Jacksonville, FL– After losing three consecutive games in a row, the Jacksonville Jaguars will be traveling to Tampa Bay in an effort to get back in the win column as they take on the Buccaneers in a week 15 (Sunshine State) matchup.
The Buccaneers are currently on a roll right now with three wins in a row, and they’re sitting atop the NFC South after the Saints’ loss on Thursday night to the Rams. Tampa has a very favorable schedule to close out the regular season as they will play the Jaguars, Saints, and Panthers. The Buccaneers could very well be on their way to six wins in a row and finishing 10-7 if they take care of business.
The injury report is stacking up for the Jaguars with the most notable injury being with quarterback Trevor Lawrence. Both Zay Jones (knee/hamstring) and Trevor Lawrence (ankle/concussion) were listed as a DNP (did not practice) on both Wednesday and Thursday, so their status is still up in the air. Third-year secondary players Tyson Campbell and Andre Cisco both missed last week’s game versus the Ravens and were limited in practice this week. On the offensive line, both Walker Little and Ezra Cleveland were limited in practice and will be looking to get healthy for the potential of CJ Bethard at quarterback.
Despite Tampa being in the bottom half of the league in terms of points, rushing, passing, and total yards per game on the offensive side of the ball, this team can get hot in a hurry. Baker Mayfield has quietly had a very productive season as he has thrown for 3,315 yards, including 24 touchdowns and just eight interceptions. He has great weapons everywhere you look with Mike Evans, who is a future first-ballot hall of famer, Chris Godwin, who is on pace to have another 1,000-yard season alongside Mike Evans, and second-year back Rachaad White, who has been very productive for this team. Baker’s offensive line led by Tristian Wirfs has done a great job of keeping him clean as they’ve only allowed 33 sacks on the season which ranks seventh best in the NFL.
Jacksonville’s defense will have to play their best ball against this Tampa offense as the Jaguars are ranked 31st in the most yards allowed these last three weeks during their losing streak. Josh Allen and Travon Walker will have to continue to wreak havoc in the backfield to give this defense a shot, especially since Baker isn’t the most mobile quarterback in the NFL. Hopefully having Cisco and Campbell back in the secondary will help bring some more stability there and they can have better matchups on the outside.
Jacksonville’s offense will likely feature CJ Beathard as Trevor Lawrence is still dealing with injuries. Bethard is very capable of going out there and getting a win for this team, but this offensive line will have to do a great job to give him any chance. Travis Etienne will have to be the focal point of the offense, but that will be a tough task when the interior of the Jaguars offensive line has been bad all season long, and Vita Vea is on the other side of the line. If Zay Jones can’t go, expect a lot of targets to both Parker Washington and Jamal Agnew since they get a lot of reps in the second unit with Bethard.
Tampa Bay is favored in this game (-1) and they will be looking to make it four wins in a row. Jacksonville controls their own destiny in the AFC South; if they win out, they will win their division and bare minimum claim a top-four seed in the AFC.
Kickoff will be at Raymond James Stadium on Dec.24 at 4:05 P.M.