The Jacksonville Jaguars are finally hosting Monday Night Football again after a 12-year hiatus. The Jags are 8-3, in contention for the AFC’s No. 1 seed, and facing a Cincinnati Bengals team that is down on its luck after a season-ending wrist injury to quarterback Joe Burrow. But this will not be an “easy” win. Primetime clashes rarely are for Jacksonville, and this game isn’t decided just because Burrow’s out. In fact, the Jaguars need to prepare for a gritty, hard-nosed contest that will be won or lost on the line of scrimmage. And that’s not been an area that the Jaguars have consistently won. The offensive line has had good overall performances, but the losses to the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers come to mind. Over those two games, Jacksonville QB Trevor Lawrence was sacked nine times and RB Travis Etienne averaged less than 4 yards per carry.
Now, a Bengals defensive line that knows the game rests on its shoulder comes to Duval County. Cincinnati DE Trey Hendrickson is having another standout season with 10.5 sacks, but DE Sam Hubbard and DT BJ Hill both have four as well. This is not a team dependent on one rusher, but can create pressure from across the line. The importance of offensive line play is only magnified when looking at the red zone splits. The Jaguars score touchdowns after hitting the red zone 48.39% of the time, which ranks 25th in the NFL. Meanwhile, Cincinnati has hung tough near the goal line by allowing TDs 51.16% of the time, which ranks 10th in the league. All season, the Bengals have given up a ton of yards but have made impact plays. They’re second-to-last in the NFL in total yards allowed and rushing yards allowed, but just 19th in total points allowed. Those aren’t the marks of a stalwart defense, but they do signify that they could be a problem for an offensive line that has shown some weakne
