(6) Buffalo Bills @ (3) Jacksonville Jaguars
Sunday, January 11, 1:00 PM ET
If you're looking for the best bang for your buck on Wild Card weekend, it's got to be this game right here. The Jacksonville Jaguars just won the AFC South in the first year of the James Gladstone/Liam Coen era, and they currently look like they might be the most impressive all-around team in the NFL.
The Jags took care of business in Week 18 against the Tennessee Titans, their offense is rolling, they've been one of the hottest teams in the NFL for two months, and what's their reward for all of that? Well, they get to be the team to host the one quarterback no one in the NFL would want to face in the Wild Card round. Josh Allen is coming to Duval County.
While the Jaguars can counter with a Josh Allen of their own (Josh Hines-Allen, to be specific), this has to be considered the marquee matchup of the weekend overall. You have the reigning NFL MVP going on the road in what will end up being considered arguably the most pivotal postseason of his NFL career so far.
Allen's Buffalo Bills finished just behind the New England Patriots in the AFC East this year, but with no Mahomes, Herbert, or Burrow in the playoffs, the expectation for Allen is going to be to win it all. Otherwise, the narrative is going to be all about how he couldn't take advantage of seemingly a golden opportunity.
But the Jaguars don't care about that. They're going from being one of the worst teams in the NFL last year to one of the best all-around teams this year, and a dynamic operation, at that. The Jaguars are looking like a well-oiled machine at exactly the right time. Can that Buffalo defense actually slow them down?
The one factor in favor of the Bills right now, beyond Josh Allen, is the fact that they might have the most dangerous running game in the NFL. As much as I respect the Jaguars, I can't pick against the Bills in the opening round of the postseason. They're 1.5-point favorites and I just feel like Josh Allen will "will" them to victory.
Prediction: Bills win 31-27