Jaguars Mailbag: What the Texans Game Means, Debating the Titans' QB And More

Each week during this year's season, Jaguar Report will take Jacksonville Jaguars-related questions from our readers across social media and answer them in a question-and-answer format, giving readers a chance to have their voices heard.

You can submit your questions every week by tweeting them to the Jaguar Report Twitter handle or by submitting them here.

This week we take questions on the Jaguars' upcoming game vs. the Houston Texans, the Tennessee Titans' quarterbacks and more.

Q: Should the Jaguars really be playing their starters? This game feels like one they can afford to

A: Personally, my belief is they should be full-steam ahead, just as they are preparing to be. This belief is rooted in a few things.

For one, the locker room wouldn't want to sit this week. That doesn't mean every decision a team makes should be based on how their players feel, but the vibe in the Jaguars' locker room this week is the Jaguars badly want to get another chance at the Texans after their Week 5 loss to Houston at home. The Jaguars have had some frustrating losses in 2022, but I am not sure any sting as much today as that 13-6 loss. The Jaguars were the better team that day but self-inflicted mistakes caused them to lose a pivotal divisional game.

Secondly, the Jaguars do need the momentum to keep going. The Jaguars are not in the same situation as the Titans, who have been dealing with dozens of injuries and a long, painful downward spiral during their losing streak. The Jaguars are the hot team, playing their best football and playing with a lot of confidence. If the Jaguars want to play well when it counts in Week 18, then a good game in Week 17 only helps them.

Lastly, the Jaguars need Trevor Lawrence to stack another good game and keep his own momentum going more than anything else. If the Jaguars want to make noise in Week 18 and beyond, it will take Lawrence continuing his hot streak and elevating his play. Not giving him a chance to have another big game ahead of the Titans' game would be wrong.

Q: What is our best and worst first-round matchup?

A: Best? The Baltimore Ravens. Lamar Jackson is an exceptional talent, but the Ravens' offense doesn't present the receivers and general passing game that could hurt the Jaguars like some of the other teams. The Jaguars are built to stop the run, and they did so the last time vs. the Ravens. Plus, Jacksonville has proven they can have success against Baltimore's secondary.

Worst? The Cincinnati Bengals. Joe Burrow and his trio of pass-catchers is not the matchup the Jaguars want to see in the first-round considering the strengths and weaknesses of the Jaguars' defense, and the Bengals' defense is strong enough to at least make things difficult for Trevor Lawrence at times.

Q: What are the chances of Calvin Ridley being reinstated for next season? In case he's eligible, how do you see the WR group? Who stays and who goes? Thank you from Italy for the great work, let's go Jags!

A: It would be a shock if Calvin Ridley isn't reinstated for next season. I do not think the Jaguars would have made the trade without having a lot of confidence in that, and I do not think there is anything in the NFL's history to indicate they would punish Ridley longer than his allotted year.

In terms of who goes, I think Marvin Jones tests the market as a free-agent. I wonder about Jamal Agnew, too, considering he will have a cap hit of nearly $6 million as a return man and No. 4 receiver. Tim Jones will stay because he has a niche role in the offense and has done a lot to impress the staff. Kendric Pryor will likely have to compete for a spot.

Q: If a big-bodied WR was available for trade like Courtland Sutton what would you give up for him? Would you even trade for someone like him, or roll with Engram, Ridley, Kirk, Zay?

A: Honestly, if it isn't broke, don't fix it. Zay Jones may not have the same value to other teams as he does with the Jaguars, but it is clear he is both a fit in the offense and locker room and has shown he can thrive with Trevor Lawrence. Would Jones be At face value, keeping Jones and Kirk and Engram in the mix makes more sense for the Jaguars than it does to scramble the room very much. The offense should be added to, not taken away from.

Q: Don’t NFL teams have a moral obligation to play all healthy starters for the sake of the fans who pay good money to attend the games?

A: Eh, you could make that argument, though the NFL and moral obligations do not usually go hand-in-hand.

Q: Would the Jaguars be better suited addressing slot cornerback via free agency versus the draft? It’s an important role, as we’ve seen this season, and it seems to be difficult to project a position change from outside to the slot. Not sure what the FA class looks like, so that probably has an impact as well.

A: If the Jaguars bring in any new additions this offseason, I believe most will come from the draft. Darious Williams has done enough that with another strong month of play, he will have established himself as the answer in 2023 at outside cornerback across from Tyson Campbell. Nickel cornerback would be the biggest need in the secondary, but that also isn't really a position you need to invest a first-round pick in. The Jaguars will have a lot more options in April thanks to Williams' play as of late.

Q: Should the Jaguars want to play Josh Dobbs or Malik Willis next week?

A: This is a tough one, but probably Willis. Willis is an exceptional runner, something the Jaguars have struggled against at the quarterback position this year, but Dobbs was better as a pure passer after only eight days with the team. Neither is a particularly intimidating threat, but Dobbs does likely give the Titans a better chance to win in Week 18. The Jaguars will have to prove them wrong.

Q: Do we re-sign Jawaan Taylor? Franchise tag? Walker Little has looked good at left tackle but Taylor has had a great year

A: My prediction is the Jaguars will see Jawaan Taylor sign elsewhere in free-agency, with Walker Little entering the offseason as a starter at right tackle. The Jaguars drafted Little at No. 45 a year ago to be a starter one day down the road, and the belief inside the building for two years and by two different staffs has been that he is a starting-caliber NFL tackle.

With Cam Robinson entering year two of his extension next year and a lock to start at left tackle, it just makes more sense for the Jaguars to let Taylor walk and get a potential compensatory pick for him. It usually wouldn't make sense to let a player of Taylor's talent, age, position, and durability to walk, but the Jaguars are in a rare position where they have a player ready to take over at the position.

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