3 bold predictions for Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars

It’s the battle for the second-overall pick between the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars.

The last time these two teams met was at the start of this 2021 season in Week 1. It was a completely different time, as Tyrod Taylor and Urban Meyer were still a thing for their respective teams. Fast-forwarding 14 weeks later, both of these teams limp into TIAA Bank Field on Sunday for the right to pick behind the Detroit Lions in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Houston steamrolled Jacksonville earlier this year, winning a 37-21 game that was never close. Any scenario is possible in their matchup on Sunday, given that the Houston Texans will be without Justin Reid at the Safety position on top of having rookie quarterback Davis Mills face off against fellow rookie Trevor Lawrence.

Both teams have nothing left to lose besides a draft spot, so what better than some bolder-than-usual bold predictions for these two teams?

Bold prediction number one: Jamal Agnew gets a return touchdown

Jamal Agnew made waves earlier this season by returning a kickoff for a touchdown against the Denver Broncos and then pulling off the rare feat of a “kick six” against the Arizona Cardinals to put them ahead at the halftime buzzer.

Agnew currently ranks 10th in the league in kick return yards with 525. He’s one of just three players to have a kick return touchdown this year. Agnew will take one to the house against Houston in some sort of fashion, and that score may just change the game between two struggling offenses.

Bold prediction number two: The Houston Texans will punt less than five times, going for it on fourth down

When you were the first team eliminated from the playoffs (somehow before the winless Detroit Lions were) and on another losing streak, why not go for broke in each game from start to finish? Houston currently ranks 27th in converting 4th downs in the league, with a rate of 42.11 percent. Houston has a significantly higher percentage when going for it on the road (50 percent) as opposed to going for it at home (36.36 percent).

With only four games left in the season, getting every snap to evaluate Davis Mills is a priority. David Culley will keep the offense out on the field to try and build some positive momentum that doesn’t fizzle out at halftime like last week’s matchup vs Seattle.

It’s worth noting that Mills completed his 14 passes going into halftime, but didn’t have that magic in the second half as he finished 33/49 for 331 yards and one touchdown. Maybe some fourth-down conversions will help keep the offense’s morale high and prevent a cooling-off that happened the week prior.

This will limit Jamal Angew from being lethal in the punt return game, but he still poses the threat to take it to the house.

Bold prediction number three: The Houston Texans will stifle James Robinson on the ground

When it comes to running the ball, James Robinson is one of the best backs in the league. The Houston Texans are also not good when it comes to stopping the run. Houston has allowed more rushing yards than any other team in the NFL (1,923 yards). So how in the world are they going to stop Robinson from running rampant?

The benching of Robinson done by former Jaguars Head Coach Urban Meyer may have a big part in all of that. Last week against the Titans, Robinson was only given the ball five times due to a fumbled ball against the Rams two weeks ago. With Meyer gone and out of the picture, we should see more of an effort of Robinson getting the ball.

Houston will bring pressure to pack the box, but Robinson’s ability to catch out of the backfield is what will save the Jaguars quite a bit on Sunday. Robinson will have seven catches for 56 yards and one touchdown.