The 3 most important games on the Jacksonville Jaguars schedule

The Jacksonville Jaguars have a busy schedule in 2024, making it difficult to determine which of their 17 games could be the most important.

The Jaguars face four playoff teams in the first four weeks alone, which includes a Monday Night Football game against the Bills in week three. Other than that, they have a full slate of tough AFC South games, two games in London and a Sunday Night Football game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

But when looking at the schedule, a few games stand out as potential deciding games in terms of the ultimate goal: making the playoffs and having a chance to make the Super Bowl. With that in mind, here are the three biggest matches in our eyes.

Week 4 in Houston

This looks like the Jaguars’ biggest game coming up, at least right now. To begin with, there is a lot of intrigue between these two teams. The Jaguars/Texans rivalry may be at an all-time high thanks to both teams having a young first-round pick at quarterback in Trevor Lawrence and CJ Stroud. Each is a young team that made a surprise run to a division crown and playoff victory well before anyone expected. And last year, it was the Texans who passed the Jaguars for the AFC South title.

The biggest game on the Jaguars’ schedule a year ago was a 37-17 loss to the Texans at home in Week 3. The Jaguars were clear favorites against an injury-ravaged Texas team, but the Jaguars made critical mistakes in all three games. phases and experienced one of its worst home defeats of the Pederson era. When the Jaguars entered Week 18 in do-or-die mode, it was because of that loss.

“When you look at the whole thing, I tried to communicate that with the team: everything is connected. Everything is connected; Back to Week 1 and Week 2, we played the Chiefs in Week 2 and I mentioned to the team how that could have playoff implications. Even in Week 2, then Week 3, you play the Texans. It could have playoff implications for the AFC South,” Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said a day after the season ended in January.

“You show up here today and you’re like, ‘Oh, that’s what he’s talking about.’ We can’t get to that point; there has to be a sense of urgency where everything counts. It’s all part of the team learning to win and preparing to win; we talk about it a lot; to our players and we can’t just put that aside and say, “Hey, we still have 12 or 15 more games, we’re still three games ahead in the division, it doesn’t matter. It’s really not the case. You can’t let things slide, you can’t let things slide and that sense of urgency is important to the success that we have, especially here, when everything started to matter.

It’s more or less a chance at redemption for the Jaguars for letting the first game get away from them. On top of all that, the Jaguars will also be coming off a three-week stretch in which they could reasonably start 0-3 or 1-2 if things go south. This could define the season from the start.

Week 15 vs. New York Jets

It’s easy to pick primarily divisional games for this exercise (we’ll get to that soon), but this game feels important even in that setting. The Jaguars went 5-6 in non-AFC South games last year, with most of their losses down the stretch coming against teams outside the division. If the Jaguars had been better in games against the Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Jaguars still could have made the playoffs despite their skid.

Other games I’ve considered here: Week 3 at Buffalo, London’s opener against the Chicago Bears, and the pre-bye week game against the Detroit Lions. I ultimately opted for this home game against the Jets, as I believe the AFC playoff spots will be decided in the final weeks.

The Jets could make a push for a division title, or they could be a bit behind the established Miami Dolphins and have to fight for a Wild Card spot. If the Jaguars are behind the Texans in the AFC South, this game could pit two teams fighting for the same playoff spot.

Week 18 in Indianapolis

The last two seasons have each come down to Week 18 for the Jaguars, in each case due to the close nature of the races for the AFC South. No team has run away from the division in several seasons, and there is little reason to think any team will in 2024. The division is tighter at the top than it has been in several seasons due to the trajectory of the Jaguars, Texans and Indianapolis Colts.

The Colts haven’t won the AFC South since 2014, but they came close in 2023. With a healthy year from Anthony Richardson at quarterback, the Colts could take another shot at winning the division crown. After facing the Titans in Week 18 in each of the last two seasons, the Jaguars could experience another must-win game in Week 18 against the Colts.