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Packers vs Jaguars: A closer game than you think
It’s 2016 and a brand new season of NFL action! People are wanting to hear what professionals have to say about their teams and who they are going up against week one. Well, if you’re a true Green Bay Packers fan like myself, you know that their week one match-up against the Jacksonville Jaguars isn’t going to be a walk in the park, and I’m here to tell you why!
Battle of the O’s
This match-up is the story of two teams that figure to improve on the offensive side of the ball in 2016. Blake Bortles and the Jaguars ranked 18th in total offense in 2015 with 348.8 yards of offense as a unit. On the opposite side of the field, Aaron Rodgers and company ranked a dreadful 23rd with just 334.6 total yards per game. That stat for Green Bay, however, was heavily due to the absence of wide receiver Jordy Nelson. Having him back and at full strength this year will vastly improve the aerial attack.
Offensively for the Jaguars, Blake Bortles will lead the way, and he has a very dependable supporting cast. For starters, wideout Allen Robinson hauled in 80-passes for 1,400-yards and 14-touchdowns in 2015. Jacksonville will be expecting him to be their number one option in the 2016 campaign. Opposite Robinson on the field will be the other Allen, Allen Hurns who is also in his third season. Hurns had 64 receptions for 1,031-yards and 10-touchdowns last season.
These two stud receivers are not alone. Bortles also has more weapons in Marqise Lee, as well as veteran Tight End’s Julius Thomas and Marcedes Lewis.
If these attractive targets weren’t enough, they just signed running back Chris Ivory in the off-season to pair with second-year back, T.J. Yeldon who had 740-yards and two touchdowns in his rookie campaign. Let’s also not forget about Denard “Shoelace” Robinson. These three running backs could end up being a huge factor for this offense with Ivory getting most of the red zone carries with the big body he has.
If the offensive line can protect Bortles better than they did last season in which he led the NFL in times sacked with 51, then this offense will be Elite.
As far as the Packers are concerned, they have gone through changes as a team during the off-season. It will be interesting to see how they respond come Sunday and throughout the rest of the regular season.
On offense, Green Bay lost two key players in the veteran fullback and outstanding blocker, John Kuhn, to the New Orleans Saints. Wide Receiver James Jones also left via free agency and signed with the San Diego Chargers. However, he since has been released by the Bolts. They had an excellent draft, however, selecting offensive tackle Jason Spriggs from Indiana. He will most certainly help keep Aaron Rodgers upright.
Basically what I’m trying to say is, the first main reason why this game could be closer than expected is that this game has the potential to be a shootout.
Jag’s new defensive faces
Defensively, Jacksonville was dreadful in 2015, ranking 24th. They allowed 375 total yards to opposing teams. Green Bay ranked middle of the pack at 15th while allowing 346.7 total yards per game.
In this year’s draft, the Jaguars selected Florida State cornerback, Jalen Ramsey with the number five overall pick. Then they went out and got a steal late in the second round with the 36th pick, drafting linebacker Myles Jack to shore up two huge needs on the defensive side of the ball.
This team also added Dante Fowler Jr. with their first pick in the 2015 draft, but he got injured before even getting a chance to play a game. If this team can stay healthy in all phases of the season, I like their chances to make some noise in the AFC South.
Defensively for the Green Bay Packers, they lost nose tackle B.J. Raji in the off-season when he stepped away from the team. They went out and drafted 6’3″, 314 pounds, monster defensive tackle, Kenny Clark with the 27th overall pick in the 2016 draft. They hope Clark’s presence and production will help replace what they will surely miss from Raji. Inside Linebacker Blake Martinez, Defensive End Dean Lowry and outside linebacker Kyler Fackrell were also smart draft picks by Green Bay and have incredible upside to them.
Both these teams have drafted well defensively the last couple years to form the formidable defenses they have now.
Bortles is on the rise
We know Aaron Rodgers is capable of as he enters his 12th season in the NFL, ninth as the starting quarterback for the Packers. Some may say he’s out of his prime, but some may argue that. None the less, he can still throw the ball and still move out of the pocket without issue. Rodgers had somewhat of a down year last year with the absence of Jordy Nelson. He threw for 3,821-yards and 31-touchdowns and had a season quarterback rating of 92.7. Any quarterback would be lucky to have those numbers at the end of the season, but for Aaron those were mediocre.
Blake Bortles is entering his third season in the league and just last year he threw for 4,428-yards and 35-touchdowns and 18-interceptions in his sophomore season. That’s tremendous growth from his rookie year in which he had 2,908 yards to go with a touchdown to interception ratio of 11/17. That’s a huge improvement from season to season. He will only continue to get better.
Final thoughts
If you saw this week one match-up a couple of years ago on paper, you’d laugh because Green Bay would be the heavy favorites. Not so much in 2016. This Jacksonville Jaguars team could contend for a division title if healthy, and the offense is capable of lighting up scoreboards week after week.
I’m going to give the edge to Green Bay in this one because of the return of Jordy Nelson, but the Jags will give it their all and could squeak this one out.
FINAL SCORE:
GREEN BAY: 31 JACKSONVILLE: 28
Ryan Cole is a Writer for Couch Rider Report. Follow us on Facebook or twitter