The Jacksonville Jaguars are now 8-6 and are in a three-way tie for the AFC South's first-place spot, which is crazy considering they had a two-game lead not too long ago. That is how fast things can change in the NFL.
With the Jaguars losing three straight now to the Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, and Baltimore Ravens, things have to change. Going into each of those games, the idea of winning was not a stretch. In fact, one could argue that the Bengals and Browns games were games they should have won, being that the Browns were playing with Joe Flacco, a backup, and the Bengals were playing with Jake Browning.
Now they sit at a spot where they have to win out, and they are guaranteed the tiebreaker for the first spot, which guarantees the playoffs. However, their next game is against a red-hot Tampa Bay Buccaneers team, and Trevor Lawrence, who is in concussion protocol, may not even play.
Things have to be changed, and one starter thinks it will. As a matter of fact, he kind of makes a promise that they will definitely turn it around, and that could blow up in their face.
"I definitely think we will respond well. We will definitely respond well," safety Rayshawn Jenkins said in the locker room after the loss. "Quite frankly, we always play good when we are the underdogs. That's one good thing about this team. But we don't want to be the underdogs for too long. We just have to fix it, man."
I wouldn't say definitely because that's making a promise it feels like this team may not be able to keep. They have Tampa Bay, Carolina, and Tennessee coming up on their schedule. That seems like an easy way to finish the season, right? Wrong.
Tampa Bay is red-hot right now, and they could be playing them without Trevor Lawrence, who is in concussion protocol. Carolina should be a win, and Tennessee is a division matchup. You never know what will happen. It could all blow up.
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