JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …

David from Maplewood, NJ

So, the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced changes to the election process. Wondering if you have any feel or thoughts on whether this might help or hurt Freddy T's chances going forward. I know I am a fan, but it seems pretty ridiculous to me that a guy with his career yards per carry has not gotten in. Not sure where he stands, but I thought he was Top 3 or 4 all time in yards per carry.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame indeed announced significant changes to its selection process late this past week. Specifics to the changes can be found here, with the highlights as follows: Reducing the "Selection Committee" from 50 to 28 and placing all players in the same "pool" rather than moving players into a "senior" category 25 years after the players' retirement. Voters now also will be "at large," a change from the old system with all teams having a media "representative" from their respective markets. There are other details that I expect we will discuss later as their impact on the process becomes clearer. My first thought is I do not love not having a representative in each market. There are obvious worries in that dynamic about not having a smaller market such as Jacksonville "in the room" at such discussions. I like keeping all players in the same pool because it will allow all players to be considered as long as their careers merits – and there seems little harm in that. The bottom line is while the HOF should be commended for continuing to work to get an impossible process at least closer to right, the system in the end comes down to what it always has come down to: The integrity, diligence and commitment of the selectors to get the decisions right. If the committee, for example, studies former Jaguars running back Fred Taylor without bias and with an eye on getting deserved players enshrined, then he will have a good chance to go get in. He's deserving. If not …

Sean from Jeffersonville

With the revamped Hall of Fame voting body next year, does this help or hurt Freddy? Could next year be his year?

I hope it helps. I think Taylor is one of the more deserving players not yet enshrined – and I think there has been some stubbornness/laziness among some voters regarding him. I don't yet have a great feel for whether the changes will help or hurt Taylor's chances, though the thought here is they can't hurt.

Michael from The Mean Streets of Arlington

Do these people not understand what the Jags did with the quarterback room by only keeping two? Yes, Quinn Ewers is technically QB2 right now, but that's in name only. They kept him on the 53 because they wanted to see what they had in him without risking another team grabbing him. They released Nick Mullens (probably with a "wink wink" to come back to the practice squad) and Joey Aguilar because they knew the chances were they wouldn't lose either, but if they lost one, then they would still have the other. So right now, if starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence gets hurt and is out for a while, you just elevate Mullens most likely and everything is OK. I wouldn't be too surprised if for the first game or two one of the practice-squad quarterbacks didn't get elevated each week just in case TL gets hurt in the game. At that point, you know what you have in Ewers and can make the best decision.

"These people."

Nicholas from Fort Hood, TX

KOAF: Who you got in the U.S. Open Tennis?

The U.S. Open to date has been compelling on both the men's and the women's side. It is very hard through the first week to pick against Carlos Alceraz of Spain on the men's side, though my guy Daniil Medvedev of Russia is playing well enough to maybe – just maybe – give Alcaraz problems in the right circumstances. The women's side is significantly more balanced. If I had to pick a winner, I have to go with Iga Swiatek of Poland. She's really good when she's on – and she appears to be on again after a shaky start to her 2026 season. I like how Mirra Andreeva of Russia is playing. I think she's going to hit a stride in the foreseeable future when she wins multiple majors, though I don't know that that stride starts this week.

Chris from Mandarin

I will take the "You don't penalize a guy financially for getting hurt" one further. Sure, tell that to Drew Bledsoe and Wally Pipp. On second thought, maybe you do penalize a guy for getting hurt if you think an all-time great is waiting in the wings. The world is not fair. It was never designed to be, so why not just deal with it?

Players on injured reserve in the NFL get paid according to their contract. All else in this discussion is discussing another discussion.

Al from ORANGE PARK, FL

When a player retires, what is the status of their contract? How can they "unretire" so easily and go to another team, ala Gronkowski?

When a player retires, his contract "tolls" with his current team. This means it pauses, and he remains under contract with his previous team. He therefore cannot sign with another team until he is released or his contract expires. When tight end Rob Gronkowski came out of retirement in 2020, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers acquired him in a trade with his former team, the New England Patriots, because the Patriots still held his rights.

James from Titusville, NJ

My fantasy football roster I drafted sucks. Ah, man. Wrong channel. I meant to email someone who cared.

Good eye – after an initial "bad eye," anyway.

Charles from Riverside

Hello, John. With running back Travis Etienne Jr. (260 carries in 2025) gone, we now have Bhayshul Tuten (83 carries), LeQuint Allen Jr. (23 carries) and Chris Rodriguez Jr. (198 carries), with rookie J'Mari Taylor on the practice squad. I have to tell you I am a little bit nervous. Seems like a bit of unknown? Etienne almost had more carries than the other three backs and more yards than all three combined. So basically, the new group needs to double their yardage as a group this season, possible? Guess we will find out? Of the three, who do you think has the best chance for a breakout year?

I expect the Jaguars will miss Etienne as a receiver as much/more than they will miss him as a runner, and that indeed will be a legitimate storyline to watch early in the season. And while fans are understandably concerned about losing Etienne in the running game, the Jaguars are very confident that Rodriguez's consistency and ability to get the most out of every carry will be a significant improvement to this offense. They are also confident that Tuten will be able to make the explosive plays in the running game Etienne gave them last season. I don't know that any of the three running backs need a "breakout season." If they all marginally improve and do what's expected, this will be a very effective running game.

J from Middleburg

They call Jacksonville a small-market team. The way people are moving here, we might be a big-market team soon.

There long has been a feeling that Jacksonville would at some point move from being a small-market team to being at least a "bigger-market-than-it-once-was" team. That's the sort of dynamic that changes over an extended period, and you do get the feeling looking at Jacksonville – and its recent growth – that that's happening and will continue to happen.

Steven from Jacksonville

Do you think maybe the holdup with Parker Washington and his contract might have a little to do with the future and having to pay wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. after this year if he has a bounce-back season? I know this is looking a little into the future. Just a thought.

I think the holdup with Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington and his contract is he wants to get paid more than the Jaguars are currently willing to pay, and I expect the holdup is because Washington wants to be paid like the players it appears he has a chance to become and the Jaguars would like him to be that level of player before they pay him like that player.

Jadon from Raleigh, NC

James is a maniac. Love all these microtransactions to get one percent better.

I don't know that I would call trades involving sixth-round selections micro selections, per se, but your point – that Jaguars General Manager James Gladstone will work at even the smallest detail to gain even the smallest advantage – is correct.

Jim Spicoli from Ridgemont High, Jagsonville

Mr. O, since you write this column, and we read this column, doesn't that make it our column?

That's the idea, Rat. That's the attitude.