JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …
Michael from Orange Park, FL
Gaaaaaaaammeeedayy!!!!
I'm using my Scooby Sense – which is different, to be certain, than my "Scobee Sense" – to deduce you're excited about the Jaguars' 2024 preseason opener. It's against the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs at EverBank Stadium Saturday at 7 p.m. – and there indeed are plenty of reasons to be excited. First, it's a game between teams wearing real uniforms – and after an offseason spent grinding through free agency, the NFL Draft and non-padded practices, it's always good to do something real. And since training camp isn't really all that real, and because preseason games are at least close to real, there always is excitement around Preseason Week 1. There's also excitement anytime the Chiefs are involved these days as they currently are unquestionably the league's preeminent franchise. My sense is the biggest on-field reason for excitement for the Jaguars is getting a chance to see the new defense under first-year coordinator Ryan Nielsen. If 2024 Training Camp is any indication, you'll see a fast, aggressive and confident unit for the first few series. That won't mean it's a finished product. It won't automatically mean dominating the best player in the NFL, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. But for a series or two while the starters are playing, it will be realer football than we've seen since February. And that's some exciting stuff.
Larry from Wattsburg(h), PA
Not sure if Jaypee is being facetious, but would the purring be like Birdman?
The Jaguars open the 2024 preseason with a home game against the Kansas City Chiefs at EverBank Stadium Saturday night.
Johnny B from Howey In The Hills
Mr. O: One of the zone readers from yesterday said General Manager Trent Balke has drafted 10 of the existing starters. What's the count of draftees in what you expect to be the final 53? Assume five 2024 Draft rookies make the team. Go Jagggggss. Get the KC blues behind us...
Twenty-seven, give or take.
Pete from Queensbury, NY
John!! I missed your anniversary of August 9. Happy 13 years of O-Zone!
The first O-Zone actually was in February 2011. The first day of the O-Zone streak actually was August 8, 2011. I'm almost sure of it. But yes, it has been 13 years and a couple of days. And counting. Go Jaguars. Or something.
Cliff from Everywhere with helicopter
Have you given any thought to renaming this feature "The Typo Zone," roomie?
That's a stoopid idea.
Brad from The Avenues
I get it, John, that adding more games to the season will be harder on players. And the idea of two bye weeks in itself isn't so appealing, at least to fans anyway. But pushing the season two more weeks into February does have one advantage. The hope that in 2030 at the age of 72, I'll get to watch our guys win a Super Bowl ON MY BIRTHDAY!!!
There's no question adding a game to an already looong season will be difficult on players. And the NFL eventually moving to an 18-game regular season already has taken on an inevitable feel. We're also hearing conversation about extending training camps so that they start in early July or earlier, therefore shifting dramatically the NFL calendar. While these shifts will merely serve to alter what already is essentially a year-round calendar that includes free agency, the draft and offseason workouts, this old man can't help but see the push to extend all these things as overdoing a very good thing. For someone who grew up with mid-January Super Bowls and no bye weeks, two bye weeks and mid-to-late February Super Bowls just feels unnatural. It's the idea of a second regular-season bye week that I find particularly unnecessary. The league, which had no byes until 1990, had two byes in 1993 and the second bye just made the season feel disjointed and long. I have to go now. As usual, those kids are on my lawn. I gotta knock some heads.
John from Jacksonville
Hi, KOAGF - I find it bizarre that the topic of the Jags' offensive play-caller is a "thing" and even made it a story on the NFL site. Do people wonder who is calling the defensive plays and the special teams plays? Seems to be a waste of fanergy, especially when both Taylor and Pederson have been very good at it.
Loyal O-Zone readers – and he knows who he is – knows I've long considered the whole PlayCallingGate thing waaaaay overblown. Fans and observers overanalyze coaching in many situations, but the current furor over the Jaguars' play-calling has reached a weird extreme. To review: Jaguars Head Coach Doug Pederson has yet to announce who will call plays in 2024, saying Thursday that offensive coordinator Press Taylor will call them in the preseason. To review even further: Taylor called plays last season after Pederson and Taylor split the duties in 2022, when Pederson calling the first halves of games and Taylor calling second halves. Many Jaguars observers have associated the "dramatic fall" of the Jaguars' offense in 2023 with Taylor, conveniently ignoring that there was in fact little difference between the 2022 and 2023 offenses until quarterback Trevor Lawrence and wide receiver Christian Kirk were injured late in the 2023 seasons. Why the focus on this? My best guess is because it's easy to blame the play-caller for all that ails either side of the ball. Things don't look quite right? FIRE EVERYONE. Alas: It's always coaching in the NFL. Sometimes I forget that. You would think I would learn.
Pablo (not being nice again !) from Seville, Spain
JO, I'm using my sarcasm font. I am sure Bill B must have loved what Gus Bradley was doing with the Jags D as his Pats scored on every possession during the game. Belichick should have disingenuous as a middle name don't you think?
I'm not going to start – or extend – a debate on whether former New England Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick at times was given to CoachSpeak if only because all coaches are given to CoachSpeak at times. I'm also not going to debate that the Jaguars were any good on the day the Patriots scored on every possession in a 51-17 victory over the Jaguars in September 2015. All I said in discussing this recently was it was entirely possibly that Belichick liked some things then-Head Coach Gus Bradley was doing with the Jaguars' defense that season. Remember: That was a bad Jaguars team with a really deficient roster compared to the NFL's best. A coach could be doing a decent thing or two and not see anything close to positive results in that scenario.
Chevin from Jacksonville
Why was Ronald Darby so affordable?
Because Jaguars cornerback Ronald Darby is a 10-year veteran corner who has had periodic injury issues throughout his career. When healthy, he typically has played at a very high level. He has been healthy in '24 Jaguars camp and correspondingly appears to be playing very well.
JK from NY & Fernandina Beach, FL
John - I take no umbrage at your response to the T. Law "scheduled day off" idea. Of course Trevor is the Jags' leader and catalyst. And as the undisputed and highly-paid "franchise quarterback," he has an obligation to the team and the fans to show up each day in practice and especially on Game Day and give 100 percent. Moreover, a healthy Trevor clearly gives the Jags the best chance to win and he should get the start. But it was just an idea - you had me at the fourteen "Nos."
I will say that in retrospect more than 10 "nos" was too many "nos" considering the polite tone of your original suggestion/email/question. I lost my cool a bit, which I typically guard against. Why the emotional response in this case? It's probably the crusty old sportswriter in me recoiling at the thought of NFL players – who currently play 17 regular-season games – needing games off to trudge through an 18-game season. While I believe 18 regular-season games is at least two too many, it's just as true that part of being a good NFL player or team is navigating through hurts and wear and tear. One thing I want to reiterate: I was not saying in my answer that Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence shouldn't be rested or taken out for a week if injuries appear to be taking a toll on his performance. I was saying that Lawrence as the Jaguars quarterback should play all games when physically in condition to do so.
DuvalJag95 from J-ville
KOAF, please forgive me if my post isn't that nice but I thought this was a sports app where we talked all things Jags or possibly other sports. But John from PV is obviously on the wrong app talking climate. What is he? The climate police. Or is he just jealous Trevor got paid? Sad when people Pringle politics to a sports app. Let's GOOO Jags!!!
If you can't Pringle politics to a sports app where the hell are you supposed to pringle them?
