Patriots-Jaguars Preview

Patriots-Jaguars Preview

This Saturday, the world will get its first look at the playoff version of the New England Patriots, as they host the Jacksonville Jaguars.  The Jaguars are riding the crest of an amazing come-from-behind victory over the Steelers in the wild card round.  Will the Jaguars prove to be the one team that can knock the kings off the top of the mountain, or will the Jaguars repeat that infamous Dennis Green quote:  "They are who we thought they were!"

When the Patriots have the ball-What can be said about the Patriots' offense that hasn't already been said?  The Patriots are the most dominant offense possibly in the history of the NFL.  During the regular season, the Patriots averaged over thirty-six points per game, good for first in the league.  They also led the NFL in passing yards per game with 295.7, while also leading the NFL in total yards per game at 411.2.  The weak link of the Patriots' offense?  A running game that 'only' averaged 115.6 yards per game, good for only thirteenth in the league, but potent enough to support the passing attack.

Jacksonville's defense delivered big against the Steelers with three interceptions and six sacks.  They can't count on that against the Patriots, however.  Tom Brady has been stingy with the picks, throwing only eight on the season.  The Patriot line is as tough as they come, allowing only 21 sacks.  Brady is not likely to replicate some of the throwing errors Big Ben Roethlisberger made last week. 

The key to shutting the Patriots down will be containing Randy Moss while putting pressure on Brady.  Containing Moss is possible, as demonstrated by the Ravens, holding Moss to a season low thirty-four yards.  However, doing such while pressuring Brady will not be an easy chore.  Take away the five sacks Jacksonville had against Pittsburgh in Week Fifteen, they only had thirty-two in fifteen games, an average of just over two per game.  Putting any serious pressure on Brady will deplete man-power off the combination of Moss and Welker.  Should the Jaguars be able to pressure Brady and cover the Dynamic Duo, the Patriots can burn them with a three-receiver set with Donte Stallworth, or hit the Jaguars with Laurence Maroney on draw plays.  This variety of weapons explains the Patriots' perfect season.

When the Jaguars have the ball-One thing is crystal clear this Saturday.  Jacksonville cannot play the way it did offensively last week against Pittsburgh.  David Garrard is coming into his own as a quarterback, throwing only three interceptions during the regular season.  However, he was less than spectacular with his arm against Pittsburgh, throwing for only 140 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.  He won the game with his legs on the last Jacksonville series of the game, but shouldn't expect that kind of success against New England.  He needs to be more careful with the secondary of the Patriots, making better reads and exuding more confidence in his throws.

The Jaguars are renowned this season for their running game.  Jones-Drew and Taylor have combined for 1,970 yards and fourteen touchdowns on the season.  However, they were held in check by Pittsburgh last week, hitting a total of seventy-seven yards and two touchdowns.  New England is a top ten rushing defense.  They watched how to stop Taylor and Jones-Drew last week and are prepared to have similar success.

How will New England fare?  Glance at how the Jaguars' running game did this season against the top-tier running defenses.  They racked up seventy-five and one hundred sixty-six total rushing yards in two games against Tennessee.  They hit one hundred seventeen and one hundred sixty-eight yards in two games against Indianapolis.  They managed one hundred twenty-two against San Diego.  They torched Pittsburgh for over two hundred yards.  Those are impressive numbers against some of the top rushing defenses in the NFL.

Final Analysis-If Jacksonville's running game can gain momentum early, the Jaguars can hang in this game.  Jacksonville's passing game is in no way close to New England's.  Garrard is no Brady.  The Jaguar receiving corps can't touch that of the Patriots.  However, the Patriot running game is nowhere near the level of Jacksonville's.  Utilizing their strong running game would permit them to score and chew time off the clock, keeping Brady and company off the field.

The Patriots have been firing on all cylinders all season long.  The only way they lose this game is by making mistakes.  They haven't done much of that this season, but Jacksonville has proven if any team can force that, it may be them.

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Fan Comments whenever the media predicts...THIS IS THE GAME the pats will lose they get a quick reality check. its the ones that are supposed to be blowouts that proved close. and once again the media is pushing....THIS IS THE GAME. ALL the jags have to do is run the ball and they ALSO have to control the turnovers, dominate on special teams, and establish a short passing game. so in short they have to dominate every aspect of the game. del rio can motivate his team all he wants but all you need to do is look back to when the colts played the jags and reggie wayne running untouched for 30 yards.... the steelers stopped the much ballyhooed jaguar running game and were able to throw with a lot of success on their vaunted defense. if the jags couldnt stop rothlisberger how in hail will they stop brady. the team that nobody wants to face, the same team the colts demolished, I beg to differ. look for gaffney and faulk to be huge in this game as well. the jags cant cover them all. on the other hand the jags could gain 150 yards and still lose by 20 Posted at 12/01 05:34 by kinnick1 View All