The 2023 NFL Playoffs resume this weekend with the AFC Divisional Round and an intriguing match between the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars opens the tournament.
Jacksonville won its Wild Card clash over the LA Chargers, while Kansas scaled through after they were seeded first in the American Conference. It should be noted that these teams met in Week 10 of this season, with the Chiefs winning 17-27.
To keep the excitement going, MatchPlug brings you a preview of the Chiefs and Jaguars’ game and some of the best NFL Predictions Today surrounding this matchup.
Related: NFL Divisional Round Predictions: Philadelphia Eagles VS New York Giants
Predictions and Betting Preview for Kansas City Chiefs VS Jacksonville Jaguars AFC Divisional Round
- Venue: GEHA Field At Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri.
- When: Saturday, January 21, 2023
- Time: 13:30 GMT
- Teams to play: Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars
- NFL Picks: UNDER 52.5
Odds provided by 1XBet and BetMGM.
Betting On The Kansas City Chiefs
Regular Season Record: 14-3 (AFC West Champion – AFC 1st seed )
- 1XBet Spread: -9.5
- 1XBet Moneyline: 1.21
- 1XBet Over/Under: Under 52.5
- BetMGM Spread: -9.5
- BetMGM Moneyline: 1.20
- BetMGM Over/Under: Under 53
The Cincinnati Bengals and Buffalo Bills game being postponed gave the Kansas City Chiefs the opening they needed to win and begin the NFL postseason 2023 campaign rested; playing in their home field.
By securing the top record in the American Conference, the Chiefs could watch the AFC Wild Card games from home, including the matchup featuring the Jaguars who are struggling.
This season, the Chiefs already won Jacksonville, thanks to Patrick Mahomes who recorded one out of his three games with 4 touchdown passes on the season and completed 74.29% of his passes, which is his third-best percentage of the year.
Given Mahomes’ performance, the quarterback will again be the centre of attention for the Chiefs, a squad with the best offense in the NFL, which would be facing a defense that struggled a lot in defending against the pass.
In addition to leading the NFL in points scored (496), Kansas City was also the only team that surpassed 7,000 total yards (7,032) and no offense had better figures than them in average yards per play (6.4), first downs gained (408), passing yards (5,062) and passing TDs (41).
When it came to halting the ground attack, Andy Reid’s team were impressive. But, they’d need to be at the top of their game when playing Trevor Lawrence who would come to play with the confidence he took to his outstanding second half against the Chargers.
Lawrence knows that the Chiefs were the team with the most conceded touchdown passes on the year (33).
Betting On The Jacksonville Jaguars
Regular Season Record: 10-8 (AFC South Champion – 4th AFC seed)
- 1XBet Spread: +9.5
- 1XBet Moneyline: 4.42
- 1XBet Over/Under: Over 52.5
- BetMGM Spread: +9.5
- BetMGM Moneyline: 4.75
- BetMGM Over/Under: Over 53
Jacksonville Jaguars is still upholding their outstanding season, especially after defeating the Chargers 27-0, pulling off the third-largest comeback in postseason history.
The Jaguars overcame the four interceptions thrown by Trevor Lawrence in the first half of the game and today they’d be facing the Chiefs who are one of the favourites to win the Super Bowl and their biggest challenge of the year.
Doug Pederson’s leadership and skills showed in Jacksonville’s win, as he kept his men calm after five turnovers and led them as the first to win a postseason game with a -5 margin in turnovers.
After halftime, Lawrence and Jacksonville turned into something else, giving up only three points to the Chargers offense who had become distracted by mistakes the Jaguars made in the first half. While Lawrence gained 273 passing yards, Justin Herbert was intercepted three times and reached the end zone only once.
Trevor Lawrence was awakened after pulling off a strong defensive performance. He put down four touchdown passes and got an all-important two-point conversion to give the Jaguars the lead with a field goal as the game time expired.
For today’s game, the Jaguars are expected to be more ferocious towards the Chiefs than they were toward the Chargers. Kansas City might have the best offense in the league, but they’d test a Jaguars secondary that battled against Herbert and was the least efficient team in the NFL in defending the pass.
Note that the Jaguars’ quarterback threw for 331 yards, four touchdown passes, and one interception against Mahomes and the Chiefs this season.
MatchPlug Prediction
Anything can happen during the postseason and after what they did to the Chargers last weekend, Jacksonville Jaguars proved this point.
But it is also apparent that a team can’t make the same mistake twice, especially if they are playing against the Chiefs who had the best record in the conference and a 7-1 mark at home after losing to the Buffalo Bills.
Lawrence can throw off Kansas City’s secondary, but can he go head-to-head with Mahomes? Patrick Mahomes is said to be the best in the league and has already humiliated Jacksonville’s defense this year.
NFL Predictions say that there is no factor that indicates that today’s game will turn out differently, so the Jaguars must be proactive and score enough touchdowns to trouble Mahomes, who threw 12 interceptions despite being the lead as an MVP candidate.
