When: 1 p.m. ET Sunday Where: EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Florida TV: CBS
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars were feeling pretty good about themselves after last Sunday's come-from-behind victory over the New York Giants.
Now along come the Houston Texans and J.J. Watt, who is making nearly as much of an impact on offense as he does on defense. Plus, the Texans need a victory to keep their playoff chances alive.
That will certainly keep any lingering feelings of celebration at bay.
The Jaguars have won two in a row in the series, sweeping the Texans last season for two of Jacksonville's four victories. Another victory would tie the Jags' longest winning streak in the series.
ESPN Texans reporter Tania Ganguli and Jaguars reporter Michael DiRocco break down Sunday's matchup at EverBank Field:
DiRocco: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers is probably going to be the NFL MVP this season. Should it be Watt?
Ganguli: Green Bay Packers reporter Rob Demovsky and I had a lovely debate about this subject a few weeks ago on NFL Nation TV. It's a tough call. Rodgers is having a historic season at quarterback, and typically quarterbacks have an edge in this discussion. On the other hand, Watt makes as much of an impact on defense as a quarterback does on offense. He commands the attention of two or three offensive players on nearly every play. And on offense, he's had a significant impact, too. The Texans are 3-0 when Watt catches a touchdown pass. They are 4-1 when Watt scores a touchdown of any kind. He's doing things no NFL player has done in the modern era, and if you go back into the era when rosters were tiny and players played both ways, he's still accomplishing rare feats. No defensive lineman has had five touchdowns in a season since 1944. No player has had two defensive touchdowns and three offensive touchdowns in the same season since 1948. No player has ever had three receiving touchdowns, a pick-six and a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown. His teammates argue this: A quarterback has the ball in his hands on every play, so by nature of the position he's going to impact every offensive play in some way. Watt has to earn his relevance on each play -- and he does.
Speaking of Watt, what should we know about the Jaguars' offensive line? They might all get a piece of Watt when it's all said and done.
DiRocco: It's an inconsistent and relatively inexperienced group. It may potentially include three rookies (including one who went undrafted) and a left tackle who is still struggling to adjust to the NFL game, so Watt should be excited about Sunday. Rookie right guard Brandon Linder has been the Jaguars' most consistent lineman all season, which is an indication of how disappointing left guard Zane Beadles (whom the Jaguars signed in free agency) has been. Rookie center Luke Bowanko has been up and down and has sometimes been overpowered up the middle. Left tackle Luke Joeckel, the No. 2 overall pick in 2013, has been a disappointment and played perhaps his worst game last Sunday against the Giants. The Jaguars will start either undrafted rookie Josh Wells or veteran Sam Young at right tackle in place of injured Austin Pasztor (ruptured hamstring). There will be times when someone is asked to handle Watt one-on-one, and coach Gus Bradley said they'll have to win some of those battles, but the Jaguars will have at least two players devoted to blocking Watt most of the day.
Ryan Fitzpatrick was ridiculous last week against Tennessee (six TD passes). If he had played like that before, he wouldn't have gotten benched. What sparked the outburst, and can he get the Texans to the playoffs?
Ganguli: You can chalk some of that up to competitive spirit. Upon his return from being benched, he was determined to make the most of an opportunity he didn't think he'd have again. He made better decisions and played with more confidence. He did great on deep balls to DeAndre Hopkins (keep an eye on him, by the way), completing five of five deep passes to Hopkins and nine of nine targets overall to him. He was protected better; after being sacked 20 times in his first nine games, Fitzpatrick was not sacked once in his return last week. It wasn't the opponent, either. The Tennessee Titans sacked Fitzpatrick five times in their first meeting this season. Based on all we've seen, that game was about as well as Fitzpatrick can play. If he keeps playing like that, then the Texans will be in good shape, but his history doesn't support that he will. The playoffs are within reach, but the Texans will need help. They can still win the division, too, but will need the Colts to stumble.
Sticking with quarterbacks, the Texans opted not to take Blake Bortles and the Jaguars took him two picks later, much higher than anyone anticipated. Will he prove the Texans wrong?
DiRocco: It's too early to know if Bortles is the Jaguars' franchise quarterback, but there are encouraging signs. He has cut his interceptions way down, throwing only three in the past four games. Plus, he just led the Jaguars on a game-winning drive, during which he overcame two penalties. They love his confidence, poise in the pocket, and his even demeanor -- he's never too up or too down. He's got all the physical tools (6-foot-5, 230 pounds, ability to scramble and run with the ball) and his decision-making has improved as the season has progressed. The key is his footwork. One coach told me that when Bortles uses the proper footwork the ball leaps out of his hand and he's accurate, but he's not doing that consistently. That's expected because it's hard to work on that stuff during the season. That will be the focus of his offseason. We'll get a better idea of how bright Bortles' future is during the 2015 season.
What a disappointing year for Jadeveon Clowney. He's dealt with a sports hernia, a concussion and a knee injury. Are there any rumblings inside the organization that they're worried about Clowney being injury-prone, or is he just unlucky this season?
Ganguli: From what I've heard, they do believe he's been unlucky. Clowney hadn't dealt with a major injury before this year, and nothing in his history outside of this season suggests he's going to keep having these injuries. He got a second opinion from Dr. James Andrews this week and is having another surgery on the same knee. He's been placed on IR, officially ending his rookie season. Having an eye to the future is what's best for all involved. His coaching staff isn't under the gun in its first season. When he was playing, he wasn't able to do the things they drafted him to do because of the pain and swelling in his knee. It's not the ideal result for a first overall pick's first season, but a player's career is a lot more than his rookie year.
The Jaguars have been in rebuilding mode for several years now. What signs of progress are you seeing?
DiRocco:: If you base it on the record, there haven't been any. But looking closer you can see some in spots. Even with what I wrote above about Bortles, the Jaguars are still better off at quarterback than they have been at any time over the past five years, and they believe he's the long-term answer. There is optimism about the group of young receivers, especially rookies Allen Robinson and Marqise Lee. Plus, the Jaguars are encouraged by what they've seen from Bowanko and Linder. That's five building blocks on offense, which is something the team didn't have last year. Defensively, the Jaguars are much better rushing the passer (37 sacks) and the unit has played significantly better over the past month. Rookie linebacker Telvin Smith has the look of a good player and he brings the one element the defense has been lacking for a while: speed. There's a lot more work to be done, but with another solid draft and more work in free agency (possibly free safety and tight end), the Jaguars could be a .500 team in 2015.
