Nov 16, 2025; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen reacts to a touchdown against the Los Angeles Chargers during the third quarter at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images

1 Matchup That Will Decide Jaguars' Fate vs. Cardinals

Originally posted on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI
By Andy Quach | Last updated Nov 23, 2025 12:13 PM ET

The Jacksonville Jaguars' defense had a massive bounce-back in their last game against the Los Angeles Chargers. In Week 11, they nearly shut their opponents out en route to a 35-6 rout to move to 6-4 on the 2025 NFL season. They desperately needed that level of performance on that side of the ball, considering the way that they had been trending up to that point.

Jacksonville came out of the gate hot on defense, notching 13 takeaways in its first four games and allowing just 18 points per game in that span. In their next five, the Jaguars forced just two turnovers while giving up 29.6 points on average. Some of the blame falls on the offense there, too, including a strip-sack from the Houston Texans against Trevor Lawrence to end the game in Week 10, but ultimately, the defense had to be better in all of those outings.

They got the response they needed versus the Chargers, holding Justin Herbert and company to just six points, 3-for-12 on third-down conversions, and just 135 total yards. The Jaguars will be hoping that they can build on that momentum in their next game against the Arizona Cardinals on the road, but there's one player who deeply threatens their chances.

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Jaguars Have to Stop Trey McBride

The Jacksonville Jaguars are slightly favored on the road against the 3-7 Arizona Cardinals. Many haven't bought into this team as a serious contender yet, but they might be more emboldened about their chances in this game if it weren't for Trey McBride. The fourth-year tight end has been a force this season, and he might be an especially miserable matchup for Jacksonville, as outlined by ESPN's Michael DiRocco:

"Cardinals tight end Trey McBride is not a good matchup for the Jaguars, who rank sixth in receiving yards allowed (694) and seventh in receptions (64) by TEs. McBride leads the position in catches (71) and yards (718). 'You've got to have eyes on him and understand where he is in the formation at all times,' coach Liam Coen said. 'Building a plan around stopping guys like that is mixing up looks... and present them and make sure that maybe you have some areas in the red area, whatever it is, to double him or take away their best player.'"

FanDuel has McBride's line against the Jaguars set at 75.5 receiving yards, and he's listed at -120 to score a touchdown. Jacksonville will be hoping to hold him under in both of those marks in Week 12.

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This article first appeared on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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