{"id":503788,"date":"2026-01-09T13:18:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T13:18:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/503788\/"},"modified":"2026-01-09T13:18:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T13:18:09","slug":"jacksonville-jaguars-vs-buffalo-bills-nfl-wild-card-round-game-picks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/503788\/","title":{"rendered":"Jacksonville Jaguars vs Buffalo Bills NFL Wild Card Round game picks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to Big Cat Country\u2019s staff roundtable!<\/p>\n

Today, we\u2019re previewing the Wild Card Round playoff matchup between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Buffalo Bills at EverBank Stadium.<\/p>\n

Question 1: Who has been your favorite player(s) to watch during Jacksonville\u2019s current eight-game win streak?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dillon Appleman<\/strong><\/a>: Obviously, Trevor\u2019s ascension has been awesome to watch, but I have to give some shine to Jarrian Jones. He\u2019d fallen down the depth chart before the win streak but has since earned more playing time and has been terrific. His energy stands out and he\u2019s become one of the biggest playmakers on this defense. Since his snaps started to increase in Week 9, Jones has seven pass deflections, two interceptions, and six tackles for loss.<\/p>\n

Travis Holmes<\/strong><\/a>: It\u2019s hard for me to name a player I\u2019m more passionate about than Jarrian Jones here. Jones began the season as a guy who was theoretically set to be in a fight for the outside corner role early in camp, to seemingly be in a (losing) fight for a starting role with Jourdan Lewis, to playing at such a high level currently that I couldn\u2019t envision him not being on the field. He and this Jacksonville secondary are playing at such a level of confidence on the tape that it screams coaching clinic, high-IQ football, and development oozing out of every snap. Jones exemplifies that, along with multiple others, in that DB room.<\/p>\n

Gus Logue<\/strong><\/a>: It\u2019s hard not to go with Trevor Lawrence. I\u2019ve been writing about the Jaguars since 2019, and I\u2019d say more than half of the feature-length articles I\u2019ve posted have essentially been titled \u201cLawrence is good, I swear!\u201d Right now, he\u2019s doing everything you could ask for: playmaking from both in and out of the pocket; changing calls and protections at the line of scrimmage; using his legs in high-leverage situations; and taking what the defense is giving him rather than forcing the ball. It took long enough, but the Trevor Lawrence Show has been a thrill to watch over the second half of this season.<\/p>\n

Henry Zimmer<\/strong><\/a>: My favorite players from this win streak have been the rookie running backs. LeQuint Allen Jr. and Bhayshul Tuten have injected such a fun energy into this offense because neither guy is afraid to bow up to anyone. If you can have two newcomers who have zero fear anytime they step on the field, that not only permeates through the whole locker room but is also a great reflection on what the coaching staff is preaching. Not to mention both have produced when called upon.<\/p>\n

Question 2: What\u2019s a matchup you\u2019re looking forward to watching?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dillon<\/strong>: Josh Allen vs. Josh Hines-Allen. Jags fans will never forget when these two faced off back in 2021 when they were going by the same name. The Jags\u2019 Josh Allen got the best of the matchup as he had a sack, fumble recovery and an interception in that one, which led to Jacksonville faithful giving Hines-Allen the nickname \u201cThe Good Josh Allen.\u201d A lot of time has passed since then, as the Bills\u2019 Josh Allen is now the reigning MVP while the Jags\u2019 all-time sack leader has since changed his name to Joshua Hines-Allen, but what\u2019s to say this matchup doesn\u2019t decide who \u201cThe Good Josh Allen\u201d is once and for all?<\/p>\n

Travis<\/strong>: It\u2019s Trevor Lawrence versus the media narrative, for me. After recently rewatching Jacksonville\u2019s 2024 blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills, I couldn\u2019t help but wonder how Lawrence would perform this coming Sunday in what is expected to be a pretty similar defensive scheme, with a significant upgrade at offensive coordinator in Jacksonville. In that matchup against Sean McDermott and Bob Babich\u2019s defense, Lawrence was 21 of 38 for 178 yards, a touchdown, and an interception (65.5 passer rating) and was sacked four times. With the team continuing to be disrespected and ignored by national media at every turn, a quality game from Trevor would go a long way towards shedding the narrative from those who clearly don\u2019t watch the team on a weekly basis. However, a rough game would be Exhibit A for that same group were Lawrence to struggle, whether he won or lost. Sunday, at home, could be a prime-time opportunity to shut up the talking heads while also shifting his recent ascension from a temporary streak conversation to a placement into the new age elite quarterbacks.<\/p>\n

Gus<\/strong>: Much has been made this week of Buffalo\u2019s No. 1 run offense against Jacksonville\u2019s No. 1 run defense \u2014 and for good reason \u2014 but I\u2019m interested in the flip side as well. How will Travis Etienne and Bhayshul Tuten perform against a Bills defense that, by deploying high rates of light boxes and two-high safety structures, invites opposing offenses to run against them? According to S\u016bmerSports, the Jaguars rank 31st in EPA per designed rush and 31st in rushing success rate since the Jakobi Meyers acquisition in Week 10. The ground game has to be more efficient for the Jaguars to make a run (no pun intended) in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

Henry<\/strong>: How will the Jags continue to stop the run? James Cook won the NFL\u2019s rushing title with a monstrous 1,621 total rushing yards. Cook, combined with the big body rushing ability of Josh Allen, will certainly be the biggest test for the league\u2019s No. 1 rushing defense. At home, I think I would give the Jags the edge, but the Jags rush defense vs. the Bills rush attack could easily determine this game.<\/p>\n

Question 3: Who will be the biggest X-factor?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dillon<\/strong>: Foye Oluokun. The Bills are the league\u2019s No. 1 rushing team and have a trio of tight ends that they like to use in a multitude of ways. Those two attributes lend themselves to Foye Oluokun needing to play a big role in this one. He\u2019s the team\u2019s best run defender and rarely makes mistakes when filling gaps in that space. He\u2019s also going to be leaned on to help keep Dalton Kincaid, Dawson Knox, and Jackson Hawes from picking up chunk plays at the second level, particularly in the red zone.<\/p>\n

Travis<\/strong>: Bills running back James Cook has, rightfully, gotten a lot of attention for leading the NFL in yards this season. But, similar to the Colts\u2019 Jonathan Taylor, the Jaguars aren\u2019t novices in facing league-leading rushers while holding them to ho-hum days. Cook could potentially be the player who creates a matchup nightmare for Jacksonville should he become the first player to rush for over 100 yards against the Jaguars. However, Cook could equally end Sunday as Buffalo\u2019s biggest problem should he be unable to get going or turn the ball over. Since week 10, Cook has fumbled five times, losing three of them. Meanwhile, Buffalo faces a Jaguars defense that\u2019s top 10 in the NFL in fumbles forced (11) and fumbles recovered (9). That sets this week\u2019s stage as a prime opportunity for a week when the first defender wraps up the ball carrier, with the second defender on the scene punching it out for Jacksonville\u2019s defense.<\/p>\n

Gus<\/strong>: Quintin Morris, of course. The fourth-year tight end has climbed up Jacksonville\u2019s depth chart to the point that I\u2019d be surprised if he isn\u2019t re-signed in 2026 to continue serving as TE2. Morris scored his first touchdown of the season in Week 18 and could be a difference-maker in Sunday\u2019s game due to Buffalo\u2019s defensive structure. The Bills keep light bodies (defensive backs) on the field as much as possible because their top goal is to prevent explosive passes. However, that strategy often leaves them exposed against 2- or 3-TE sets. Look for the Jaguars to establish the run with Morris on the field early in the game; if that forces the Bills to adjust their personnel, Liam Coen\u2019s entire playbook will open up from there.<\/p>\n

Henry<\/strong>: This might be a cop out, but Josh Allen is my X-Factor. Allen is as good as it gets at the quarterback position and he is flanked by pretty good talent on his offense. The Jags defense is solid, but they haven\u2019t seen someone like Allen in a while. If he plays to his regular playoff level, it could be a big issue for the Jags.<\/p>\n

Dillon<\/strong>: Jaguars 23, Bills 21<\/p>\n

Travis<\/strong>: Jaguars 34, Bills 24<\/p>\n

Gus<\/strong>: Jaguars 34, Bills 20<\/p>\n

Henry<\/strong>: Jaguars 35, Bills 34<\/p>\n

What are your Week 17 predictions, Jaguars fans? Let us know in the comments!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome to Big Cat Country\u2019s staff roundtable! Today, we\u2019re previewing the Wild Card Round playoff matchup between the…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":503789,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5136],"tags":[5229,3188,723,7310,204091,8907,210987,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-503788","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-jacksonville","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-fl","10":"tag-florida","11":"tag-jacksonville","12":"tag-jacksonville-jaguars-discussion","13":"tag-jacksonville-jaguars-news","14":"tag-jacksonville-jaguars-playoffs","15":"tag-united-states","16":"tag-united-states-of-america","17":"tag-unitedstates","18":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","19":"tag-us","20":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115865341431232770","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/503788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=503788"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/503788\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/503789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=503788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=503788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=503788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}