The Jacksonville Jaguars will roll into Week 8 as 5.5-point favorites over the New York Jets who are coming off a tough loss to the New England Patriots, which ended with the final score of 33-0. Of course, that will motivate them to roll into TIAA Bank Field ready to bounce back, especially with the last loss to the Jags leaving a bad taste in their mouths. Considering this, and the old-school way that both teams play, Sunday’s game could be one that goes down to the wire and Jags fans should approach this game with caution.
Here are three causes for concern from the Jags’ perspective as they will look to come out of Sunday with a victory:
Injuries
The Jags are going into Sunday’s game with just two of their three starting linebackers. Leon Jacobs and Najee Goode were ruled out on the final injury report, leaving Myles Jack as the lone starter. The Jags signed linebacker Malcolm Smith, Donald Payne and brought Joe Giles-Harris off the practice squad and it wouldn’t be shocking to see all three get playing time on defense.
The Jags will be without defensive Marcell Dareus, too, who was placed on injured reserve Friday. When adding his abilities against the run with those of Jacobs and Goode, the Jags could be up for a rough day against the run, much like fans witnessed against the Carolina Panthers.
Some will be quick to point out that the Jets will be without two starters on the offensive line in Kelvin Beachum and Kelechi Osemele, however, the Panthers were down several starters on their offensive line when Christian McCaffrey ran wild on the Jags, too. Ultimately, that means we’ll have to see how the Jags fare Sunday.
Robby Anderson’s speed
Back in their 2017 meeting, Robby Anderson only had three receptions for 59 yards against the Jags but they were three important catches as he averaged over 19 yards against them in a 23-20 victory for the Jets. He was an issue for the Jags when targeted deep and that was when the team had what most considered an elite group. However, in 2018, the Jags held Anderson to just two catches for 18 yards and ended up winning the game handily by a score of 32-12. To me, that may be an indication of his ability to impact the game with explosive plays.
The Jags will need to keep Anderson in check as a deep threat but that won’t be easy without Jalen Ramsey. Just as the Jags’ opponents have before, Adam Gase may target Ramsey’s replacement, Tre Herndon, and they may especially look to do so when he’s lined up against Anderson. Clearly, defensive coordinator Todd Wash is going to have to be mindful of this and it will be interesting to see if the Jags counter Anderson’s speed if he starts the game off hot.
Le’Veon Bell could come to life
The last time the Jags faced Le’Veon Bell was in the divisional round of the 2017 AFC playoffs when he was with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He had a good game as a rusher and a pass-catcher, racking up 155 total yards and two touchdowns against them. That said, he’s a player who is even more of a threat than Anderson despite him coming into the game with just 100 carries for 326 yards and a touchdown.
As previously mentioned, the Jags will be without two of there three starting linebackers and Dareus. Knowing this, the gameplan for the Jets could be to get Bell going in between the tackles. Bell could also find success as a pass catcher as he’ll find himself matched up with the Jags makeshift cast of linebackers often in the game. How the group responds on defense will ultimately be the biggest key of the game if the Jags are to win.
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