. If they are correct in how they feel about those things, it should be a better team than the one that finished 13-4 last season and won the AFC South. That doesn't automatically mean having a better record than 13-4. But it should mean being a contending team and getting into the postseason with a chance to make it through the tournament. That's the goal entering any regular season and I feel better entering the season about this team attaining that goal than I have felt about any Jaguars team in a while.
Bradley from Yankton, SD
Oh, KOAF. ESPN power ranking today: 17th, everyone picking the Houston Texans to win the AFC South, with one picking them to go to the Super Bowl. The media all pulling for Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson in the first game. Momentum building for him and Browns. I would think plenty of bulletin-board material!! Go Jags!!
It's hard to express how little I care about "power rankings." That's because they mean absolutely nothing in professional football – a meaningless proven by the fact that multiple highly-"ranked" teams every preseason fail to make the playoffs and multiple lowly-"ranked" teams every preseason make the postseason. I doubt the Seattle Seahawks or New England Patriots were atop many "rankings" this time last year – and I doubt many around those organizations cared about that when they were playing in the Super Bowl this past February. This lack of caring on my part means I haven't seen – and almost certainly won't see – the power rankings to which you refer. I also don't know where "everyone" picked the Texans, or what media are "pulling" for the Browns to beat the Jaguars in the regular-season opener. Perhaps it is our collective thought that whatever is on our phones is reality that causes us to care so much about these things. That's just a theory and perhaps not a great one. Either way, remember: There are 17 regular-season games. If you win enough of those games, you play in the playoffs. If you don't lose in the playoffs, you stand on a podium with a trophy while confetti falls. If you stand there, preseason "respect" and rankings don't matter.
Joel from Yulee
Yeah ... but still.
I know.
Kevin from St Johns
This may have been asked previously, but I am too lazy to look it up, so I ask regardless. Do the practice squad salaries count against the team's salary cap? Are the players on the practice squad paid base rate (like the preseason) or do they have negotiated contracts?
Practice-squad salaries count against the salary cap. Practice-squad players with two or fewer seasons experience earn a minimum of $13,750 per week and veterans on the practice squad earn between $18,350 and $22,850 per week.
Michael from St Aug/PV
KOAF. Middle eastern philosophers are famous for saying you only have a given amount of heartbeats granted to you. Noting that, in the interest and courtesy of saving time, I suggest BTJO for our stalwart receiver who plays offense and BTJD for our rookie hustler pass rusher who plays defense. Announcers in every medium seem to badly stumble with little brevity when trying to explain these rare phonetic twins and apologize or overexplain to folks etc., etc. … trying to find a simple way to say their names and move on. Since your realm includes all funk, what's your remedy otherwise to conserve some heartbeats in this meaty linguistic matter?
The Jaguars indeed have two players with similar names. One is Bryan Thomas Jr. and the other is Brian Thomas Jr. Bryan Thomas Jr. is a defensive end and Brian Thomas Jr. is a wide receiver. Considering the opposing sides of the ball, and the difference in that one letter, I expect people will figure how to explain the difference simply and quickly soon enough without gimmicks. The exception to this may be the middle eastern philosophers. In my experience, they tend to stumble over the simplest of obstacles.
Crash from Glen Saint Mary
Obi Wan! Why are we privy to the salaries of the players? Why do we have a need to know?
We are privy to professional player salaries because that has been the norm for so long we can't imagine it any other way – and because websites such as spotrac.com and overthecap.com are readily available enough to make salaries pretty close to "public domain." Why do we have a need to know? I guess because we believe we need to know everything these days. I confess to caring less about player salaries than I once did because they're astronomical enough that it numbs the senses and removes perspective. I don't know if those kids are on my lawn. If they are, they better get off of it.
Sean from Oakleaf, FL
I personally think the NFL scheduling format is genius. If two AFC teams consistently win their respective divisions each year, then they are going to play each other the following year and so on. It makes for compelling primetime matchups and balances the schedule out for less successful teams. This same formula blesses us with a New York Jets-Cleveland Browns game this year and nine other regular season matchups since 2015.
OK, I think.
Roscoe from Southside
O-Zone: Thanks to the Jags for the new renderings of the Stadium of the Future. It looks incredible and world class! The renderings continue to help build excitement about the future and this venue. I still have a concern about the heat and temperature in the stadium during those 1 p.m. September and October games. Are they planning to add air conditioning in the general seating areas like there will be in the boxed/premium seating areas? Hard Rock Stadium in Miami added shading/covered areas, but the ambient temperature inside the stadium for the players and fans is still uncomfortable. $2B is a lot to spend and not get AC.
The revolution will not be televised and the Stadium of the Future will not be air conditioned. It will be designed for continuous cross breezes and air flow with a roof canopy. The stadium also will be designed to enhance air flow and enable "passive cooling." I get a lot of emails from people angry about this and angry about there being no air conditioning. People like to be mad before they understand things.
Johnny from Jax
I know it's another uniform question, but I think it's unclear. Will the Jaguars wear the Rivalry Uniforms in both games against the Indianapolis Colts home and away? Do both teams wear them? Do the Colts have a different Rivalry Game than us where they wear theirs at home versus someone else? They are already available for fans to purchase so I think these are relevant questions. King... Funk us some answers, please.
The Jaguars will wear their "Rivalry" uniforms Week 8 against the Indianapolis Colts on November 1 in Jacksonville. That's the only game this season they are scheduled to wear those uniforms. Both teams do not wear "Rivalry" uniforms in the same game. Those are the answers I have for now, for funk's sake.
Not G.I. Joe from Jax
KOAF, Do players on injured reserve with designation to return get paid while on injured reserve? If so, is the amount their regular paycheck (based on their contract) or another figure due to them not being on the active roster?
NFL players on injured reserve get paid their weekly salary based on their contract. You don't penalize a guy financially for getting hurt. That would be unkind, unfair even.
