NFL Preview: Jacksonville Jaguars vs Green Bay Packers

Admin October 26, 2024

A fearless Green Bay Packers team, who passed 62.3% of the time last week, go up against a more reserved Jacksonville Jaguars team, which ran on 66.1% of their offensive plays in London during week seven.

Beating the New England Patriots in London helped the Jaguars regain some footing. The attacking weapons Trevor Lawrence can depend on finally showed up and he was extremely well-protected in the pocket giving up zero sacks.

Green Bay, on the other hand, have been performing on both sides of the ball and are in a threatening NFC North, where they sit third with a record of 5-2. However, they are extremely prone to both takeaways and giveaways this season.

Injury Report

Jacksonville will have a game-time decision for running back Travis Etienne Jr., while Gabe Davis (knee) is listed as questionable after limited practice on Thursday.

The Packers leading tackler this season, linebacker Quay Walker (concussion), and wide receiver duo Christian Watson (ankle) and Jayden Reed (ankle) all had limited practice on Thursday. All three have been listed as questionable.

Key Players

Tank Bigsby

Doug Pederson‘s offense has two dynamic running backs and with Etienne being a day off decision, Tank Bigsby might be the number one option even if his teammate is given the go-ahead. At Wembley Stadium last week, Bigsby ran for a total of 118 yards on 26 carries, averaging 6.2 yards a carry this season.

So far through the season Jacksonville’s duo has split the majority of snaps with Etienne favored more on averaging over four yards a carry. Green Bay’s defense will challenge Bigsby on his ball security, having fumbled in two of the previous three games.

Brian Thomas Jr.

The Jaguars star rookie wide receiver has increasingly become Lawrence’s favorite aerial target. Brian Thomas Jr. has an average of 17.1 yards per reception this season and four touchdowns to go alongside his 30 receptions on 45 targets.

Thomas has the ability to burn any corner or safety in the league, but expect his average separation on target to drop. Tighter coverage could nullify his impact, limiting the opportunities for explosive plays as he only averages 73.3 yards per game. He has already recorded 85, 66, and 58-yard completions through seven weeks.

Jordan Love

Jordan Love is a top quarterback in both touchdowns and interceptions. Each of the five games he has played has resulted in multiple touchdown passes and at least one interception, including two last week.

Love is the quarterback for an offense that could be classified as the most prolific. He threw for 389 yards in Green Bay’s week three loss to the Minnesota Vikings. This matchup has touchdowns for Love written all over it as Jacksonville is one of the worst red zone defenses in the league.

Green Bay Secondary

Matt LeFleur has benefitted from two great additions to his Green Bay secondary in rookie safety Evan Williams and veteran Xavier McKinney. The former New York Giant McKinney leads the league in interceptions with five and his teammates have intercepted another four this season.

Williams has also found his form in the past three weeks, earning 23 tackles (14 solo). Green Bay leads the league with 17 takeaways (nine INTs and eight fumbles), so if they are not reading the opposing quarterback they are tackling hard, causing forced fumbles. There are still plenty of holes for the Jaguars to capitalize on, but they are shrinking each week.