Predicting the score of Bills' primetime Week 3 clash with Jaguars

Can the Buffalo Bills move to 3-0 in their Week 3 matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars?

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The Buffalo Bills will look to move to 3-0 on the young 2024 season tonight as the team hosts the 0-2 Jacksonville Jaguars in a Week 3 Monday Night Football clash. The Jaguars lead the all-time series against the Bills (10-9) and have won three of the last four (including their 2017 playoff bout). The two teams seem to be on vastly different paths this season; however, the Jaguars will be looking to turn their season around. In the meantime, the Bills hope to continue their strong start.

Jacksonville will be without defensive back Darnell Savage and two-time Pro Bowl tight end Evan Engram, both of whom are big losses. The Jaguars have already struggled against the pass early in the season and are now tasked with playing against the best quarterback they've seen thus far in Josh Allen; being without Savage (who also missed Week 2 with a quad injury) won't make matters any easier. The Bills aren't without their losses either, with Terrel Bernard and Taron Johnson out. Baylon Spector will step in at middle linebacker for his first career regular season start.

Related: Why TE Dalton Kincaid is Bills' X-Factor vs. Jaguars despite slow start

Engram being out should take some of the load off the Bills' young linebackers, and with the Jaguars' merely adequate secondary (especially minus Savage), expect Allen and the Bills to be able to exploit the defense and move the ball consistently through the air. As a result, second-year tight end Dalton Kincaid could be in line for his first big game of the year. On the defensive side, Buffalo's secondary should be able to limit the Jags' outside threats, and though Christian Kirk is an underrated weapon in the slot, concern over the middle of the field is mitigated a bit due to Engram's absence. Assuming coverage holds up as expected, Gregory Rousseau, Von Miller, and Ed Oliver should be able to feast upfront and get after Trevor Lawrence.

A lot has been made about the Bills' upcoming matchup with the Jaguars, with some players calling their previous two contests with the conference foe "weird". Buffalo has dropped the last two against the Jags and three of the previous four. Buffalo is 1-2 with Allen at the helm against Jacksonville, with the lone win coming in Allen's rookie year (which was the Bills' last true home game against the Jaguars). Who comes out on top in this one? Jacksonville does not want to start the season 0-3, but it's difficult to pick the winless side in good faith, as the Bills are simply the better team. Bills win, 34 - 21.

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