JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …
Kenneth from Jacksonville
Tell us, Zone … What does it all mean?
My Scooby Sense – and not my Scobee or Spidey Sense – tells me you are asking what the Jaguars' 2026 Training Camp/Preseason means/meant, which is pertinent considering their '26 preseason ended with a 19-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at EverBank Stadium Friday. So … what did it mean? And more importantly, where do the Jaguars stand with the regular season two(ish) weeks away? The thought here is the Jaguars got done what they needed to get done the past few weeks, and the thought here is it was a very good sign that they seemed to improve – and be more encouraged about their progress – as the preseason continued. They were better against the Carolina Panthers in joint practice/Preseason Week 2 than they were against the New Orleans Saints in joint practice/Preseason Week 1. They were correspondingly better against the Buccaneers in joint practice/Preseason Week 3 than they were in joint practice/Preseason Week 2. Head Coach Liam Coen said while speaking to the media late Friday he particularly liked that the team's "physicality" against the Buccaneers – and that that area also seemed to improve as the preseason continued. That all gives this a feeling of a team moving in the right direction at the right time, and of being a maturing team that knows how to prepare. What does it mean for the 2026 regular season? That starts in two(ish) weeks against the Cleveland Browns – September 13 at EverBank Stadium. Stay tuned.
Tony from Johns Creek, GA
O, sweet baby Jesus! Bryan Thomas Jr. Jags be deep.
Thomas, a defensive end who signed with the Jaguars as a collegiate free agent following the 2026 NFL Draft, was unquestionably the standout player against the Buccaneers Friday. He had 2.5 sacks and four quarterback hurries and a pass defensed. That's impressive whatever the circumstance. He finished the preseason with 3.5 sacks. His performance Friday was consistent with standout practices throughout the preseason and he has made a serious push for a roster spot. The Jaguars' roster absolutely appears deeper than this time last preseason, with Thomas just one example.
JWG from Aurora, CO
Shoutout to all the players who will not make either the 53-man or practice-squad rosters. I greatly admire the dedication and effort of those players who continually put themselves out there chasing their dream, many times against long odds. The mental and physical toll on the players and their families is hard to fathom. The life and uncertainty of end-roster players is certainly not the glamorous life of the NFL most of us imagine.
True that.
Big Will from Jacksonville
Keep hearing the team only keeping three tight ends, but last year all of them were injured except Quintin Morris. Do you feel they need more than that?
I have received this question/email relatively often in recent weeks, and the answer remains the same: With the Jaguars expected to play more two- and three-tight end formations this season than in recent seasons, I expect them to keep four tight ends on the roster: Veteran Brenton Strange, rookie Nate Boerkircher, rookie Tanner Koziol and veteran Quintin Morris. I don't know where people are "hearing" that they are only keeping three tight ends. If you are going to play more tight ends, you need more tight ends. So, yeah … I "feel" they need more than three.
Fred from Naples, FL
Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton. Two similar stories; similar backgrounds and two icons. There will never be two like these two ever again.
True that, too.
John from Jacksonville
If you watch an NFL preseason game with the appropriate frame of mind, it's still better than a UFL or IFL game. The "playing against subpar competition" argument works both ways. A player may be better or worse than it appears. The game does not count, but that counts for sure. Why do they really play games that don't count? It is the money. The only way we will see no preseason games is when there is a 20-game regular season. So, why not give teams more roster flexibility to deal with the attrition of a 20-game season? Larger practice squads? Expanded rosters? Higher salary cap? It would be worth the cost to not have to watch a competition that doesn't count. The words "competition that doesn't count" don't make any sense at all.
I am not sure I have heard the words "competition that doesn't count," and I don't know what the league will do if and when it moves to a 20-game regular season. Expanding practice squads could be an option. I doubt owners will be in any hurry to expand rosters, if only because expanding practice squads is a cheaper path toward the same end. I actually don't know if in fact expanding the practice squads is all that necessary now. They are already at 16 players after beginning at five in the 1990s. How much more do you need to expand?
Jeremy from Riverview
Mr. O, in your opinion which of our receivers is the best pure route runner?
Jakobi Meyers, with a hat tip to Parker Washington.
Chris from Mandarin
When did the Jaguars remove the doors off of the lockers in the locker room? I have to admit, the image of you stuck in Tony Boselli's locker with nothing but your sweet, sweet ponytail sticking out isn't leaving my head. Believe me, I have tried.
The ponytail was not sweet, which explains its short – while admittedly legendary – lifespan. I never have been in an NFL locker room in which the lockers had "doors." Boselli always has known where to find me.
Not Average Joe from Jax
KOAF. Which defensive end had the better camp – Zach Durfee or Wesley Williams? Did Bryan Thomas Jr. outplay them both? Which two of these three do you think will make the 53?
Some things just aren't known until they are known.
JK from NY & Fernandina Beach, FL
Hey John. Is Josh Cameron intangibly rich? It sure seems that way. Go Jags!
Jaguars rookie wide receiver Josh Cameron does seem "intangibly rich." This alone doesn't make him unique among Jaguars rookies or veterans, but he does have those traits.
Josh from Lakewood
I do not know if this constitutes a scandal, but "The Pattern" on the Rivalries pants looks like it was AI generated. The inexplicable "S" at the end of San Marco, the arbitrary combo of neighborhoods and nicknames for Jacksonville, and I would bet dollars to donuts someone typed NAS JAX into their prompt and the computer thought it was two separate things. I have lived in Jacksonville for 30-plus years and I don't think I have ever heard the beaches referred to as "Out East."
You make a good point. It doesn't constitute a scandal.
Charles from Riverside
Hello, John. From what I can glean from the internet, during the early years of the NFL preseason games were really exhibition games driven by extra money? This slowly morphed back in the 1970s to the preseason as we sort of know it today, albeit now with fewer preseason games, but more regular season games. With the league potentially going to 18 games, is the current preseason configuration on the outs? Personally, I think joint practices have the advantage of actually seeing the starting players in action and greatly decreasing the possibility of a season or career ending injury (always a sad situation!). Also, as you have pointed out frequently, with 17 games, it really takes about the first quarter or so of the season to flesh out the strengths and weaknesses of most of the teams anyways. So, do we really need preseason games other than evaluating new players? How do you think this will shake out? Thanks.
I expect the league will move from 17 to 18 regular-season games in the foreseeable future and I expect the league will move from three to two preseason games at that time. I expect the norm when that happens to be coaches increasingly using joint practices to prepare "front-line" players for the regular season and use the preseason games for evaluating young players.
JAY from THE BURG, FL
It has been said before, up until the second Houston game last year the Jaguars team were trying to find their way. After that game you could see a different team. A fire had been lit. They got hungry and what is it to be hungry? It's unsatisfied. From listening to Coach Coen and quarterback Trevor Lawrence to the players, the whole team was unsatisfied – a bit angry, I guess. When you see a champion, you notice something different. It's how they practice, it's how they play. Hangry all the time. You think this team is Hangry, Mr. O?
The 2026 Jaguars from this view seem a very motivated team. We're on to the real thing now. Stay tuned.
