JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …

Glenn from Tampa, FL

So … Mahomes is, in fact, mortal. And defense does, in fact, still win championships. Who'd have thought?

The Philadelphia Eagles dominated the Kansas City Chiefs, 40-22, in Super Bowl LIX Sunday. The margin of victory was surprising, but it wasn't hard to analyze. The Eagles' lines were better than the Chiefs' lines – and in particular, the Eagles' defensive line was much better than the Chiefs' offensive line. That meant the game's best player, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, was ineffective for most of the game. Great quarterbacks often make the difference in Super Bowls. The exception to this is when the opposing defense can consistently disrupt those great quarterbacks. When that happens, defense wins championships. As happened Sunday in New Orleans.

Michael from Orange Park, FL

Wait, Zone. I thought the NFL wanted the Chiefs to win.

There has been a narrative in recent seasons that the NFL for whatever reason was conspiring to allow the Chiefs to win. It was a silly, misinformed narrative – as silly as the similar narrative that officials somehow favored the New England Patriots or other teams in the past. Of course the league doesn't do this. To do so would jeopardize the integrity of the league with nothing to gain by doing so. Perhaps Sunday's result will silence that narrative – at least for a while.

Al from Orange Park, FL

May I be an old guy and write, "Defense wins championships?" Or, should I be an old guy and write, "it's all about winning in the trenches. BOTH trenches?"

You can write both. Because both are true.

John from Jax

So glad that's over. Jags are tied for first again!

Yep.

Johnny B from Howey in The Hills

Dr. O: I'm disappointed that so little publicity was made when our rookie kicker, Cam Little, made the NFL All-Rookie Team along with wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. Hey, great draft – especially with these two. Also, so glad Heath Farwell was retained as special teams coordinator. Three positions - two Pro Bowlers, one All-Rookie ... not bad. What say you?

I don't know that Jaguars kicker Cam Little being named All-Rookie this past season was all that overlooked. Or all that unusual. All-Rookie teams typically aren't that hyped. They're announced, noted and the world moves forward. But yeah … the Jaguars' special teams were good this past season. Punter Logan Cooke and long snapper Ross Matiscik were Pro Bowl selections and Little was named All-Rookie. Good stuff.

Nick from Annapolis, MD

I think what is most frustrating about the Fred Taylor HOF situation is that Pete Prisco is absolutely campaigning for him, telling other voters to ask people who know how good he was if he should be in. It's one thing if no one is there to campaign for him and his tape and recommendations aren't overwhelming, but people like Tom Coughlin are there to help inform the voters. And alas, still not in.

Former Jaguars running back Fred Taylor not being in the Pro Football Hall of Fame absolutely and correctly is frustrating to Jaguars fans and observers – and him not being elected this year without question adds to the frustration. He is unquestionably deserving. And the support of former Jaguars Head Coach Tom Coughlin – and from CBS NFL analyst Pete Prisco – in the long run will help his cause. Remember, though: Every Hall finalist is deserving, and every Hall finalist has at least one prominent media member, at least one former coach and many peers speaking favorably for him. The main issue this year wasn't so much that Taylor was not elected but that the rules were tightened, with the result being three modern-era electees rather than the usual five. There are too many worthy candidates to reduce the number of electees. That's the wrong direction.

Jake from Cary, NC

You noted that the scouting group "is more about gathering and processing information than making decisions and therefore often remains in place." Since our ability to make decisions is only as good as the information we have available to base those decisions on, I wonder if this group should be more critically evaluated as a weak point in our franchise. Especially if it's one of the few football-based groups that seems to survive across our many failed regimes.

It seems you missed my point, which only means I did a poor job making it. Whenever the Jaguars struggle, and whenever fans and observers look for reasons for those struggles, I get a few questions asking to evaluate or fire the scouting department. While scouting departments undergo change over the long-term as scouts move through their careers, most teams don't overhaul the entire scouting department when leadership changes. This confuses some observers because it's in contrast to coaching, when staffs are almost always overhauled when there is a head-coaching change. The reason is because the roles of scouts differ depending on levels. Lower-level – or area scouts – are information gatherers. They must know the schools, players and personnel in their areas intimately – and there is therefore value to having scouts work areas for an extended time to establish relationships. Turnover there can be a negative. These scouts aren't necessarily shaping the decision-making at the top as much as they are providing data for higher-level scouts to review and make the ultimate decisions. These scouts are critically evaluated and there is change where change is warranted. But that doesn't mean teams are remiss in not overhauling the scouting department when a team has a few losing seasons in succession.

Rich from Dacula, GA

I see we have both our coordinators on board. Observation is the staff is reeeally young. So we've made the turnaround complete and now we'll have a lot of first-timers. That seems like someone has installed a directive to go young and let's all learn together. There will be mistakes, but hope they learn quickly. If I was a player over the age of 27, I'd be concerned about being a Jaguar next year. Change is coming very fast. This is what the fans wanted so now we've made our bed, it will be time to lay in it. Are you concerned? Last year that was the theme you were concerned about getting too old.

I was concerned last offseason about the Jaguars signing too many 10-year veterans as unrestricted free agents. I wondered about paying big money to get old with players other teams didn't want – and I worried about those players' ability to play at a high level for an entire season at that age. As far as the direction this offseason, I'm not concerned or unconcerned yet – because we don't know the direction yet. We do know the coaching staff. But a general manager hasn't been hired. Once Head Coach Liam Coen and the next general manager meet and start determining the direction … that's when we'll start being able to know the direction. Then we'll know how to feel about it.

Art from Glassboro, NJ

Winning is the bottom line and nothing we are doing guarantees a winning season. But man, it feels good to have your favorite team functioning like a professional football team. Jag fans finally have something they can be excited about.

The excitement around the Jaguars is real. It feels like hope around here. Given the number of times Jaguars fans have heard this sentiment before, I understand if many want to wait and see results before being excited. But it's real.

David from Ormond Beach, FL

For three years I have been yelling at the television when the offensive line can't get short-yardage first downs or touchdowns. They have kinda, sorta changed old linemen for different old linemen. Not good enough. Is this the year Shad says enough is enough and invest in big strong athletic offensive linemen and a top-tier running back?

There's no indication that Jaguars owner Shad Khan ever has been opposed to a dominant, run-blocking offensive line. The team in fact has invested big-time draft capital (left tackle Walker Little, Round 2, 2020; right tackle Anton Harrison, Round 1, 2023; running back Travis Etienne Jr., Round 1, 2021) and high-end free-agent dollars (Brandon Scherff, 2022) in this area.

Sean from Oakleaf, FL

Where do you stand on the issue of the 17th regular-season game allowing for longstanding franchise and league records to be "broken" by playing an extra game compared to the record holders from the past?

I don't know that it's a particularly huge issue. It's certainly unfair to players from the 16-game era that their records get broken in the 17-game era, just as it was unfair to players from the 14-game era that their records were broken in the 16-game era, just as it was…

Jordan from Mandarin

O-Line and D-Line. Draft early and often. I don't want to even entertain the idea of any other position. If you dominate the trenches, the rest of the team will get better.

Fair.