Jaguars Set to Take On Broncos in Underrated Contenders Bowl

The Jacksonville Jaguars and the Denver Broncos are having eerily similar campaigns in the 2025 NFL season.

Oct 30, 2022; London, United Kingdom, Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1) and quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) react after scoring a touchdown against the Denver Broncos in the fourth quarter during an NFL International Series game at Wembley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Jacksonville Jaguars are one of the most underrated teams in the 2025 NFL season. Despite their 10-4 record and status as the AFC South leader, not many are picking them as a serious threat in the playoffs. At this point, there might not be anything the Jaguars can do to change the world's preconceived notions of them.

One thing that might help, though, is beating the Denver Broncos in Week 16. Taking down the current No. 1 seed in the AFC on the road would give the Jaguars another statement victory this season and make it seemingly impossible to deny their contendership. And yet, it wouldn't be shocking to see Denver derided in defeat instead of Jacksonville praised for the win.

Oct 30, 2022; London, United Kingdom, Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) looks to pass defedne3d by Denver Broncos defensive end Dre'Mont Jones (93) in the first quarter during an NFL International Series game at Wembley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Jaguars and Broncos are very similar

Like the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Denver Broncos haven't been given much credit this season, despite their sterling 12-2 mark and 10-game win streak. There are legitimate reasons for caution with this team. The offense has been mostly underwhelming throughout the campaign, causing the Broncos to have to repeatedly eke out narrow wins over bottom-feeder opponents.

That's something the Jaguars can empathize with, recently needing overtime to beat the 2-12 Las Vegas Raiders and 3-11 Arizona Cardinals. Both Jacksonville and Denver have inconsistent, unproven quarterbacks in Trevor Lawrence and Bo Nix, leading detractors to count them out of true Super Bowl candidacy. Head Coach Liam Coen was recently asked if he believes the Broncos have a similar attitude to his Jaguars:

QBs that Trevor Lawrence has more total TDs than this season

- Drake Maye
- Jordan Love
- Patrick Mahomes
- Justin Herbert
- Baker Mayfield
- Bo Nix
- Caleb Williams
- Jalen Hurts
- CJ Stroud
- Lamar Jackson

— keanu (@keanukarg) December 14, 2025

"I would say in a lot of ways. That's a good football team. I've been following them and had a lot of crossover tape with those guys, have watched them execute at a high level from afar, and defensively, do a really nice job. So, we know this is a darn good opponent. Going on the road, I think Mile High is a really cool place to play and compete at."

"You think about football, you think about going and playing a game like this. So, this is going to be a really good challenge for us. As you mentioned, there's a lot of similarities right now in some ways and being explosive. Their quarterback can run, he can throw it down the field, and their defense has played at a really high level, and it's a good solid special teams unit as well. So, I've always had a lot of respect for Sean Payton."

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