We are three days away from an electric AFC Wild Card battle between the Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars. It could very well be the best AFC game of the weekend considering the other matchups.
You have the Chargers traveling to the Patriots in a game where New England should take care of business with no issue. Then on Monday Night Football, the Houston Texans are traveling to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers, but the Texans’ defense is ferocious and could make life very difficult for Aaron Rodgers.
With Buffalo and Jacksonville, you could make the argument that the Jaguars have the better overall team, but Buffalo is the one that has the best player on the field.
Heading into this showdown in northern Florida, we had the chance to speak with Carlos Sanchez, Site Expert for Black & Teal, covering the Jaguars and Sanchez was able to provide some great insight about Jacksonville going into Sunday.
Bills vs. Jaguars insightful info for fans to know about
1.) Josh Allen has been phenomenal in the playoffs (32 total touchdowns to just 4 interceptions). What weaknesses do the Jaguars have on defense that Allen could attack?
"The Jaguars have a pretty well-rounded defense that excels at creating takeaways. Linebacker Devin Lloyd and safety Antonio Johnson combined for 10 interceptions, and cornerback Jarrian Jones tallied another three. Having said that, Josh Allen is the kind of quarterback who can shred a defense, regardless of how good it is, and if there's one weakness the Bills could exploit is their lack of talent at defensive tackle.
In fact, Travon Walker has recently been lining up more on the interior and next to Josh Hines-Allen because Jacksonville doesn't have a solid defensive tackle aside from Arik Armstead."
2.) There's no denying that Jacksonville's offense has been electric this season. Outside of Trevor Lawrence, who is a big-time X factor on offense for the Jaguars, and why?
"There are a couple of players that could give Buffalo a bit of trouble: Tight end Brenton Strange and wide receiver Parker Washington. Both of them have become Trevor Lawrence's must-trusted targets this season, but aside from those two, Bills defense coordinator Ryan Nielsen cannot lose track of Brian Thomas Jr. and Jakobi Meyers. The former gives Jacksonville's offense an element of verticality, while the latter gives Trevor Lawrence a sure-handed option that has a knack for moving the chains.
This is a long-winded way to say that the Lawrence has no shortage of weapons, and Nielsen may have his hands full trying to slow the Jags down."
3.) Jacksonville beat Buffalo back in the 2017-2018 playoffs, winning 10-3. Do you believe it could be a similar result or do you believe that it will be a high-scoring game?
"Leaving aside that the outcome of a past game doesn't have a bearing in the next one, I think this one has the potential to turn into a shootout. Back in 2017, Josh Allen was one year away from being drafted by Buffalo, and Trevor Lawrence hadn't even gone to college yet!
Now, Allen and Lawrence are two of the remaining quarterbacks in the playoffs, and both have shown the potential to carry their respective teams on their shoulders, so I wouldn't be surprised if they end up lighting up the scoreboard."
4.) What do you believe are the main factors for Jacksonville to get a win against Buffalo?
"There are a few things going in the Jaguars' favor, even if they're the underdogs. For starters, the game will be at EverBank, so they should have a bit of an edge by virtue of being the home. Moreover, Liam Coen has shown that he belongs, even though he's only been the head coach for one season. I don't think his experience, or lack thereof, will be an issue. Add the fact that Jacksonville has excelled in all three phases, and they have a legitimate shot.
So this won't be a David-and-Goliath kind of matchup. Instead, this is a game where two of the top teams in the AFC will face off, and both have a realistic chance to win, so it could most definitely go either way."