NFL Wildcard Sunday Has Two Cinderella’s in AFC Matchup
The Buffalo Bills and the Jacksonville Jaguars will battle on NFL Wildcard Sunday at EverBank Field. This AFC Wildcard matchup will kickoff at 1 pm EST on CBS.
Oddsmakers opened the Jaguars as -6.5-point favorites versus the Bills, while the game’s total opened at 41. The Jags are now 8-point favorites and the total is down to 40.
Their is definitely going to be a potential Cinderella Story coming out of today’s AFC Wildcard matchup. Will the winner become a fan favorite throughout the playoffs?
Does that matter in this Era of bad NFL Football and parity throughout the league where every team virtually has a shot to make the playoffs every year? The Quality of football played in the NFL today is awful and a shadow of what it was just a few years ago.
The Jaguars won their first-ever AFC South title. They are in the playoffs for the first time since 2007. The team will host their first playoff game since 1999. Jacksonville was an NFL-worst 17-63 over the previous five seasons.
The Bills snapped a playoff drought that dated back to 1999. They are the final wild-card team in the AFC. Buffalo qualified with a win over Miami in the regular-season finale.
Do Jaguars Have Extra Motivation on NFL Wildcard Sunday?
Jaguars first-year coach Doug Marrone coached the Bills in 2013-14. He opted out of his contract and walked away with a $4 million buyout when Buffalo changed ownership. Will this motivate the Jaguars?
Marrone was hired by former Jaguars coach Gus Bradley to be the offensive line coach. Marrone served as the interim coach for two games after Bradley was fired and was promoted to head coach last January. There are only six players on the roster that played under Marrone.
The two teams also completed a trade prior to the NFL trade deadline. The Bills sent defensive tackle Marcell Dareus to the Jags for a 2018 fifth-round draft pick. The Jaguars had the worst run defense in the NFL when they made the move and ended up finishing 21st.
Bills Don’t Matchup Well in NFL Wildcard Round
The Bills don’t seem to match up well with the Jags if you look at the stats. They rank 30th in sacks allowed and are 29th in total offense.
The Jaguars defense ranks first in the NFL in yards-per-play, pass defense and interceptions. They are ranked second in total defense, sacks and scoring defense.
They could be in line for another dominant outing. If Bills star running back LeSean McCoy can’t play after injuring his ankle Sunday it could spell doom for the Bills. McCoy carried the ball 287 times for 1,138 yards with six touchdowns this season. He has a team-high 59 catches for 448 yards and two scores.
Tyrod Taylor is the team’s second-leading rusher with 427 yards and four touchdowns. Mike Tolbert would likely fill in for McCoy and has 247 yards rushing this season. He is a pdeliberate runner compared to the quickness of McCoy. Marcus Murphy made his season debut on Sunda. He rushed for 41 yards. He has eight career carries in the NFL.
McCoy did not practice Wednesday. McCoy’s absence would put a lot of pressure on Taylor and the Bills’ 31st ranked passing offense.
Buffalo ranks 30th in stopping the run this season. That should give the Jags offense hope after two consecutive losses to end the regular season. The Jaguars lead the NFL in rushing offense and are fifth in scoring.
Point differential is what separates the teams. The Jaguars are plus-149. That’s second best in the AFC behind New England. Buffalo is minus-57. There are nine teams that didn’t qualify for the playoffs with a better number.
| Name |
Offense |
Defense |
Differential |
| BUF |
16.03 |
15.83 |
0.2 |
| JAC |
14.04 |
17.08 |
-3.04 |
| Name |
Offense |
Defense |
Differential |
| BUF |
9.78 |
9.97 |
-0.19 |
| JAC |
11.37 |
9.40 |
1.97 |
| Name |
Offense |
Defense |
Differential |
| BUF |
4.14 |
4.28 |
-0.14 |
| JAC |
4.30 |
4.34 |
-0.04 |
| Name |
Record |
Home |
Away |
ATS |
ATS Home |
ATS Away |
Offense |
Defense |
Diff |
| Overall |
9-7 |
6-2 |
3-5 |
8-6-2 |
5-2-1 |
3-4-1 |
18.88 |
22.44 |
-3.56 |
| vs Conf |
7-5 |
5-1 |
2-4 |
7-5 |
5-1 |
2-4 |
19.67 |
21.58 |
-1.91 |
| vs Div |
1-2 |
0-0 |
1-2 |
1-2 |
0-0 |
1-2 |
19.67 |
29.00 |
-9.33 |
| Last 3 |
2-1 |
1-0 |
1-1 |
2-1 |
1-0 |
1-1 |
20.67 |
23.00 |
-2.33 |
| Name |
Record |
Home |
Away |
ATS |
ATS Home |
ATS Away |
Offense |
Defense |
Diff |
| Overall |
10-6 |
6-2 |
4-4 |
9-7 |
5-3 |
4-4 |
26.06 |
16.75 |
9.31 |
| vs Conf |
9-3 |
5-1 |
4-2 |
8-4 |
4-2 |
4-2 |
26.08 |
12.17 |
13.91 |
| vs Div |
2-1 |
0-0 |
2-1 |
2-1 |
0-0 |
2-1 |
22.00 |
7.33 |
14.67 |
| Last 3 |
1-2 |
1-0 |
0-2 |
1-2 |
1-0 |
0-2 |
29.33 |
22.00 |
7.33 |
| Title |
Stat |
Rank |
Stat |
Rank |
| Away Team Overall Scoring vs Home Team Overall Defense |
18.88 |
22 |
16.75 |
2 |
| Away Team Road Passing vs Home Team Home Passing Defense |
183.25 |
28 |
154.00 |
1 |
| Away Team Road Rushing vs Home Team Home Rushing Defense |
102.25 |
19 |
117.50 |
26 |
| Home Team Overall Scoring vs Away Team Overall Defense |
26.06 |
5 |
22.44 |
18 |
| Home Team Home Passing vs Away Team Road Passing Defense |
265.13 |
5 |
228.13 |
17 |
| Home Team Home Rushing vs Away Team Road Rushing Defense |
138.50 |
6 |
121.50 |
23 |
| Name |
Record |
ATS |
OU |
Score |
Rush |
YPR |
PA |
CP |
PY |
TY |
TO +/- |
| Buffalo |
5-5 |
5-5 |
7-3 |
23.20 |
119.70 |
4.06 |
28.10 |
65.84 |
190.60 |
310.30 |
1.80 |
| Jacksonville |
5-5 |
5-5 |
7-3 |
23.60 |
134.20 |
4.43 |
30.60 |
57.84 |
174.20 |
308.40 |
1.80 |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
Score |
Line |
Total |
OU Result |
ARY |
APY |
ATY |
ATT |
HRY |
HPY |
HTY |
HTT |
Away Team Attempts |
Home Team Attempts |
Away Team Completions |
Home Team Completions |
| Nov 27, 2016 |
JAC |
BUF |
21-28 |
183 |
118 |
301 |
0 |
153 |
151 |
304 |
0 |
| Oct 25, 2015 |
BUF |
JAC |
31-34 |
115 |
260 |
375 |
4 |
120 |
175 |
295 |
1 |
| Dec 15, 2013 |
BUF |
JAC |
27-20 |
198 |
168 |
366 |
2 |
159 |
195 |
354 |
4 |
| Dec 2, 2012 |
JAC |
BUF |
18-34 |
50 |
186 |
236 |
2 |
232 |
112 |
344 |
2 |
| Oct 10, 2010 |
JAC |
BUF |
36-26 |
216 |
165 |
381 |
3 |
110 |
196 |
306 |
0 |
| Nov 22, 2009 |
BUF |
JAC |
15-18 |
53 |
290 |
343 |
3 |
102 |
208 |
310 |
2 |
| Sep 14, 2008 |
BUF |
JAC |
20-16 |
75 |
210 |
285 |
1 |
98 |
145 |
243 |
2 |
| Nov 25, 2007 |
BUF |
JAC |
14-36 |
94 |
203 |
297 |
3 |
124 |
292 |
416 |
1 |
| Nov 26, 2006 |
JAC |
BUF |
24-27 |
207 |
116 |
323 |
1 |
72 |
169 |
241 |
1 |
| Sep 12, 2004 |
JAC |
BUF |
13-10 |
83 |
142 |
225 |
2 |
95 |
147 |
242 |
2 |
| Buffalo is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games |
| Buffalo is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Buffalo’s last 6 games |
| Buffalo is 3-6-1 ATS in its last 10 games on the road |
| Buffalo is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games on the road |
| The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Buffalo’s last 9 games on the road |
| The total has gone OVER in 5 of Buffalo’s last 5 games when playing Jacksonville |
| Buffalo is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Jacksonville |
| The total has gone OVER in 4 of Buffalo’s last 6 games when playing on the road against Jacksonville |
| Jacksonville is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games |
| The total has gone OVER in 4 of Jacksonville’s last 6 games |
| Jacksonville is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home |
| Jacksonville is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home |
| The total has gone OVER in 10 of Jacksonville’s last 14 games at home |
| The total has gone OVER in 5 of Jacksonville’s last 5 games when playing Buffalo |
| Jacksonville is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against Buffalo |
| The total has gone OVER in 4 of Jacksonville’s last 6 games when playing at home against Buffalo |
| Date |
Opponent |
score |
Result |
line |
ATS Result |
offensive rush yards |
offensive passing yards |
offensive total yards |
defensive rush yards |
defensive passing yards |
defensive total yards |
turnovers |
Location |
| Dec 31, 2017 |
MIA |
22-16 |
W |
-2/41 |
W/U |
126 |
186 |
312 |
93 |
263 |
356 |
-1 |
A |
| Dec 24, 2017 |
NE |
16-37 |
L |
10.5/47.5 |
L/O |
84 |
242 |
326 |
193 |
218 |
411 |
-1 |
A |
| Dec 17, 2017 |
MIA |
24-16 |
W |
-3.5/39.5 |
W/O |
116 |
212 |
328 |
100 |
249 |
349 |
-3 |
H |
| Dec 10, 2017 |
IND |
13-7 |
W |
-3/37 |
W/U |
227 |
92 |
319 |
163 |
64 |
227 |
2 |
H |
| Dec 3, 2017 |
NE |
3-23 |
L |
7.5/49 |
L/U |
183 |
85 |
268 |
191 |
244 |
435 |
0 |
H |
| Date |
Opponent |
score |
Result |
line |
ATS Result |
offensive rush yards |
offensive passing yards |
offensive total yards |
defensive rush yards |
defensive passing yards |
defensive total yards |
turnovers |
Location |
| Dec 31, 2017 |
TEN |
10-15 |
L |
2.5/40 |
L/U |
83 |
146 |
229 |
116 |
116 |
232 |
3 |
A |
| Dec 24, 2017 |
SF |
33-44 |
L |
-4/43 |
L/O |
92 |
380 |
472 |
131 |
238 |
369 |
2 |
A |
| Dec 17, 2017 |
HOU |
45-7 |
W |
-10.5/39 |
W/O |
138 |
326 |
464 |
87 |
99 |
186 |
-1 |
H |
| Dec 10, 2017 |
SEA |
30-24 |
W |
-2.5/41 |
W/O |
157 |
268 |
425 |
141 |
260 |
401 |
-2 |
H |
| Dec 3, 2017 |
IND |
30-10 |
W |
-10/41 |
W/U |
96 |
330 |
426 |
141 |
149 |
290 |
-2 |
H |
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