Jaguars have favorable path to No. 1 seed: Predicting final 6 games of 2023 season
• Here's a look at how the next six games on their schedule could play out
Week 18 @ Tennessee Titans: Win
At this point of the 2022 season, the Jaguars were close to finalizing their turnaround. They just had one more hurdle to clear: Beat the Tennesee Titans. Win the divison and qualify for the playoffs. Lose and you go home empty-handed. It wasn't easy, the Titans took it to the wire and Jacksonville needed outside linebacker Josh Allen to return a lost fumble for a touchdown to seal the deal. The Jags are once again set to face Tennessee in Week 18, and this had the making of a great divisional game to close the year.
Having lost seven straight games to end the 2022 season, the Titans tried to improve as much as they could in free agency of the draft without moving on from the core that made them the top team in the AFC South in past years. However, they didn't evaluate their roster correctly and failed to take the step forward they wanted. Now, they're 4-7 and pretty much eliminated from playoff contention. Besides potentially playing spoilers in the finale, there won't be much intrigue. Simply, it's hard to see Tennessee getting hot and becoming a threat to Jacksonville.
If you're keeping count, you'll see that I project the Jaguars to win five of their last six games. You could make the case that this is an optimistic forecast but the truth is that they've been playing much better since they're BYE. Early in the season, penalties, issues up front, and drops plagued the offense. It took them a while but the coaching staff and the players got them fixed.
Moreover, the Jaguars are relatively healthy entering the last stretch of the year. Even though they'll be without players such as left tackle Cam Robinson or Jamal Agnew, they've got more than enough talent to overcome their absences, so you heard it here first, the Jags are going to go 13-4 in 2023. Enjoy the next six games.
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