Jacksonville is looking to begin the new season 2-0, but must go on the road to face a desperate Denver Broncos team hoping to avoid an 0-2 start. Who wins this early-season matchup between two AFC heavyweights?
The Jacksonville Jaguars are looking to start the new season 2-0 after an impressive 34-10 beatdown of the Cleveland Browns in Week 1.
To do so, they will have to find a way to walk into a hostile environment and beat the Denver Broncos in Denver on Sunday.
The Jaguars should head into their heavyweight road matchup against last year's AFC top seed with confidence. One of Jacksonville's nine consecutive regular-season wins was a 34-20 victory at Denver last December.
In that game, quarterback Trevor Lawrence and wide receiver Parker Washington were the stars. Washington caught six passes for 145 yards and a touchdown, one of the three touchdowns thrown by Lawrence. The QB continued his torrid play with 279 passing yards, no interceptions, and another touchdown on the ground.
Denver is coming into Sunday's contest on the heels of a 31-10 season-opening defeat at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football.
The Broncos will desperately be trying to avoid starting the new season 0-2. In a division with the Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers, who were a popular dark-horse pick to reach the Super Bowl before losing at home to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1, Denver can ill-afford to dig itself an early-season hole.
Jaguars Offense Vs Broncos Defense
One of the most exciting matchups in this game will be when the Jaguars' offense goes up against the Broncos' defense.
Jacksonville's offense has been running like a well-oiled machine dating back to last season. Lawrence, especially, has been on a tear.
However, if Jacksonville wants to win this game, the offense should commit to running the ball early and often. Denver gave up 220 yards on the ground to the Chiefs on Monday, including two touchdowns.
An effective ground game should help neutralize Denver's lethal pass rush and let Jacksonville control the game, allowing Lawrence to pick and choose his spots.
Broncos Offense vs Jaguars Defense
The Jaguars' defense looked terrific against Cleveland last week. Jacksonville recorded five sacks, forced two turnovers, and held the Browns to 272 total yards, 89 of which came on their final drive, down 34-3.
It may have only been against the Browns, but Jacksonville's defense started the new campaign with a dominant effort.
Now it goes up against a Broncos offense that didn't have a very good showing against Kansas City. Quarterback Bo Nix only threw for 131 yards. Nix was sacked four times, lost a fumble, and threw an interception. He finished with an abysmal QBR of 13.9.
New Broncos wide receiver Jaylen Waddle had a forgettable debut with his new team. Waddle had only a single catch for two yards against the Chiefs, not quite what Denver was expecting when it sent a first, third, and fourth-round pick to the Miami Dolphins for Waddle and a fourth-round pick.
Who Wins?
When the schedule was released, this game looked like it would probably be a Jacksonville loss.
However, the way these two teams played in Week 1 couldn't have been any different. The Jaguars started the season looking like one of the NFL's best teams, while the Broncos were trounced and embarrassed on national TV.
While I expect a better showing from Denver on Sunday, Lawrence and the Jaguars are playing too well right now. Until they actually lose a game, it's almost impossible to pick against the Jaguars.
Prediction: Jaguars 27, Broncos 17
