Colts will be challenged with a Jaguars team that is even more competitive than last season
The Indianapolis Colts will travel to Jacksonville to take on a Jaguars team that has much more talent than they did in recent years.
Last season, the Jacksonville Jaguars were the worst team in the NFL. Their season was filled with controversy because of former head coach, Urban Meyer, and they finished the year with the league’s worst record at 3-14. Despite all of that, Jacksonville was able to embarrass the Indianapolis Colts in the final regular season game of last year and prevented Indy from making the playoffs.
Defeating the Colts 26-11 in Week 18, an uninformed observer would’ve thought the Jaguars were a playoff-worthy team and Indianapolis was the team in line for the No. 1 pick. While the Week 18 game gets all of the attention because of what was at stake, Jacksonville also played Indianapolis incredibly tough in Week 10.
Indy won that matchup 23-17 in Lucas Oil Stadium thanks to some big, late-game defensive plays. Now, in Week 2 of this season, the Colts will travel to Jacksonville for their first game against the Jaguars this year. In addition to not winning in Jacksonville since 2014, Indy will also be challenged by a more talented Jacksonville team.
Jaguars could be a real challenge for the Colts
Not many teams attacked the offseason like Jacksonville did this year. For starters, the Jaguars hired a Super Bowl-winning head coach in Doug Pederson. Then, they went on a spending spree in free agency to get Trevor Lawrence some weapons and protection. Jacksonville also used free agency and the draft to load up on defensive talent.
The first display for this new look roster was in Week 1 against the Washington Commanders. Jacksonville ultimately lost 28-22, but the team had some very promising moments. Christian Kirk proved to be worth his contract by catching six passes for 117 yards and the Jaguars averaged 6.8 yards a carry.
Jacksonville is evidently improving but the Colts are still the more talented team. However, Indianapolis was more talented than Houston as well and Indy didn’t win that game. The Colts will need to bring their best game on Sunday against this young and talented Jacksonville team or Indy could be staring at two weeks without a victory.
