NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (1-0) AT JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (1-0)
Sunday, Sept. 16, 2018 at 4:25 p.m. ET. TIAA Bank Field (67,814)
PATRIOTS: Game Release (PDF) | Roster | Depth Chart | Stats | Watch Games
JAGUARS: Roster | Depth Chart | Stats | Flip Card
The New England Patriots will began a two-week road trip when they travel to face the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Patriots will be on the road the following week as well with a trip to Detroit.
The Patriots hosted the Jaguars in the 2017 AFC Championship Game on Jan. 21, 2018, and scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to overcome a 20-10 deficit to win the game, 24-20.
The Patriots have won all seven of the regular-season games between the clubs, including all three regular-season matchups played in Jacksonville. New England last played in Jacksonville on Dec. 23, 2013, when the Patriots prevailed, 23-16.
The Patriots won all eight road games inn 2016 and their first six on the road in 2017 for a team-record 14-game road win streak, the second longest streak in NFL history. Overall, the Patriots have the best road record since 1994 when Robert Kraft purchased the team with a 121-71 road record.
SERIES HISTORY
The New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars will meet in a rematch of the 2017 AFC Championship Game on Sunday when the Patriots travel to Jacksonville. Last season, the Patriots overcame a 20-10 fourth-quarter deficit before rallying for a 24-20 victory to advance to Super Bowl LII on Jan. 21, 2018 at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots have won all seven of the regular-season games between the clubs, including all three regular-season matchups played in Jacksonville.
New England last played in Jacksonville on Dec. 23, 2013, when the Patriots prevailed, 23-16. The teams last played in the regular season on Sept. 27, 2015, when the Patriots came away with a 51-17 victory at Gillette Stadium.
The two teams have faced each other five times in the playoffs, including the 1996 AFC Championship Game at Foxboro Stadium and the 2017 AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots defeated the Jaguars, 20-6, in the 1996 AFC Championship Game, the first time New England hosted the AFC Conference Championship Game. The Patriots lead the Jaguars 4-1 overall in postseason games.
TALE OF THE TAPE
| 2018 Regular Season | New England | Jacksonville |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 1-0 | 1-0 |
| Divisional Standings | 1st | 1st |
| Total Yards Gained | 389 | 305 |
| Total Offense (Rank) | 389.0 (8) | 305.5 (25) |
| Rush Offense | 122.0 (12) | 137.0 (10) |
| Pass Offense | 267.0 (10) | 168.0 (24) |
| Points Per Game | 27 (9t) | 20 (20t) |
| Touchdowns Scored | 3 | 2 |
| Third Down Conversion Pct. | 28.6 | 30.8 |
| Team Passer Rating | 102.2 | 67.2 |
| Total Yards Allowed | 325 | 324 |
| Total Defense (Rank) | 325.0 (11) | 324.0 (10) |
| Rush Defense | 167.0 (29) | 114.0 (16) |
| Pass Defense | 158.0 (8) | 210.0 (11) |
| Points Allowed/Game | 20 (9t) | 15 (6) |
| Touchdowns Allowed | 2 | 1 |
| Third Down Defense (Pct.) | 18.2 | 30.8 |
| Field Goals Made/Attempted | 2/2 | 2/2 |
| Possession Avg. | 31:10 | 29:31 |
| Sacks Allowed/Yards Lost | 2/10 | 1/8 |
| Sacks Made/Yards | 3/18 | 2/14 |
| Passing TD/Int. (Off.) | 3/1 | 1/1 |
| Passing TD/Int. (Def.) | 1/1 | 0/1 |
| Penalties Against/Yards | 6/26 | 11/119 |
| Punts/Avg. | 6/46.8 | 7/37.7 |
| Takeaway/Giveaway Ratio | -1 (20t) |
SERIES TRENDS
Overall Record (including 4-1 in playoffs), 11-1
Record in New England, 8-0 (4-0 in playoffs)
- Foxboro Stadium, 2-0 (1-0 in playoffs)
- Gillette Stadium, 6-0 (3-0 in playoffs)
Record in Jacksonville, 3-1 (0-1 in playoffs)
Total Points, Patriots 327, Jaguars 193
Patriots' Largest Margin of Victory, 34 points (09/27/15)
Patriots' Largest Margin of Defeat, 15 points (01/03/99)
Highest Combined Point Total, 68 points (09/27/15)
Lowest Combined Point Total, 26 (01/12/97)
Games Decided by Seven or Fewer Points, 5
Current Win Streak, Patriots,eight games
Bill Belichick vs. Jacksonville, 8-2 (8-0 with New England)
RELATED: **Patriots - Jaguars Connections**
PASSING PERFORMANCES
Tom Brady has faced the Jaguars five times in his career in the regular season and is undefeated. Brady has also played Jacksonville three times in the postseason and is undefeated.
UNBLEMISHED RECORD
Jacksonville is one of seven NFL teams that Tom Brady has an undefeated regular-season record against.
TEAM | RECORD
Atlanta Falcons, 5-0
Jacksonville Jaguars, 5-0
Chicago Bears, 4-0
Dallas Cowboys, 4-0
Detroit Lions, 4-0
Minnesota Vikings, 4-0
Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 4-0
PASSING PERCENTAGE RECORDS
Tom Brady's had his two best single-game completion percentages against the Jaguars. Brady set a franchise record against the Jaguars on Dec. 27, 2009, when he finished with a completion percentage of 88.5, completing 23-of-26 passes for 267 yards and four touchdowns. His 88.5 completion percentage in that game is tied for the 13th best completion percentage in NFL history (min. 20 attempts).
Brady set an NFL postseason single-game completion percentage record when he completed 26-of-28 passes for 262 yards and three touchdowns for a completion percentage of 92.9 in an AFC Divisional Playoff against the Jaguars on Jan. 20, 2008 at Gillette Stadium.
IF THE PATRIOTS WIN...
- The team will earn a 2-0 start to the season for the 10th time since 2000. The Patriots last 2-0 start came in 2016. It will be the 15th 2-0 start in team history.
- The Patriots will improve to 8-0 against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the regular season and 12-1 overall. The teams last met in the 2017 AFC Championship Game, which New England won, 24-20. With a win, the Patriots will also improve to 4-1 against the Jaguars in games played at Jacksonville.
- Bill Belichick will extend his perfect record against the Jaguars to 6-0 in the regular season and 9-0 all-time as head coach of the Patriots.
- Tom Brady can tie Adam Vinatieri (if the Colts lose) with 225 career wins, the most by any NFL player in history. He can also extend his own NFL record to 225 career wins by a quarterback.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR...
- The Patriots can extend their streak to 12-straight regular-season games without allowing a 300-yard passer, dating back to Week 7 of the 2017 season. In the Bill Belichick era, the Patriots have accomplished a streak of 10 or more such games just twice, first from 2003-04 (14 games) and again from 2006-07 (14 games).
- If the Patriots do not allow a sack against Jacksonville, they will snap an 11- game streak by the Jaguars defense (regular and postseason), which has registered at least one sack in every game dating back to Nov. 19, 2017. The Patriots will also become just the second team to limit the Jaguars to zero sacks since the start of the 2017 season, as only the Chargers did in Week 10 last year.
- In 2017, the Patriots offense led the league with 42 red zone touchdowns, while the Jaguars defense led the league in fewest touchdowns allowed in the red zone with 11.
- If the Patriots score in the final minute of the first half, they will do so for the second straight week and the 13th time since the start of the 2017 season. They are 10-2 in games when scoring in the final minute of the first half.
- If Tom Brady throws a touchdown pass to one new target, he will tie Vinny Testaverde's NFL-record of 70 different touchdown targets (regular season only).
ROBERT KRAFT LOOKING FOR 300TH WIN
Robert Kraft won his 299th game overall as owner of the New England Patriots in the 2018 season opener vs. Houston and will look to win his 300th game this Sunday against Jacksonville. Kraft has a chance to reach the milestone in his 25th NFL season and 430th game, the fastest an owner will have reached the milestone. Pat Bowlen of Denver reached 300 career wins in 30 seasons and 501 games, while Al Davis of Oakland accomplished the feat in 31 seasons over 495 games.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
TELEVISION: This week's game will be broadcast by CBS and can be seen on WBZ-TV Channel 4. Jim Nantz will handle play-by-play duties with Tony Romo as the color analyst. Tracy Wolfson will work from the sidelines. The game will be produced by Jim Rikhoff and directed by Mike Arnold.
NATIONAL RADIO: Sunday's game will be broadcast to a national audience on ESPN Radio. Tom Hart and Bill Polian will call the game with Jeff Darlington as the sideline reporter.
LOCAL RADIO: 98.5 FM, The Sports Hub, is the flagship station for the Patriots Radio Network. A complete listing of the network's 41 stations can be found here. Play-by-play broadcaster Bob Socci will call the action along with former Patriots quarterback Scott Zolak, who will provide color analysis. The games are produced by Marc Cappello.
