The Jacksonville Jaguars are well aware that the stakes will be high when they face off against the Tennessee Titans in Week 18. A win will allow them to seize the AFC South and ensure that they have a shot at clinching the No. 1 seed in the conference. Conversely, a loss would give the Houston Texans the chance to get ahead in the division race. Simply put, the Jags have plenty to play for in the season finale.
Working in the Jags' favor is that they'll have a couple of key players back in the fold. Specifically, running back Bhayshul Tuten and center Robert Hainsey will be available. On the other hand, right guard Patrick Mekari will miss his second game in a row.
The silver lining is the team managed to overcome Mekari's absence in the win over the Indianapolis Colts, and it shouldn't be any different against a Tennessee team that will be without pass rusher Arden Key, who's already been ruled out for the finale. Then again, head coach Liam Coen isn't taking the Titans lightly despite the fact that the line has moved and Jacksonville is a 13.5-point favorite.
The Jaguars know divisional games can go down to the wire
On New Year's Day, Liam Coen told the local media that Jacksonville is ready to face a physical division rival and cannot afford to take its guard down with one game to go.
"At the end of the day, this is about going 1-0 against a team that's going to be extremely ready to play physical," Coen told reporters. "It was a back-and-forth kind of gritty game the last time we played in Tennessee. And we do have more football left, but that's not what the focus and mentality is right now."
All things considered, Coen is taking the right approach, as the Jaguars cannot lose their focus despite the fact that they're a 13.5-point favorite ahead of the game. Below is his full exchange with reporters on New Year's Day.
With this in mind, here are three bold predictions for the AFC South showdown in the season finale.
The Jaguars will score 50 points for the first time this season
The Jaguars have scored more than 30 points this season. However, not once have they reached the 50-point mark. The closest they got was against the New York Jets when they scored 48. The Titans rank 28th in the league in points scored, and their secondary is one of the worst in the NFL. That will present Jacksonville with lots of opportunities to light up the scoreboard.
Trevor Lawrence didn't have his best game of the season in Week 17, but he was far from bad. The fifth-year quarterback did throw a red-zone interception, but otherwise made enough plays to help the Jags win. Expect him to dial up a handful of deep shots early to set the tone against Tennessee.
Related: Rich Eisen argues the Jags may not reach their true ceiling until 2026
Antonio Johnson and the Jaguars secondary will pick off Cam Ward three times
After a dry spell at the midpoint of the season, Anthony Campanile's defense is once again racking up takeaways at a high rate. Jarrian Jones and Antonio Johnson, in particular, have made the most of their opportunities. The past eight weeks, the duo has registered a combined seven interceptions.
Meanwhile, quarterback Cam Ward has fared as well as you would hope despite the fact that he doesn't have a great supporting cast. On the other hand, he's made the kind of mistakes you expect a rookie signal-caller to make. Having already faced him once, the Jags know what to expect, so Campanile will be looking to reach deep into his bag of tricks to stun the first overall pick in 2025. Speaking of...
Travon Walker and the Jaguars pass rush will sack Cam Ward six times
Travon Walker was hampered by injuries this season, but he's wreaked havoc whenever he's been on the field. The former Georgia Bulldog has been healthy in recent weeks, which should allow him to finish the season strong. Couple that with the fact that Danny Striggow is back after missing the Colts game with a knee injury, and the Jacksonville pass rush will be firing on all cylinders.
Cam Ward has been brought down an alarming 55 times this season. Some of that is due to the fact that he's holding the football a tad too long, but the main culprit is the poor protection he's getting from the Tennessee offensive line. The Jaguars will take advantage of the matchup and will add six sacks to their total tally in 2026.