JACKSONVILLE – Senior writer John Oehser, senior correspondent Brian Sexton and team reporter/producer Kainani Stevens offer quick thoughts on the Jaguars as they prepare to play the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind., in a 2025 Week 17 game Sunday

John Oehser, Jaguars Senior Writer…

MVP? Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence‘s remarkable “turnaround” season has him deservingly in the discussion for a very big honor. We use quotes around “turnaround” because while Lawrence has improved dramatically in the last month, he never was playing as badly as many observers believed. Whatever Lawrence’s early level, he has ascended to a remarkable level remarkably quickly in recent weeks – and from this view, his three touchdowns passing and one rushing in a victory over the Denver Broncos this past Sunday marked the best performance in his five NFL seasons. He now has 26 passing touchdowns with seven rushing touchdowns and 11 interceptions for the season – and with 12 passing touchdowns, two rushing touchdowns and zero interceptions in the last four games, he has emerged as a late-season candidate for NFL Most Valuable Player. The thought here is he is as deserving as any candidate for that honor outside Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, whose career season of 40 passing touchdowns with five interceptions will be tough to beat. But it’s hard to dispute Lawrence’s case. He has accounted for 33 touchdowns this season, is quarterbacking perhaps the NFL’s best offense over the last eight weeks and has the Jaguars within a game of the AFC’s top seed. Lawrence MVP? Why not?
Coach of the Year? It’s the nature of the Jaguars’ uber-impressive six-game winning streak that we are spending these Christmas Day Quick Thoughts discussing year-end awards. The thought here is just as Lawrence deserves MVP consideration, Head Coach Liam Coen absolutely deserves Coach of the Year consideration. This award from this view should come down to Coen, Chicago Bears Head Coach Ben Johnson and New England Patriots Head Coach Mike Vrabel – and for several weeks, the thought here was Vrabel likely would win because the Patriots seemed headed for the AFC’s No. 1 seed. The Patriots still might secure that seed, but Coen absolutely is as deserving for the award as Vrabel or Johnson. One thing to consider: When the Pro Bowl rosters were announced this week, one Jaguars player was named to the game. That was long-snapper Ross Matiscik. Considering that apparent “lack of front-line talent” (sarcasm font), there must be some reason the Jaguars are playing as well as any team in the NFL. Maybe the head coach has done a decent job?