How the Jaguars Can Capture the AFC's No. 1 Seed

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars have plenty at stake when it comes to their Week 17 battle with the Indianapolis Colts.

The Jaguars hold their future in their own hands in the AFC South and beyond this Sunday. If they win out, they will secure an AFC South title, and they could even clinch it this weekend if the Los Angeles Chargers give them a hand on Saturday. But there is still a chance the Jaguars could do even more than win the AFC South.

Path to No. 1 Seed

As Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer explained, the Jaguars can clinch the No. 1 seed in a few different ways. If the Jaguars win out and the Broncos and New England Patriots each lose one game apiece, the Jaguars would win the three-way tie at 13-4. The Jaguars also hold a tie-breaker over the Broncos due to their Week 16 win in Mile High.

Scenarios for the AFC's No. 1 seed ...

• If the Broncos finish in a two-way tie with the Jaguars, the Jags win the tiebreaker; if they're in a two-way tie with the Patriots, they win the tiebreaker.

• If there's a three-way tie at 13-4, then the Jaguars win the tiebreaker.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) December 26, 2025

Considering the Jaguars were sitting at 4-13 when the offseason began, the 2025 season has gone better than anyone could have expected. The Jaguars have the most wins in any season of the Shad Khan era, their most wins since the 2007 season, and a chance to make the AFC go through the heart of Duval.

“I think teams do a good job in offseason of always having positivity that you're working towards a good goal. So, I think it's kind of starting the year, you always feel like you’ve got the good equation in the building and everything's going to work out," Jaguars linebacker Foyesade Oluokun said earlier this week.

Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Foyesade Oluokun (23) enters the stadium before an NFL football game at EverBank Stadium, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union] | Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"I think it was really as the year started going on, when we started realizing if we play the way we're supposed to play, we can win any game. I think the Rams were the only team early that we were like, ‘Oh, we lost that one.’ But the rest, we're in every game. We feel like we should be winning every game. And obviously we didn't come out the way that we wanted to against the Rams and that happened. So, we felt like when we take control of what we're supposed to take care of we're going to be in position to really win every game. We should win every game."

Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Foye Oluokun (23) looks on before an NFL football game at EverBank Stadium, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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