n the Jacksonville Jaguars' home game this Sunday versus the Buffalo Bills, the Buffalo Bills have been picked by many to win. And, like usual, Jacksonville fans groaned at the sight of people overlooking them. After all, the Jaguars are one of the hottest teams in the NFL, winning nine of their last ten games heading to the playoffs. And in those wins, they have defeated playoff teams like the Los Angeles Chargers and the Denver Broncos. But even with those things, people still don’t believe in the Jaguars. But here are two big things to watch in this game that could lead to a Jaguars win and show the rest of the NFL world that the Jaguars are a team people need to take seriously.
The Buffalo Bills have one of the best rushing attacks in the NFL. With the NFL’s leading rusher in James Cook, the Bills average 159.6 yards per game rushing. To any normal team, that would be something to worry about seriously. But in this game, they are facing the NFL's best rushing defense. The Jacksonville Jaguars are only allowing 85.6 yards per game on the ground. If things stay status quo, then this game shifts to being on the back of quarterback Josh Allen to carry them. And we have seen this season that the Bills don’t have it like they used to with their weapons in the passing game. They only currently have one wide receiver over 700 yards this season, Khalil Shakir. Other than that, they only have one other receiving threat over 500 yards in tight end Dalton Kincaid. With that said, the absence of the running game means Josh Allen will have to do things himself. And with an ankle injury he has been dealing with since Week 16, there is no guarantee he will be able to do the things he can do.
The run defense of the Jaguars has been incredible all year, but they aren’t the only thing that has been on fire for Jacksonville. Trevor Lawrence has been playing great as the season winds down. Since the calendar turned to December, Lawrence has thrown for an average of 274.2 yards per game while throwing 13 touchdowns and only one interception, while running for another four touchdowns. The way he threatens a defense is not on the level of Josh Allen's physicality running the ball, but he can definitely cause some issues for one of the worst run defenses in football. And with cornerback Christian Benford just coming back from injury and the multiple weapons the Jaguars have now to threaten teams through the air, that could mean problems for the Bills' defense in this one. And one other thing to consider: the Bills have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL. The Jags don’t necessarily have the best run offense, but they can do enough to make the Bills pay.
The run defense and the play of Trevor Lawrence have been at the forefront of the Jaguars' uptick in play down the stretch. And it will be essential if they hope to continue their season by beating the Buffalo Bills.