The Jacksonville Jaguars will look to build off last season’s success when they start their 2018 campaign with a road game against the New York Giants. Game time is set for 1:00 EST on Sunday, September 9, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Fans in local markets can watch the game on Fox.
By checking out this week’s NFL odds, we see that the Jaguars are a 3-point favorite on the road. That line has only moved slightly since Jacksonville opened at -3.5. The over/under for this game is 43.5 points.
Jacksonville’s season in 2017 was equal parts surprising and magical. After years of losing seasons under Gus Bradley, the Jaguars went 10-6 and won the AFC South in Doug Marrone’s first full season as head coach. They followed that up with wins over Buffalo and Pittsburgh to reach the AFC Championship Game, only to narrowly lose to the Patriots and fall a game short of the Super Bowl.
Of course, with that success comes expectations that the Jaguars will once again be Super Bowl contenders. The Jacksonville defense has a lot to live up to after their incredible performance in 2017. Quarterback Blake Bortles also has a new set of expectations to live up to after proving that he can lead a team to a conference title game.
The Giants are in the opposite position after going 3-13 last season. In their defense, the Giants were decimated by injuries to key players last season, with star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. being the most significant player lost to injury. Of course, the Giants have just one playoff appearance since winning the Super Bowl after the 2011 season, so it’s been more than just injuries in recent years.
In any event, Dave Gettleman is the team’s new GM and Pat Shurmur is the new head coach, creating some hope that things will start to turn around. Of course, whether the Giants can get things turned around quickly after last year’s 3-13 disaster and compete for a playoff spot in 2018 remains to be seen.
I believe that the Giants will be much better than the 3-13 disaster we saw last year, but we won’t see it in this game. The Jaguars have a lot of strengths, many of which will be able to exploit New York’s weaknesses. At home, the Giants could keep things close. But over 60 minutes, I don’t think Jacksonville will have a hard time covering a 3-point spread.
In terms of offensive skill players, the Giants are loaded. Beckham is back from injury and he has a new contract, so he should be happy and ready to produce. Rookie running back Saquon Barkley should also provide instant offense. It’s also important not to forget about Serling Shepard or tight end Evan Ingram, giving Eli Manning a wealth of playmakers around him.
However, none of that matters if the Giants can’t keep Manning protected. The offensive line has been a huge problem for the Giants in recent years, and it’ll still be a work in progress this year. Nate Solder coming in at left tackle will help. But the Giants are still starting rookie Will Hernandez at left guard and the perpetually disappointing Ereck Flowers at right tackle. The Jaguars, of course, are strong up front and have several capable pass rushers who can get pressure on Manning.
Even if the offensive line can hold up, Jacksonville has enough depth in the secondary to match up against all of New York’s skill players. Jalen Ramsey is good enough to get by against Beckham without a lot of extra help. That should help prevent some of New York’s complementary players like Shepard and Ingram from being overlooked by the Jaguars.
On the other side of the ball, there are some questions about Jacksonville’s receivers. Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns have moved on, while Marquise Lee was lost to injury. That leaves Bortles with the likes of Keelan Cole, Dede Westbrook, and Donte Moncrief at his disposal. However, everyone knows Jacksonville is a run-heavy team, so they’ll put a lot on the shoulders of Leonard Fournette. While seen as an injury risk, Fournette will definitely be healthy at the start of the season and ready to carry the Jacksonville offense on his back.
Meanwhile, there are serious questions about the Giants defensively. Even with Alec Ogletree added to help solidify them at linebacker, the New York front-7 looks like it could be vulnerable, especially against a big back like Fournette and a team that likes to run the ball up the middle. The Giants will be expecting it, but I’m still not sure that means they’ll be able to stop it.
Despite the Giants having better offensive threats, the Jaguars look poised to dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. That’ll be too much for the Giants to overcome. Just as they did last year, the Jaguars will win by running the ball and playing great defense. I have no problem swallowing three points and leaning toward the Jaguars to cover on the road.