Tampa Bay has had success as of late, winning two of their last three games. In their latest contest, they beat the Atlanta Falcons 35-22. On Sunday, they travel across the state to face the struggling Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Jaguars are winless in November, losing their last three games. In their latest contest, the Tennessee Titans dominated them 42-20. Through the month, they've lost their games by an average margin of almost 22 points.
On Sunday, the Jaguars look to bounce back. This contest takes place at EverBank Field with kickoff scheduled for 1 p.m. EST. The game airs on Fox.
Tampa Bay needs to limit the Jaguars' attack
Jacksonville won't be the most prolific offense the Buccaneers have faced at this point, but they can move the ball. The Jaguars are a top 15 team in rushing and passing yards gained, though they have trouble converting these drives into points, as they score 19 per game.For Tampa Bay to win, they must shut down the Jaguars' best offensive player, Leonard Fournette. He leads Jacksonville in rushing yards and receptions, so he's their offensive catalyst.
To stop him, the Buccaneers must stop Jacksonville at the point of attack. As good as Fournette has been at times, he's also had multiple games where he averages under three yards a carry. If Tampa can win the battle upfront and their secondary communicates to keep an eye on him, they can limit Fournette's production.
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Offensively, the Buccaneers will have ample opportunities for plays through the air. Look for Mike Evans and Chris Godwin to have big games.
The Jags' offense looking to feast
Jacksonville is eager to bounce back into the win column, but to do so they must take advantage of Tampa Bay's weak defense.The Buccaneers allow opponents to score 30 points on average and they surrender 406 total yards per game. For an offense that's struggled to convert drives into scores, if there was a time for Jacksonville to change that this is it.
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Fournette is the focal point but the other player to watch is quarterback Nick Foles. Foles has done a great job moving the ball by completing 68% of his passes. The one area to watch is on the line of scrimmage.
If the Jaguars can protect Foles, he'll pick apart Tampa's secondary. However, Jacksonville's offensive line surrendered five sacks in their last two games, so there's no guarantee this will happen.
Notable Trends
Trends found on Covers.com Jacksonville is:
- 1-4 ATS in last 5 games on grass
- 2-5 ATS in last 7 games
Tampa Bay is:
- 7-1 ATS in last 8 December games
- 4-1 in their last 5 games in Week 13