NFL Week 9 Predictions: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Kansas City Chiefs 11/6/16

Jaguars vs. Chiefs Prediction

With a backup in at QB, can the Kansas City Chiefs continue their winning ways when they face the Jacksonville Jaguars today at 1PM ET?

According to the oddsmakers at BetDSI, the Chiefs are the clear favorite at home, as they are getting odds of -7.5 points against the Jaguars. The over/under total for the contest has been set at 44.5 points. Kansas City has won two straight over Jacksonville and the Chiefs have covered in four of their last five meetings with the Jaguars.

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The Chiefs are coming off a 30-14 win last week at Indianapolis. They have won three straight to move to 5-2 on the year and 3-4 against the spread, however the Chiefs are 1-2 against the spread on the road. KC is led by its top-level defense, holding opponents to just 19.6 points per game. The unit also has 14 sacks and 16 turnovers. Offensively, KC isn’t terribly overwhelming, as they are putting up just 23.7 points per contest. Alex Smith has thrown for 1,638 yards and eight touchdowns, but he is out this week because of a head injury. That forces Nick Foles under center. He threw for 223 yards and two touchdowns and two touchdowns last week when Smith got injured. Spencer Ware also is dealing with a concussion and has been ruled out for this game. Charcandrick West will get most of the snaps in his absence, but he has proven to be a capable back in the past. Receiver Jeremy Maclin is also questionable with a groin injury. He is the leading receiver with 30 catches for 376 yards and two scores.

Jacksonville is coming off a 36-22 loss at Tennessee last week. The Jags are now just 2-5 on the season and 3-4 against the spread. Jacksonville fired its OC following last week’s loss as the team really struggled in the first half of the game against the Titans before piling on some garbage points in mop-up duty. The Jags are averaging just 19.9 points and 344.6 yards per game this season. The big issue has been the run game, which is posting only 72.6 yards per game. T.J. Yeldon is the leading rusher with 220 yards and a touchdown, but averaging just 3.5 yards per carry. Blake Bortles has thrown for 1,904 yards and 12 touchdowns, but also has nine interceptions. Defensively, Jacksonville is giving up 28 points per game on the year. They have forced just five turnovers in 2016 and have 13 sacks.

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Will the injuries be too much for KC today? It certainly seems like it could be the case. It’s one thing to be without Ware, but another to be without Smith. Smith is a very good QB for Reid and the Chiefs, as he manages the game very well. Foles is a big question mark in terms of what to expect. He hasn’t had a lot of good on-field action in some time. Jacksonville should be fired up following last week’s debacle and the firing of the OC. I expect a motivated effort from Jacksonville today to allow it to cover.

 

NFL WEEK 9 PREDICTION: JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS +7.5