The Jaguars have lost five of their last six games as they have looked awful lately.  They beat the Colts 17-3 earlier this year in Indianapolis.  The Colts are a lock for the #1 overall pick in the NFL Draft in 2012, if they lose this game.  Their players aren’t going to go for that as they have won two games in a row over AFC South opponents (Texans and Titans).  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jaguars have the ball:  The Jaguars are going to feed the ball to Maurice-Jones Drew so that he can win the NFL rushing title.  It is also their best chance to win this game as the Colts are giving up 140.9 yards rushing per game and 4.2 yards per carry so far this year.  The Jaguars are going to have to keep DEs Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis out of the backfield or Blaine Gabbert is going to have a rough time throwing the ball.  The Jaguars are going to need some WRs and TEs to step up if they are going to win this game.

When the Colts have the ball:  The Colts are starting to feel better about themselves.  The Jaguars are going to have to brace for a heavy attack by the Colts’ passing game.  The Jaguars are going to have to mount a good pass rush or Dan Orlovsky could have a big game.  Reggie Wayne and Pierre Garcon are heading into free agency after the game on Sunday, so they are going to want to go out with a bang.  WR Austin Collie, TE Jacob Tamme and RB Joseph Addai will lend support on the shorter passes for the Colts in this game.  If the Jaguars put a lot of DBs in the game, look for Orlovsky to turn around and hand the ball off to Donald Brown and Joseph Addai.

PREDICTION:  COLTS 20, JAGUARS 17

26-year old RB Maurice Jones-Drew has been a one man gang offensively for the Jaguars so far this year.  He has played in 15 games for the Jaguars and he has carried the ball 318 times for 1,437 yards (4.5 ypc) with 8 TD runs.  Jones-Drew has also caught 42 passes for 370 yards (8.8 avg) with 3 TD grabs so far this season.  Those numbers are even more impressive when you consider that the Jaguars are only averaging 140.5 yards passing so far this year, so teams have been keying on stopping him.  Jones-Drew has now played in 92 games in his first six years for the Jaguars and he has carried the ball 1,459 times for 6,685 yards (4.6 ypc) with 62 TD runs.  He has also caught 277 passes for 2,469 yards (8.9 avg) with 10 TD grabs.  Maurice Jones-Drew is one of the best football players in Jacksonville Jaguars’ history and he’s going to continue putting up outstanding numbers for them, health permitting.

The Jaguars have signed 26-year old CB Trumaine McBride.  McBride played in 14 games for the Cardinals last year and he had 16 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  He has now played in 46 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 68 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, 8 passes defensed and 1 interception.  Don’t be surprised to see McBride play a lot this weekend against the Colts as the Jags are desperate at CB due to injuries.

The Jaguars have placed 29-year old DE Matt Roth (concussion) and 27-year old CB Ashton Youboty (hamstring) on the Injured Reserve List, ending their seasons.  Roth played in 9 games for the Jaguars this year and he had 24 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks and 1 fumble recovery.  Youboty played in 6 games for the Jaguars this year and he had 25 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 fumble recovery, 1 interception and 3 passes defensed.  I would think that the Jaguars might bring Youboty back for 2012, as he looked pretty good for them.  Roth returning is probably a little less likely.

The Jaguars just couldn’t muster enough offense to beat the Titans last Saturday in Tennessee.  Blaine Gabbert was not too good in this game as he completed 21 of 42 passes for 198 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT.  Maurice Jones-Drew led the way on the ground for the Jaguars in this game with 103 yards rushing on 24 carries (4.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 6 passes for 21 yards (3.5 avg) in this game.  WR Jarrett Dillard (5 rec, 61 yards), TE Colin Coherty (2 rec, 33 yards) and WR Mike Thomas (3 rec, 26 yards) led the way for the Jaguars in the passing game.  The Jaguars finished up with 113 yards rushing on 28 carries (4.0 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 42 passes (50%) for 187 yards as they had possession of the ball for 29:01.

The defense played hard, but not good enough to win in this game.  Safety Akwasi Owusu-Ansah (8 tackles), CB Drew Coleman (8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 pass defensed) and safety Dawan Landry (7 tackles and 1 fumble recovery) led the way for the Jags’ D in this game.  DT Leger Douzable also had a solid game with 5 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit.  CB Morgan Trent and DE Jeremy Mincey pitched in with one interception apiece in this game.  The Titans finished up with 65 yards rushing on 25 carries (2.6 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 40 passes (60%) for 342 yards.  The Jaguars are now 4-11 on the year.

The Jaguars have lost four of their last five games as their season is going down the commode.  But, they did beat the Titans 16-14 in Jacksonville in the season opener.  The Titans have lost two games in a row, including a shocking 27-13 decision against the Colts last weekend.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jaguars have the ball:  The Jaguars are going to attack the Titans’ front seven with Maurice Jones-Drew both running the ball and catching it out of the backfield.  Jones-Drew should have no problem finding running room tomorrow as the Titans are giving up 127.7 yards rushing per game and 4.4 yards per carry.  The Titans don’t have a great pass rush, so Blaine Gabbert should have time to throw the ball.  His WRs and TEs don’t catch the ball too well, so it might be a moot point.

When the Titans have the ball:  The Titans will likely work backwards tomorrow, using the passing game to set up the run.  The Jaguars need to get after Matt Hasselbeck, or he could really torch their secondary.  Nate Washington, Lavelle Hawkins, Damian Williams and TE Jared Cook give Hasselbeck some nice targets in the passing game.  If the Titans are effective throwing the ball, it will set up RB Chris Johnson to have a solid game tomorrow.

PREDICTION:  TITANS 23, JAGUARS 13

The Jaguars have signed 28-year old safety C.C. Brown.  Brown played in 15 games for the Lions last year and he had 46 tackles, 4 passes defensed and 1 forced fumble.  He has now played in 81 games in his NFL career and he has 370 tackles, 1 sack, 8 tackles for a loss, 8 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries, 23 passes defensed and 3 interceptions.  The Jaguars hope that Brown is ready to play because they are running out of safeties.

The Jaguars never had a chance in this game as the Falcons were leading 41-0, before calling off the dogs.  Blaine Gabbert had another game to forget.  He completed 12 of 22 passes for 141 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT.  He also lost two fumbles, one was returned 13 yards for a DT Corey Peters for a TD.  Maurice Jones-Drew led the way on the ground for the Jaguars with 112 yards rushing on 17 carries (6.6 ypc).  WR Taylor Price (2 rec, 39 yards), WR Chastin West (3 rec, 38 yards, TD) and TE Marcedes Lewis (3 rec, 30 yards) led the way in the passing game last night.  The Jaguars finished up with 116 yards rushing on 19 carries (6.1 ypc) and they also completed 12 of 22 passes (54.5%) for 91 yards as they had possession of the ball for 21:29.

The Jaguars’ D played well against the run, but they were awful against the pass.  LB Russell Allen (9 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss) and CB Ashton Youboty (8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 pass defensed) led the way for the Jaguars on D last night.  Safety Dawan Landry (8 tackles), LB Paul Poslusny (8 tackles) and DE Jeremy Mincey (7 tackles, 1 sack, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 QB hit) also pitched in for the Jags last night.  The Falcons finished up with 97 yards rushing on 35 carries (2.8 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 32 passes (75%) for 276 yards.  The Falcons did have a great play on special teams when Kassim Osgood blocked a punt that was returned 46 yards for a TD by backup TE Zach Potter.  The Jaguars are now 4-10 on the season.

The Jaguars looked great last weekend, beating the hapless Tampa Bay Buccaneers 41-14.  They will try to keep the momentum going tomorrow against the Falcons in Atlanta….and that’s not going to be easy.  The Falcons have won three of their last four games and this is a game they need badly if they want to make the playoffs.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jaguars have the ball:  The Jaguars are going to come out running the ball with Maurice Jones-Drew (1,222 yards rushing) against a stout Falcons’ D that is allowing only 95.2 yards rushing per game and 3.9 yards per carry.  The Jaguars started taking some shots down the field last weekend and that will likely continue as long as Blaine Gabbert has time to throw the ball.  Gabbert will likely be aiming for TE Marcedes Lewis and Maurice-Jones Drew the most in the passing game tomorrow night.  WRs Jarrett Dillard (21 rec, 211 yards, TD), Chastin West (8 rec, 88 yards) and Kassim Osgood (3 rec, 23 yards) will all have to step up if the Jaguars are going to have success in the air tomorrow night.

When the Falcons have the ball:  The front seven of the Jaguars is going to have to deal with stopping Michael Turner, because the secondary is going to have their hands full stopping Matt Ryan and the passing attack.  The Falcons have a lot of weapons in the passing game as TE Tony Gonzalez, WR Roddy White, WR Julio Jones and WR Harry Douglas are all solid receivers.  The safeties will likely have to give help over the top against Julio Jones, who is a homerun hitter.  The rest of the Falcons’ receivers work on the short stuff and make plays after the catch.

PREDICTION:  FALCONS 27, JAGUARS 13

22-year old rookie QB Blaine Gabbert has looked a lot better the last couple of weeks for the Jaguars.  In his last two games, Gabbert has completed 38 of 66 passes (57.6%) for 412 yards with 4 TD passes and 3 INTs.  He has now played in 12 games for the Jaguars this year and he has completed 166 of 330 passes (50.3%) for 1,783 yards with 10 TD passes and 9 INTs (65.3 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 43 times for 92 yards (2.1 ypc) so far this year.  In Gabbert’s defense, the only receiver he can depend on right now is RB Maurice Jones-Drew, so the lack of a passing game isn’t all of his fault.