Is It Time for the Jaguars To Panic About Their Issues Playing at Home?
The Jacksonville Jaguars (6-3) hosting the San Francisco 49ers (6-3) at Everbank Stadium was easily the marque contest in the NFL in Week 10. The Duval Devout were hoping for their squad to strike it rich to walk away from Sunday without a losing record in their home stadium. Unfortunately, the San Francisco defense laid claim to the Jags’ field for a 34-3 loss.
Considering their record in the state of Florida is currently 1-2, there is a stigma forming about what happens when Jacksonville returns to their house. Here’s a few reasons why it’s not time to panic about these performances so far.
Tough Opponents To Start
Among the contests played by the Jags in Duval county, they have faced the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs (in a game they should have won) [can we link back to my KC article?], the NFC runner-up 49ers and a Houston Texans team that turns out to have the hottest new quarterback in the league.
With the Tennessee Titans coming to town next week, that certainly makes for an opportunity to set things back on track at EverBank facing another backup turned started in Will Levis. Also, the Carolina Panthers to close the season is an opportunity to finish strong as well. That leaves the Cincinnati Bengals Monday Night game and the Baltimore Ravens games for teams Jacksonville hosts.
While battling Joe Burrow and the Bengals will certainly be a challenge in prime time, they don’t have a defensive front as talented as the Chiefs or 49ers. And the Ravens came to Duval last year the week of Thanksgiving and were handed a loss.
With all that in mind, a winning record in front of the Duval Devout is still possible.
Minimal Impact
Obviously, a win does more with battling their way up the conference and division ranks to a playoff berth. Losing to the Chiefs was a blow in battling for a 1st or 2nd seed with head-to-head and conference record tie-breakers. The Texans as a division loss can still be canceled out in Thanksgiving weekend 2023 with a win in Houston.
As for Sunday’s struggles against San Francisco as an out-of-conference bout, it’s only the third loss of the season. That’s the extent of the impact. No tie-breaker implications whatsoever unless things come down to like opponents or strength of schedule which are respectively the 3rd and 5th level of tie-breaks in the NFL.
It Only Takes 10 Wins (usually)
While the Texans are currently closing the gap to one game on the Jaguars in the standings with the win over the Bengals, winning the AFC South isn’t path to the playoffs. If they win half of the remaining games on their schedule, the postseason is still in their sights.
Take the hand off the panic button, Duval Devout. After all, a big loss to the Detroit Lions in 2022 took place before the Jags surged to a seven-game win streak followed by a playoff win.
