JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – It’s a short turnaround for a game dripping with storylines.
There is the Jaguars continued playoff hunt. The matchup of the top two quarterbacks from the 2021 draft. A chance to face James Robinson. And, then there is the opportunity for the Jaguars to continue to show the strides they’ve made in the biggest media market in the country. Where to start?
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Why not the quarterbacks?
Truth be told, the Jaguars were never going to draft someone other than Trevor Lawrence last April, but there were those around the NFL draft process who tried to make it a tough decision between Lawrence and Zach Wilson.
And as the 2021 season played out, it looked like maybe they were right to have done so. But once Doug Pederson arrived, things changed. Now, Lawrence is ascending into a stratus rarely reached by Jaguars quarterbacks. In the past six games, Lawrence has thrown 14 touchdown passes and one interception. In that stretch, he has completed over 70% of his passes and is averaging 280 passing yards per game. He has also run for a touchdown. The Jaguars have won four of those six games and now hold their playoff destiny in their own hands.
Wilson has gone in the opposite direction. He was supplanted by Mike White as the starter after Week 9. He has started two more games since because of injuries. Against New England a month ago, Wilson completed nine passes. Nine. The Jets managed a field goal in a 10-3 loss. On Sunday against the Lions, Wilson completed just over half of his passes with two touchdowns and an interception in a 20-17 home loss. His season stats show a 5-3 record, but a completion percentage that is lower than in his rookie year. He’s clearly a young quarterback having trouble adjusting.
There were eight quarterbacks taken in the first three rounds of the NFL draft in 2021. There is no question who the best of them is right now. It’s Lawrence.
As for the reunion with Robinson, in four games since being traded to New York, the undrafted running back has been used sparingly — 29 carries for 85 yards and two receptions, including one for a touchdown. He hasn’t been a major factor in the Big Apple. He has not played the past two weeks, although he has not appeared on the injury report. Will we see him on Thursday night?
And then there is the march to the playoffs for the Jaguars. It’s simple — at least it can be. If the Jaguars win Thursday night, then at Houston on New Year’s Day and home against the Titans in Week 18, they’re in. If the Jaguars slip up against the Jets or Texans, then they would need a Titans loss against Houston or Dallas to make the final-week showdown a de facto AFC South championship game.
There are certain stages that bring more attention to smaller market NFL teams like the Jaguars. Playing on Sunday night football. Or Monday night. Often, Thursday night games are not seen the same way. But when you play in New York, where the league is headquartered, there will be more eyes, and influential eyes, watching. If the Jaguars deliver a big performance, expect to see more love given to the team nationally, as we have seen since the win over the Cowboys.