{"id":261973,"date":"2026-01-07T14:00:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T19:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=261973"},"modified":"2026-01-07T11:09:28","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T16:09:28","slug":"bills-vs-jaguars-afc-wild-card-round-breakdown-where-to-watch-and-prediction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/01\/07\/bills-vs-jaguars-afc-wild-card-round-breakdown-where-to-watch-and-prediction\/","title":{"rendered":"Bills vs Jaguars AFC Wild Card Round: Breakdown, Where to Watch, and Prediction"},"content":{"rendered":"

In what is arguably the marquee matchup of the 2025 NFL Wild Card Round, the Josh Allen\u2013led Buffalo Bills<\/a> travel to face what might legitimately be the hottest team in football right now: the Jacksonville Jaguars.<\/a><\/p>\n

With the narrative firmly centered on whether this is finally Allen\u2019s year, with no Patrick Mahomes standing in his way<\/a>, the Jaguars, much like they did throughout the regular season, will be eager to shock the football world once again. This shapes up as the pivotal clash of the AFC\u2019s opening playoff round.<\/p>\n

Bills vs Jaguars: Breakdown, Where to Watch, and Prediction<\/h2>\n

Game Breakdown:<\/h3>\n

The game plan for Jacksonville is relatively straightforward. Defensively, the Jaguars must pressure Allen early and often to test how healthy his ankle truly is. Staying opportunistic on defense while remaining disciplined within their schemes will be crucial. Offensively, Jacksonville will look to lean heavily on the run game to exploit what has been Buffalo\u2019s biggest weakness this season<\/a>. Controlling the tempo and limiting Allen\u2019s time of possession is key to keeping this game within reach.<\/p>\n

Even if the Jaguars opt for a more drop-back\u2013heavy approach, they have the league\u2019s most in-form quarterback right now under center in Trevor Lawrence<\/a>. Lawrence showed against the Broncos just how lethal he can be against an elite passing defense when he\u2019s in rhythm. If he manages the margins, avoids turnovers, and leans on his playoff experience, this is a game the Jaguars can absolutely win \u2014 and one that could serve as a defining moment in Lawrence\u2019s legacy.<\/p>\n

\"trevor
Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) \u00a0at Cincinnati Bengals Paycor Stadium on Sunday, September 14, 2025.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

With the pressure mounting, Sean McDermott<\/a> finds himself on the hot seat, especially in the wake of what recently happened to John Harbaugh<\/a>. For Josh Allen, it feels like now or never. Even so, the Bills remain the bookmakers\u2019 favorite to win this game and are still the most popular pick to represent the AFC. Buffalo brings a strong pass defense, a solid offensive line, a reliable running back, and, quite simply, the best quarterback remaining in the playoff field.<\/p>\n

Allen is a historically great postseason performer. In a world without Mahomes, he may already have at least one Super Bowl ring. If he goes into full Superman mode, a Jaguars pass defense that has been propped up by timely takeaways could finally meet its match.<\/p>\n

Where and When to Watch<\/h3>\n

This is the first game on Sunday, with kickoff scheduled for 1:00 PM ET.<\/p>\n

The game will be broadcast on CBS.<\/p>\n

Prediction<\/h3>\n

This matchup carries more compelling storylines than any other Wild Card game and could become a legacy-altering data point for both quarterbacks.<\/p>\n

My head says the Jaguars have enough to pull off the upset. But Allen\u2019s playoff resume, even with his lack of road postseason wins, is simply too strong to ignore, especially against a quarterback who can still make the occasional head-scratching decision.<\/p>\n

Prediction Score<\/strong>: Bills 27-24 Jaguars<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills visit Trevor Lawrence\u2019s Jaguars in a must-watch NFL AFC Wild Card matchup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5658,"featured_media":253685,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,13,32810,1],"tags":[2599,1159,6249],"class_list":["post-261973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bills","category-jaguars","category-predictions","category-uncategorized","tag-josh-allen","tag-sean-mcdermott","tag-trevor-lawrence"],"modified_by":"Sue Levine","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261973","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5658"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=261973"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261973\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":261991,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261973\/revisions\/261991"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/253685"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=261973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=261973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=261973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}