JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …
Peter from Barnegat, NJ
John, sometimes you have to win the close, ugly divisional games.
Good eye. The Jaguars on Sunday moved to within a game of the AFC South title with a scrappy, hard-fought 23-17 victory over the Indianapolis Colts (8-8) at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis – and it indeed was a close divisional game. Was it ugly? That depends on how you look at it, I suppose. The Jaguars did have two red-zone turnovers and needed to grind out a victory with fourth-quarter field goals of 42 and 53 yards by kicker Cam Little – and some clutch defensive plays. But you're going to have to win some close games in the NFL to win division titles. This is a tough league. The Jaguars entered Sunday having won four consecutive games by 14 points or more, and it's really hard to blow teams out every week. The Jaguars moved to 12-4 with the victory – their best record through 16 games since 2005 – and their seven-game winning streak is the second-longest active winning streak in the NFL. They can clinch the AFC South with a victory over the 3-13 Tennessee Titans at EverBank Stadium Sunday at 1 p.m. There's an awful lot of beauty for Jaguars fans in those last two sentences.
Josh from Atlanta, GA
What a classic end-of-season divisional game. They pulled it out, even with so many mistakes. Remains a very good team. Do you see the offensive line getting healthier this week?
The Jaguars' victory Sunday indeed had a classic division-game feel. More specifically, it had a classic late-season division feel. The Jaguars beat the Colts for a second time in four weeks and it's hard to beat a team a second time in so short a period. The teams know one another. What worked before doesn't always work as well. Credit the Jaguars for grinding their way to a big victory – and yes, they absolutely remain a good team. Will the offensive line be healthier next week? Stay tuned.
Hobo from Near the Mangroves
We played a wounded team. How much work needs to be done?
The season is not over. There is always work to be done if the season is not over.
Scott from Jax in Rehoboth Bch De.
Am I dreaming, O-man? If so, please don't wake me. Duuuuuuuval!!!
You're not dreaming. The Jaguars are in first place in the AFC South. They have won seven consecutive games. They can still be the AFC's top seed. They're as good as any team in the AFC. Buckle up.
Cliff from Orange Park, FL
Wow, you could see it on Liam's face that this is real. Is he ready, are they ready, is the moment too big?
Jaguars Head Coach Liam Coen takes football seriously. It's unsurprising that he would have a serious look on his face with playoff seeding and a division title still in the Jaguars' grasp. Why would the moment be too big? What has been too big for this team this season?
Big Jags Fan from Jacksonville
Whew! Jaguars players and Liam made mistakes at key times. O, you had to have been twitching on the fourth-down tries while passing on the field-goal attempts! Go Jags!
I was not.
Dwayne from Jacksonville
Not a pretty win. But Denver, New England and Houston all won ugly, too. Good company.
Professional football is hard. The Jaguars had won four consecutive games by 14 or more points entering Sunday. You don't win by 14 points in professional football every week. This is because professional football is hard.
JT from Palm Coast, FL
Great teams find a way to win when they didn't play anything close to their best. Very impressive win.
Indeed they do. Indeed it was.
James from Socorro, NM
Two (kind of three) turnovers in the red zone and still won on the road against a division opponent.
This is a good point. The Jaguars not only had two red-zone turnovers Sunday – a lost fumble on a lateral by wide receiver Jakobi Meyers in the first quarter and an end-zone interception thrown by quarterback Trevor Lawrence late in the first half – they turned the ball over on downs at the Colts 24 when Lawrence was stopped on fourth-and-1 from the Colts 24 in the fourth quarter. That's a lot of points not scored when a lot of points could have and maybe should have been scored. It's similar to when the Jaguars beat the Arizona Cardinals, 27-24, in overtime in November despite four turnovers. When you can win on the road making those sorts of mistakes, you have a good team. You're a better team if you don't make the mistakes, but it's good to be able to win despite them. Really good.
Richard from Jacksonville
That-was-a-scrapy-win!
Indeed.
Bobby From Section 408 and Summerville
Hi, John. Wasn't pretty, but we will take it. Definitely not "the same old Jags." They would have lost this game.
The Jaguars have been good all season. They never have been under .500, they now have won seven consecutive games and they are a game from the AFC South title. They have beaten a slew of good teams including – but not limited to – the San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans, Los Angeles Chargers and Denver Broncos. They are not and have not been all season the "same old Jags."
Al from Orange Park, FL
Game ball to Montaric Brown??
Jaguars cornerback Montaric Brown was credited with two pass breakups and a tackle for loss Sunday. It felt like he played better than those statistics indicated. Game ball to Brown? Sure. Why not?
Jim from Middleburg, FL
Hey, John. Ugly is great. When you win on your worst game, that's great news. Ugly is Great. DUUUUVVVAL.
Winning is cool. Winning is beautiful. Fans like it. Or something like that.
Ken from Northport
Joe Gibbs once said, "Win first, then get good." The Jags are winning. Now time to get good.
The Jaguars have won seven consecutive games. They have beaten the 11-5 Los Angeles Chargers and the 12-3 Denver Broncos during that streak. They have beaten the Colts twice during that streak. The Colts would be 10-6 if they had won those games against the Jaguars. The Jaguars already are good and have been good all season.
Nicholas from Sun City, Florida
KOAF: This SMT became the Cardiac Cats again. Those last two minutes had me on edge.
Your quarterback doesn't kneel at the end of every game in the NFL. You don't play your walk ons at the end of games. This is not the Southeastern Conference.
Shawn from Jacksonville
When the Jags are in a must-make third-and-1 or fourth-and-1, why don't they pull out one of their gadget plays like they used to seal the comeback victory over the Chargers two years ago? That one totally caught the charged off guard. They're making more quarterback sneaks, but they can be risky.
This is a different coaching staff than the one that coached against the Chargers in the 2022 postseason. Good calls in the NFL are the ones that work. Bad ones are the ones that don't work.
Bob from Weaverville, NC
It was great to see this team hold it together in a game that I don't think they hold together in seasons past! A new age is upon us fans, O-Man!!!!! We are very blessed to have the coaching staff we do! Hopefully we can get back our two injured starting linemen for the playoffs. Does homefield advantage in the wild card round extend to the divisional round?
Teams play at home in the postseason if they are the lower seed whatever the round.
Mike from Duval
Is that pick Trevor threw in the end zone more on him trying to force something or the defense making a really good play? My initial thought was "here we go again" but then I started to tell myself sometimes defenses are just good.
Lawrence threw to wide receiver Parker Washington in the end zone late in the second quarter on the play to which you're referring. He was being single covered by a linebacker on the play, and Washington one-on-one with a linebacker typically is a good decision. The linebacker, Germaine Pratt, in this case made a good play. NFL quarterbacks throw interceptions. I once watched Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning throw six interceptions in a game. He didn't win the Most Valuable Player Award that season, but he won it in five other seasons. Lawrence is going to throw interceptions. Every interception is not "here we go again." He's good. That's what we're watching.
Tony from Johns Creek, GA
O, it was ugly, but I'll take it. The refs were horrible for both teams.
It's always officiating in the NFL.
Steve from Shreveport, LA
Whew!!
The Jaguars can clinch their third AFC South title in nine seasons with a victory over the Tennessee Titans at EverBank Stadium Sunday at 1 p.m.
