Jaguars Find Peak Form Ahead of London Swing
The Jacksonville Jaguars are set to play two consecutive regular-season home games in London, becoming the first NFL team to do so in an international market. For most franchises, spending two weeks abroad might be a disruption, but for Jacksonville, games in England are familiar territory. The team should enjoy a logistical edge over both the Philadelphia Eagles and the Houston Texans, and they appear to be the stronger side in each matchup. Last week, Trevor Lawrence secured his first career win over Joe Burrow, a 22-17 victory that snapped a four-game personal losing streak against the Bengals quarterback. Jacksonville has now won two straight since a Week 2 loss and is favored in each of its next three games.[S1]
Lawrence has performed like a top-10 quarterback, but the defense has been the standout during the 3-1 start. The Jaguars rank second in scoring defense, allowing just 13.3 points per game, and fifth in EPA per pass despite facing Burrow's high-powered aerial attack and reigning MVP runner-up Drake Maye in consecutive weeks. This Jacksonville squad appears more balanced than in previous years and is positioned to avenge last season's 35-7 loss in London with a pair of overseas victories.[S1]
Eagles Slide Toward Rebuild After Back-to-Back Losses
The Philadelphia Eagles' odds of winning a second Super Bowl under Nick Sirianni in three years have nearly doubled since before Week 4. That shift follows a dismal offensive performance in which the Eagles set a franchise record with 12 third downs without a conversion during a 24-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Philadelphia squandered a 10-point lead in the final four minutes and has now lost two straight after opening the season 2-0. Even those first two wins were narrow, one-score outcomes against inferior opponents. The pressure on Sirianni is officially mounting, and he now has work to do to save his job.[S1]
The Eagles closed Week 4 without 10 key players. Injuries to Saquon Barkley, DeVonta Smith, Zack Baun and numerous other starters ravaged the roster. Further depleting the squad, Lane Johnson announced his retirement from the NFL, and Philadelphia traded Cam Jurgens in an overhaul of what used to be a stout offensive line. That trade might signal that the Eagles are looking ahead to next year.[S1]
Falcons Emerge as Long Shot Worth Watching
With the 12th-longest odds to win the Super Bowl, the Atlanta Falcons may be undervalued by the market. This is not a championship frontrunner, but it is a completely different team with Michael Penix Jr. running the offense, and one that at least deserves respect as a division favorite. When Cooper Rush was under center, the Falcons lost their first two games, scored a combined 16 points and committed seven turnovers. In the two games with Penix at quarterback, the offense racked up 80 points, managed nearly twice as many yards and turned the ball over just once. Atlanta went from 0-2 to 2-2 almost instantly. Now that a signal-caller capable of feeding Drake London, Bijan Robinson and Kyle Pitts is in the lineup, a unit that stands among the NFL's most talented collection of skill players can excel.[S1][S3]
The defense has also contributed. The Falcons rank third in the league with a 43.6% pressure rate and boast the NFL's stingiest run defense by a hefty margin, having allowed just 48.3 yards per game. All of that has come without Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. on a defensive front that was supposed to sputter in their absence.[S1]
Week 5 Games to Watch
The Buffalo Bills visit the Los Angeles Rams on Monday at 8:15 p.m. ET on ABC. This matchup may be a Super Bowl preview, as these two teams hold the best odds to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Both star-studded squads need a momentum-building win: the Rams have not appeared as strong as expected in their 2-2 start, and the Bills seek to avoid a two-game losing streak after their first loss of the year.[S1]
The San Francisco 49ers travel to face the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET on Fox. The 49ers are already the top team in the NFC West with a 4-0 record and two wins in divisional play, but they can take complete control of the division with another victory.[S1]
