What Does the Win Over Denver Mean for Jacksonville?
The Jacksonville Jaguars arguably had their biggest matchup of the season on the road against the 12-2 Denver Broncos, and they showed up. The Jaguars left Denver with a 34-20 victory, keeping themselves in first place of the AFC South with an 11-4 record. With their 11th win, the Jaguars have now had their best season since the 2017 Sacksonville team that went 10-6 and to the AFC Championship. However, the season is not yet over for this Jaguars squad. The team will end the season with back-to-back games against division rivals. They head to the Indianapolis Colts next week and end the season with a home game against the Tennessee Titans. The team will have all eyes on the playoffs, as with this win, the Jaguars now own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Broncos, meaning the top seed in the AFC is not out of reach for Jacksonville.
Meanwhile, the Houston Texans remain right on Jacksonville’s tail with a win today over the Las Vegas Raiders, putting Houston at 10-5. All the Jaguars have to do after the victory against Denver is just win out, and they win the division title. Lose a game, or both, and the division could easily flip to the Texans. However, if Jacksonville keeps this six-game winning streak going, they won’t have to worry about that. Players like quarterback Trevor Lawrence are playing their best ball yet, as he ended the game against Denver with 279 passing yards and three touchdowns. Veteran wide receiver Parker Washington, who has been underrated in their passing game this season, had one of the best games of his career against the Broncos with six receptions for 145 yards and a touchdown.
The defense also showed they are here to stay after a fantastic performance against Sean Payton’s Broncos offense, which was considered one of the best in the league. Jarrian Jones had a huge interception off of quarterback Bo Nix late in the fourth quarter to put the momentum fully in favor of Jacksonville. Cornerback Montaric Brown had a huge hit late in the fourth quarter on Pat Bryant to show the true strength of Jacksonville’s secondary, although it ended in an injury for Bryant. The running game wasn’t great for Jacksonville, as Travis Etienne Jr. only had 50 rushing yards, but it was expected with Denver’s solid defensive line. If anything, the Jaguars need to be proud of this victory. It proved that Jacksonville should be taken seriously and that they can match up well against the other playoff teams and can potentially make a run for the Super Bowl.
