Colts Cover Against Jags
Jaguars vs. Colts, 1 ET
This isn't exactly the season I envisioned either of them having. The Colts were supposed to coast to the division title this year and the Jaguars were supposed to be rebuilding. In some ways the Jaguars are still true, but the Colts have looked abysmal thus far in the campaign.
The Jaguars are coming off of a tough game against the Texans. Here is who they've beaten this season: the Colts and the Chargers. They've lost to the Commanders, Eagles, and Texans. In reality, I would've expected the same record of 2-3, but I would've been dead wrong about who they beat. But, not only did they beat the Colts and Chargers, they looked unbelievable in those games. I have been impressed with the Jaguars defense and the way they are able to keep their team in the game in all of them. Right now, that side of the ball is further along than their offense. Trevor Lawrence is not having a bad season, but he needs to protect the ball better. They are converting about 40% of their 3rd downs right now, but I still have concerns about them coming into this one on the road when the Colts will want their revenge.
If the Colts haven't circled this game on the calendar, they probably need to just fire their coach and get some new motivation in there. Losing to the Jaguars isn't embarrassing, but the way they lost was. They were thoroughly outplayed in every facet of the game and lost 24-0. They followed up an ugly tie with the Texans with that dud of the game then were able to beat the Chiefs and the Broncos in what was (until Thursday night) the worst game of the NFL season. The biggest difference right now is that Jonathan Taylor hasn't been able to find the end zone (Taylor is out today) and people are daring Matt Ryan to throw on them. It has been a great strategy because Ryan is terrible right now. This is one of those games where he needs to step up and complete the passes. That will open up a bit of space for the running game to get rumbling and then the Colts offense will be more efficient.
I'm taking the Colts to cover the spread at home. This is arguably the worst division in football with almost none of the teams looking like they want to win every week. What would be terrible is to see the Colts lose both of these games to the Jaguars in the span of a few weeks. They need this, and they need to make a statement. Colts -2 at -110.
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