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The Jacksonville Jaguars and the Baltimore Ravens will compete for holiday cheer at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium. The Ravens will be strutting in after a win while Jacksonville will be stumbling in from a loss.
A victory for Jacksonville just wasn't in the stars last week as the team never even grasped a temporary lead. They ended up on the wrong side of a painful 31-10 walloping at the Tennessee Titans' hands. The last quarter was a mere formality since it was already 31-10 by the third quarter. No one had a standout game offensively for the Jaguars, but QB Gardner Minshew led the way with one touchdown. Minshew ended up with a passer rating of 116.90.
Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Baltimore beat the Cleveland Browns 47-42 this past Monday. Baltimore's QB Lamar Jackson did his thing and passed for one TD and 163 yards on 17 attempts in addition to rushing for two TDs and 124 yards. Jackson ended up with a passer rating of 164.70. Jackson's sharp performance set his single-game rushing touchdown high for the season.
Jacksonville is now 1-12 while the Ravens sit at 8-5. The Jaguars have been eliminated from playoff contention. Baltimore is still in the hunt for a spot in the playoffs, so these next three games are critical for them.
Jacksonville have to know they'll be fighting an uphill battle given the 13 point spread they are up against. Those playing the odds have seen things go back and forth with Jacksonville, who are 6-7 against the spread.
A pair of stats to keep in the back of your head while watching: Jacksonville is stumbling into the matchup with the third most rushing yards allowed per game in the league, having given up 145.5 on average. To make matters even worse for Jacksonville, the Ravens rank first in the NFL when it comes to rushing yards per game, with 173.8 on average.
