Josh Allen and Trevor Lawrence square off in an intriguing AFC playoff matchup.
The narrative has already started for Josh Allen and this postseason.
There’s no Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes or Lamar Jackson in the NFL playoffs. Drake Maye is an MVP candidate, but the story forming is that Allen needs to at least take Buffalo to a Super Bowl this season or he has failed, because he is the best player left in the AFC bracket.
It’s a flawed argument (being made before the playoffs even start) but those seem to be the stakes for Allen and the Bills this month. It ignores that it’s the Jaguars who won their division, not the Bills, and did so with a better record than Buffalo. That’s why Jacksonville hosts this wild-card game.
Previous meeting this season
The two teams did not meet this season, but did play in 2024 and it wasn’t pretty for the Jaguars. The Bills beat them 47-10. However, the Jaguars won the two meetings before that, in 2021 and 2023.
Health update
The Jaguars have a fairly clean injury report; there are no key players up in the air for Sunday. The same can’t be said about the Bills. They had six players held out of practice on Wednesday and five others were limited. Starting linebackers Matt Milano and were among those not practicing Wednesday. A key name to keep an eye on is tight end Dalton Kincaid, who was limited to start the week with a knee injury. Kincaid missed five games this season due to injury.
The head coaches
The vibes on each coach are different coming into this game. There has been some heat on Sean McDermott after Buffalo didn’t beat New England for the AFC East title. The Bills have yet to reach a Super Bowl with Josh Allen, which causes some consternation among Buffalo fans. On the other side, the Jaguars couldn’t be happier with Liam Coen. Coen’s first season as head coach was a smashing success, with a 13-4 record, AFC South title and Trevor Lawrence playing the best ball of his career over the second half of the season.
Key player for the Bills
The Bills don’t have much juice among their pass catchers. Bills GM Brandon Beane likes to scold everyone when they ask about the state of the team’s receivers, but the truth is that Josh Allen does not have a true No. 1 target. He just succeeds with what he’s given. That said, tight end Dalton Kincaid is a big factor. Kincaid has been dealing with a knee injury and his status for Sunday is not certain. The Bills need him. He had 571 yards and five touchdowns this season, which isn’t much but he gives Allen a needed option in the passing game. Without Kincaid, a limited pass-catching core becomes even thinner.
Key player for the Jaguars
The Jaguars had big-name receivers Brian Thomas Jr. and Travis Hunter to start the season. After Hunter got hurt and Thomas got off to a slow start, they traded for Jakobi Meyers, who played so well the Jaguars gave him a contract extension. But late in the season it’s Parker Washington who emerged as a big-time playmaker in the Jaguars offense. Over Jacksonville’s last six games — all of which were Jaguars wins — Washington had 497 yards and three touchdowns. Over the last three games Washington had 19 catches and averaged 115.7 yards per game.
Prediction
This might be the best matchup of wild-card weekend. It’s not surprising that the Jaguars seem to be the overlooked team in it. The Bills have the recent success and the MVP quarterback. But the Jaguars have played very well in the second half of the season, winning eight in a row. Trevor Lawrence might not be Josh Allen, but he accounted for 38 touchdowns this season (Allen had 39). The Bills can make a Super Bowl, due to Allen being the best player on the AFC side of the bracket. But they have to get through this matchup first, and they drew perhaps the NFL’s hottest team.
Jaguars 28, Bills 24
Category: General Sports
