Bengals vs Jaguars: Three Keys to Victory on Thursday Night Football

Cincinnati is hoping to improve to 3-1 for the first time since 2018.

The Bengals host the Jaguars on Thursday night at Paul Brown Stadium. Every guy in the locker room will tell you to ignore records with these types of games because Jacksonville has talented players on its roster. 

You may remember Marvin Jones Jr. who is now Trevor Lawrence’s favorite target (28 targets in 3 games). Urban Meyer’s team is 0-3, but they have talent. From Jones to Lawrence to DJ Chark, James Robinson and Carlos Hyde. 

There are a few things the Bengals must do to beat Jacksonville on Thursday. Here are three keys to victory.

Fluster Lawrence, Create Turnovers 

The Jaguars are -8 in turnover differential through three games, which is last in the league. Players in the Bengals’ past used consistently mention how difficult Ben Roethlisberger is to bring down because of his size. In Week 3, the Bengals front was able to sack Big Ben four times and hit him another seven times. 

Marion Hobby, Trey Hendrickson, and Larry Ogunjobi are making a big difference in that defensive line room, and they have another opportunity to make a quarterback’s life miserable for a few hours. On the defensive line’s menu tonight, is the No. 1 overall pick making his primetime debut. He brings with him some delicious stats that Cincinnati's defensive backs will be licking their chops to build upon. Lawrence has thrown 7 interceptions and lost two fumbles. Lawrence has made most of the right reads, but his processing time has been a tick too late and Cincinnati can take advantage of that.

Stifle Jacksonville’s Rushing Attack

Expect the Jaguars to rely on their running game. They averaged 4.8 yards per rush in Week 1 against the Texans, 4.7 yards-per-rush against the Broncos in Week 2, and James Robinson averaged 5.9 yards-per-carry against Arizona’s defense last week. I expect the Bengals to hold true to their identity as the eighth best defense in the league in stopping the run to make the Jaguars' offense one-dimensional throughout the night. 

Related: All Bengals Staff Makes Picks for Bengals vs Jaguars

Keep Joey B Clean 

I know TJ Watt wasn’t on the field last week for Blitzburgh, but I liked that Burrow didn't get sacked on Sunday. That’s a step in the right direction and now I want to see it for multiple weeks. Jacksonville’s front seven has three former first-round picks in K’Lavon Chaisson, Taven Bryan, and Josh Allen. They only have four sacks on defense in three games. 

Their best game coming against the Broncos when they brought down Teddy Bridgewater three times. The unit failed to record a sack last week against the Cardinals, and I believe the Bengals' offensive line could keep that stat in goose egg territory tonight which will help them send Jacksonville to their 19th straight loss.

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