5 Predictions for Jaguars Vs. Vikings: Robinson, Chark Have Big Games

We think DJ Chark and James Robinson have big games for the Jaguars in an otherwise losing effort this Sunday, along with other predictions.

One of the final three road games of Jacksonville's 2020 season will take place this Sunday, with the 1-10 Jaguars taking on the 5-6 Minnesota Vikings. For the Jaguars, this will be their fourth game in a row against an opponent pushing for a playoff spot.

Jacksonville has already had their season shaken up with the firing of general manager Dave Caldwell last Sunday. They are now playing for pride and for the hope of teaching their young core of players how to win. Meanwhile, the Vikings are fighting to keep their season alive past December. 

With these teams heading in different directions, you can expect Sunday's game to potentially go one of many ways. We attempt to paint a picture of how we see it playing out with these predictions. 

James Robinson and DJ Chark combine for 225 yards of offense, two touchdowns

Minnesota has long had a history of fielding elite defenses, but that hasn't always been the case this season. The Vikings have faced a number of obstacles on defense, namely injuries and a secondary filled with first-year players. Because of those two factors, we think the Jaguars' two best offensive players have big days for the Jaguars with DJ Chark and James Robinson combining for 225 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns.

Robinson was dominant in the month of November, averaging 116 yards from scrimmage and 0.5 touchdowns per game. The Jaguars have expanded his workload in recent weeks, in large part due to the constant changing of the starting quarterback. Against a Vikings defense that is allowing 4.37 yards per carry and 102.18 yards per game to running backs, we think this is a good matchup for Robinson. 

Then there is Chark, who will be making his return to the field after missing Week 11 with a rib injury. Chark leads the team in all major receiving stats despite missing two games this season, a strong reflecting of his importance to the offense. With Mike Glennon throwing 20 or more yards downfield on six of his 35 pass attempts, we think the Jaguars ask Chark to beat rookie cornerbacks Jeff Gladney and Cameron Dantzler on big plays downfield.

Jaguars' offensive line has its best performance of the season

Left guard Andrew Norwell not being in the lineup will be a big loss for the Jaguars, but we think the Jaguars win the battles up front even without him in the middle of the line. A.J. Cann, Brandon Linder, and Cam Robinson have all had solid seasons, and the Vikings are weak on the defensive line after the trading of Yannick Ngakoue, loss of Danielle Hunter due to injury, and the current injury to D.J. Wonnum.

The Jaguars don't have a fierce matchup on the interior. Minnesota's starting defensive tackles, Shamar Stephen and Jaleel Johnson, rank 44th and 128th, among 140 qualifying interior defensive linemen in PFF grade this season. Meanwhile, they have no defensive ends who will play on Sunday who have more than 2.5 sacks this season. The Vikings can still be dangerous on defense, but we think the Jaguars' offensive line genuinely have a big advantage this week. We have been wrong before, of course, but we think the unit galvanizes the rest of the offense this week.

Young secondary competes but gives up big numbers

Luq Barcoo had a better performance against Jarvis Landry and the Cleveland Browns last week than he has been given credit to. Josiah Scott had a tough draw in the slot in his first NFL start, but he has a lot of talent and was picked in the fourth round this year for a reason. With that said, these two rookie corners are once again being given a tough draw this week, facing the NFL's best receiver duo in Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen. 

Scott has allowed the third-most yards per snap of all cornerbacks this season according to PFF, while Jefferson ranks eighth in receiving yards and fourth in yards per reception with 17.7. Meanwhile, Thielen is fifth in the NFL in touchdowns with 11 in 10 games, already breaking his former single-season career high. Scott and Barcoo will play hard and likely make a play here or there, but we think Jefferson and Thielen continue the recent tear they have been on. They simply make it too hard on secondaries, let alone one as young as Jacksonville's.

Mike Glennon faces turnover problems 

The Vikings aren't exactly a defense that has feasted off turnovers, but we think this is a game that Mike Glennon's luck in terms of turnovers runs out. The Vikings have forced just 13 takeaways this season, but they field three of the NFL's best players in terms of creating turnovers.

Linebacker Eric Kendricks has always been one of the best coverage linebackers in the NFL, but he has been especially productive as of late. He has forced three interceptions in the last three games, and the Jaguars could potentially be the next to face his wrath in the middle of the field. Then there is outside linebacker Eric Wilson, who has three interceptions, one forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries. Meanwhile, Harrison Smith also has three interceptions and continues to be among the best safeties in the entire NFL.

Glennon played a mistake-free game against Cleveland last week, but the Browns' defense is much less talented than the one he will see on Sunday. As a result, we think Glennon turns it over twice. 

Jaguars hang around for two quarters but once again get gashed to close game

The Jaguars games have all mostly gone the same this season. They hang around in the first half typically going into halftime trailing by a possession or even just a handful of points. Then in the third quarter, everything comes crashing down and the Jaguars watch another winnable game slip from their fingers.

We think the same exact thing happens this week. The Jaguars are trying their hardest to snap this losing streak, but the Vikings simply have too many weapons for the young Jaguars' defense to keep up with for four quarters. We think the Vikings win 30-16.