Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New England Patriots Matchup Preview (1/2/22): Betting Odds, Depth Charts, Live Stream (Watch Online)

Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New England Patriots Matchup Preview (1/2/22)

In Week 17 of the NFL regular season, we will watch the matchup between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the New England Patriots. Entering this week, we see the Patriots battling back and forth with the Buffalo Bills for the first place position in the AFC East. After a loss against the Bills last week, the Patriots need to secure wins in their previous two games to have a chance of taking first place in their division. The Jaguars have continued their seven-game losing streak showing minor signs of improvement. Their rookie quarterback, Trevor Lawrence, has struggled to find his groove in the NFL, and the lack of a sturdy head coach leaves the team in a perfect storm of stagnation. Not only has the team struggled, but they are being wiped out by COVID this week, leaving twelve starters out. Their offensive line and the entire defense has been stripped with positive tests and will make this game a very difficult one for the Jaguars to pull off. This may be the perfect match for the Patriots to help boost their stats to get them into the playoffs.

Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New England Patriots Betting Odds

This matchup has the most extensive spread of the week. The Patriots have been known as a powerful scoring team, whereas the Jaguars have been coasting by with a very young team. The spread is currently set at -15 for New England and +15 for Jacksonville. The Jaguars have the worst point totals in the league with 217 points all season, which averages to  14.5 points per game. The Patriots are in the top ten point scorers in the league with 388 points, averaging 25.9 points per game. With the COVID list continuing to grow with the Jaguars, I see great potential for the Patriots to create a huge gap in point values. I am usually wary of wide spreads, but with this matchup, I feel like it may be an easy accomplishment for the hungry Patriots.

The over/under has been set for 41.5 points. The average point values of both teams combine to 40.4 points. Therefore, if the teams play their average game, it will be just short of the over. However, the key missing players on the Jaguars lead me to believe they will be playing a very underwhelming game, not allowing them to score above or at their average number of points. The Patriots can use this match as a tiebreaker with the Bills since the Bills lost 9-6 to the Jaguars, so having a large point advantage can help them overcome the Buffalo team; however, there is no need to overextend their star players right before playoffs. Overall, I think the Patriots will play their best game, but it might not be enough to hit the over.

My prediction: Patriots Win 27-9, Patriots cover, Under 41.5

TV Schedule

Date: 1/2/22
Time: 1:00 PM ET
Location: Gillete Stadium
TV Coverage: CBS

Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New England Patriots Live Stream

Where can you watch Jaguars vs. Patriots online? You can stream this game, and many other NFL games live online with Hulu. Hulu has a 7 Day free trial and is cheaper than cable options at $5.99/month. Watch Jaguars vs. Patriots Free Online Now.

Jacksonville Jaguars Analysis

The Jacksonville Jaguars have not had much success this 2021. They enter Week 17 with a record of 2-13 with their only two wins at home. They have had no success on the road, and the New England stadium and weather will play a factor in the morale and energy of the intense Patriots. They were able to pull off a very unpredicted win against the AFC East team, the Buffalo Bills, but the Patriots won’t give them the margin to push through a win. A lot of their lack of success is surrounded by the young nature of the team. 

Their quarterback is in his rookie year and does not have many veterans on his team to help him along. Trevor Lawrence began the season pretty solid, averaging 243 passing yards per game in his first seven NFL starts. However, following their win against Buffalo, the young QB has dropped to an average of 190 yards per game. The team has struggled to keep players off of the IR, and this week, the team is wiped out with COVID, leaving Lawrence even more exposed. Lawrence has already been sacked 29 times this season, but his entire offensive line, except his right tackle, is on the COVID reserve list, leaving a great opportunity for the best defense in the league to take him down. Lawrence will need to really focus on quick release passes in order to prevent being taken down and losing yardage.

Their top rusher, James Robinson, finds himself on the injured reserve list going into this matchup. He has an injured achilles, and his absence will greatly affect the efficiency of the Florida team. In his place, we find Dare Ogunbowale. Ogunbowale has not seen the field much this season, with only eight games for 31 touches. He has 128 yards between his rushing and receiving touches with only one touchdown. The Patriots have a much stronger pass defense because of an impeccable secondary, and the rush defense has begun to lack slightly. Ogunbowale might be a lead target for the team as they face off the Patriots and will most definitely have to play his best game of the season to give his team a scoring drive.

Jacksonville Jaguars Depth Chart

QB: Trevor Lawrence
RB1: James Robinson
RB2: Carlos Hyde
WR1: Marvin Jones Jr.
WR2: Laviska Shenault Jr.
WR3: Jamal Agnew
TE1: James O’Shaughnessy

New England Patriots Analysis

The New England Patriots have had their best season since their veteran quarterback Tom Brady left the franchise. However, they find themselves in a bit of a hole after losing to the Indianapolis Colts and the Buffalo Bills in two back-to-back weeks after a seven-game win streak. The team needs to pull off this win if they want to keep their AFC East title chances alive. The Patriots are the obvious favorite entering this game, but they have a history of losing to underqualified teams and can’t get too cocky entering the game.

Their quarterback is also in his first year but has had a lot more success compared to Trevor Lawrence. Mac Jones has 3,313 yards on the season with 18 touchdown throws. Jones comes out of Alabama, where we see a lot of successful rookie quarterbacks, and the coaching of Bill Belichick has been ruled superior once again. Jones has had great success against struggling defenses, so the Jaguars, who are ranked very poorly, shouldn’t be a huge obstacle for him. The challenge for Jones this week will revolve around the availability of his receivers since two of them are questionable, along with his running back. If they are unable to return, the skill of Mac Jones will be tested to see if he can adapt to change on his offensive lineup.

Jakobi Meyers is the team’s leading receiver and is entering this week questionable due to some thigh pain. He has 723 yards this season on 71 receptions and can average over 10 yards per reception. Meyers is a significant threat against the Jaguars since they have significantly struggled with their passing defense. The routes of Meyers can trick the second-string defense of the Jaguars and leave them in the dust with ease. His return will give the Patriots a huge advantage in this matchup.

New England Patriots Depth Chart

QB: Mac Jones
RB1: Damien Harris
RB2: Rhamondre Stevenson
RB3: Brandon Bolden
WR1: Jakobi Meyers
WR2: Kendrick Bourne
WR3: Nelson Agholor
TE1: Hunter Henry

Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New England Patriots Daily Fantasy Picks

This week in fantasy, it might be a good idea to pick up some Patriots players. The Jacksonville defense will struggle tremendously with their second-string players against the aggressive Patriots team. Running back Damien Harris can be a good asset (if he is healthy to play), averaging 13.5 points per game with an impressive boom record. Last week against Buffalo, Harris was able to reel in 28.3 points with 103 rushing yards and three touchdowns. The Jaguars have a horrible rush defense, so the Patriots may use Harris as one of their biggest targets in this game. 

The Patriots’ defense might also be a great play for this week. They are projected to score 7.1 points and average 8.8 points per game. They’ve reached sums of 26 points against the struggling Falcons offense and might be able to do the same against the Jaguars.