The Jacksonville Jaguars and the Pittsburgh Steelers meet Sunday in NFL action from Acrisure Stadium. The Jaguars are 5-2 overall this year and sitting on a four-game win streak after taking out the Saints last Thursday. As for Pittsburgh, they’ve got a 4-2 record following a win over the Rams in their latest outing. Check back all season long for free NFL picks at Sports Chat Place.
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars started out the season on a rocky 1-2 clip, but since then they’ve really hit a groove. Jacksonville beat the Colts 31-21 in the opener, then fell to the Chiefs 17-9 and the Texans 37-17. Since then, the Jaguars have hit a win streak with victories over the Falcons 23-7, the Bills 25-20, the Colts 37-20 and the Saints 31-24.
Last Thursday in the matchup versus the Saints, Jacksonville managed to score points in every quarter and kept the damage minimal on the other side (until giving up 15 in the fourth). QB Trevor Lawrence finished with 204 yards and a score, also leading the rush with 59 yards. Christian Kirk caught the touchdown among his eight grabs for 90 yards.
Jacksonville Jaguars Team Facts
- The Jaguars have won each of their last six Sunday games against teams that held a winning record.
- The Jaguars have covered the spread in each of their last eight games against teams that held a winning record.
- The underdogs have won the first quarter in four of the Jaguars’ last five games.
- The favorites have won the first half in each of the Jaguars’ last eight Week 8 games.
- The Jaguars have scored the first touchdown in each of their last four games.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Over on the Steelers’ side, they started the season a little rocky as well with a 2-2 run in their first quartet. Pittsburgh beat the Browns 26-22 and the Raiders 23-18 in that time with losses otherwise to the 49ers 30-7 and the Texans 30-6. The Steelers have posted consecutive wins since then over the Ravens 17-10 and the Rams 24-17.
Back on Sunday versus the Rams, Pittsburgh came back from a 17-10 fourth-quarter deficit with a pair of unanswered scores. Kenny Pickett finished with 230 yards on 17-of-25 passing, and Najee Harris added 53 rush yards and a TD. George Pickens topped the receivers with 107 yards on five catches.
Pittsburgh Steelers Team Facts
- The Steelers have won seven of their last eight games as underdogs.
- The Steelers have covered the spread in seven of their last eight games against AFC South opponents.
- The Steelers have lost the first quarter in each of their last six October games against AFC opponents.
- The Steelers have lost the first half in seven of their last eight games in October.
- Eight of the Steelers’ last nine games following a win have gone UNDER the total points line.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Steelers rank 1st in the NFL in forced fumbles this season (11).
- The Steelers rank 31st in the NFL in yards per game this season (273.5).
- The Jaguars rank T1st in the NFL in fumbles recovered this season (7).
- The Jaguars rank 31st in the NFL in passing yards allowed per game this season (273.9).
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’ll take a stab on the Jaguars here. This should be a pretty interesting matchup, though. Jacksonville wasn’t spectacular on offense in the win over the Saints, losing two fumbles and going just 2-of-11 on third-down tries. The Jags gave up 407 yards of offense to New Orleans (295 passing), but held the opposition to just 3-of-18 on third downs in a gritty road win. That makes 23 or more points in all four games of this current win streak, and 31 or more in the last two.
As for Pittsburgh, they’ve got a few things to clean up after their win over the Rams but overall they’re in a decent spot. The Steelers took care of the ball with zero turnovers in their latest win, but also went just 4-of-12 on third downs and committed eight penalties. Pittsburgh has given up 18 or fewer points in two of the last three games, but if Jacksonville can break that trend with a good total here I think the Jags will be fine cover-wise. It’ll be a fun game to watch regardless.
